You can control your termite infestation in different ways including, a termite bait or trap, infrared cameras, various homemade termite solutions, microwaves, termite bonds, and physical or sand barriers, but using the best termite poison depends completely on the type of termite infestation you’re dealing with.
One of the most efficient ways to get rid of termites is by employing termite poisons (termiticides) but how you deploy them depends on if you’re dealing with subterranean or drywood termites and some other factors. There are people who are specialized in pest control and they can find the best course of action in any particular case.
Table of Contents
- Termiticides
- What Termiticides Can Be Used Today?
- Examples of Termite Solutions:
- Further Termite Poison Resources
Termiticides
The varieties of poison used for termites are called termiticides. Their use primarily involves applying a liquid into the soil that will act as a chemical barrier to prevent termite populations from advancing toward the protected area (which is usually a residential property).
All the termites that penetrate the chemically treated soil are repelled. Termiticides act like a force field that protects your property from termites. There are also fumigants and baits used to poison the insects.
What Termiticides Can Be Used Today?
The termiticides that are used today are safe and effective, but with one condition: the label indications must be respected accordingly. If everything is done properly, the poison remains in the soil and works for five to ten years.
There are some differences between termiticides, as each type has its own pros and cons. If you want to obtain good results, you have to use a great volume of poison.
The differences between various solutions are minor and most of them work quite well. The cases in which treatment fails are usually those in which the label instructions have not been followed properly.
Liquids
Liquid treatments can be applied not only to the soil but also to the wood or foundation of a house, by drilling holes and spreading the liquid in these cavities.
The soil around the foundation is treated as well. After five years, a new treatment may be required.
Baits
As baits, pieces of paper or wood treated with liquid are spread around the home’s foundation.
The termites that come in contact with the pieces will take the poison to the rest of the colony and the whole colony can be killed but in a longer period of time. It can take up to a year for the colony to die, depending on its age.
Fumigation
This is the most efficient solution, but it involves the evacuation of the people in the home in which it is applied. Older colonies sometimes can only be eliminated using this solution.
The residues from the fumigation will prevent future infestations. Only a few days of evacuation are required.
Fumigants can be very effective in repelling termites that cannot be reached using liquids and other treatments. The reason is that fumigants can spread around the house and reach the tightest areas.
Examples of Termite Solutions:
Sentricon
Sentricon is not just a poison, but a system of wood baits that are placed around the infested area and releases poison in the baits when termites are detected.
People who already used this system say that it works very well, but there are better solutions, such as the use of Termidor.
Termidor
Termidor is a chemical solution creating a soil barrier that protects homes from termites.
Even if this solution seems to be a little more expensive than Sentricon, in the long term (with all the monitoring and reapplication), it proves to be cheaper and more effective.
Fumigation Gas
For dealing with drywood termites, fumigation gas is the primary solution. It is also known as sulfuryl fluoride and is the more eco-friendly alternative to methyl bromide, a former solution that proved to be bad for the ozone layer.
Terminix
Further Termite Poison Resources
- Liquid Termiticide Costs – University of Arizona
- Residual E Residual Effects of T ects of Termiticides on Mor ermiticides on Mortality of F tality of Formosan ormosanSubterr Subterranean T anean Termites, Copt ermites, Coptotermes F otermes Formosanus Shir ormosanus Shiraki, in aki, inSubstrates Subjected to Flooding – LSU
- An Assessment of the Health Risks of Seven Pesticides Used for Termite Control. – NIH.gov
- Termites: How to Identify and Control Them – EPA.gov
