Of all the possible pests that might invade the home, nothing is more insidious than the termite. It enters the house surreptitiously, wreaks havoc with the wood parts and destroys the integrity of the structure, all the while never showing itself. While you are confident of the sturdiness of the house, the termite has eaten it away and your confidence is hollow. Control of termites, though easily undertaken by calling in the professionals – if you’re in Kentucky and nearby states just call a Northern Kentucky pest control company and if in Ohio a few Cincinnati pest control service providers and you’re home free – it is still better to use prevention.
Prevention of termite infestation is premised on the two general concepts: denial of food, or containment. Termites eat wood -the cellulose in the wood, actually – so Pest Control Sales Jobs if they are barred from gaining access into the wood parts of the house, they cannot invade. To bar access by termites to the house wood, you can do the following:
a. Leave approximately two inches of clearance between the wood house wall and flower boxes or porches in contact with the ground or filled with soil. The two-inch space will be easy to inspect to see if it has been bridged by infesting termites.
b. Avoid wood touching the soil. Door facings, trellises, staircases and fences are the most common examples. Either put them on concrete blocks or cement footings. Where this is not possible, use treated wood. You can also put some automotive engine oil in a thick plastic bag, put in the lowest part of the wood post, close it up and sink the post into the soil. The idea is to build a termite-proof barrier between the wood post and the soil.
c. If you have basement, seal off all cracks that termites might use to invade your house. Do not rely too much on concrete foundations: a little crack and termites can squeeze through.
d. Locate plants a little way off the wood of the house to facilitate inspection of the house foundation line. Be on the sharp lookout for tell-tale signs of termite infestation like earth tunnels, hollow-sounding wood panels, and black earth above ground.
e. Rotting wood attract termites so burn off tree stumps, scrap wood How Often Should Pest Control Be Done and other wooden debris or relocate them away from your house.
As to containment, simply have the pest control professionals poison the soil below your house to build a barrier where termites cannot pass through to your home. Termites create their nests some ways below ground and only build passageways to invade houses and eat wood. A layer of poisoned soil effectively cuts off this avenue of infestation.
Termite proofing your house is not a very difficult task. It only entails regular frequent inspection to nip infestation in the bud. Since chemical or other methods of control can be costly, the best way to prevent termite infestation is still prevention. Do it and avoid the event of the house falling down on your head.
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