Over the last few months we’ve explored how important it is to take proper preventative measures when dealing with an active termite infestation. We’ve discussed the dangers termites pose to both your families and homes, as well as common termite behavior and effective professional treatment methods. Now we’d like to discuss something that may be coming into play now that Covid-19 has kept up locked in our homes for the last few months. What do we really know about all of these Pinterest, DIY home remedies that are out there and how effective are they long-term?
DIY or do it yourself home remedies are becoming a popular method preferred over the use of industrial grade chemicals to treat pests in and around homes. We can understand that the idea of using these chemicals throughout your home may worry you because of how harsh they may be around your family and furry friends. Let’s explore some common remedies found online and determine how effective these treatments are.
Here at Buckaroo Pest Protection we aim to make sure your families are safe and do not recommend the use of these home remedies. It’s important to understand that though these remedies may seem effective, they’re not typically long-term solutions. Products such as professional grade liquid barrier treatments or systems like Sentricon, provide a much safer and permanent alternative for your home, family, pets and children.
Borax Treatments
This home remedy is typically meant for outdoor usage and comes in a variety of methods to try and quell the progression of an active termite infestation. This remedy requires you to either use the powder alone or mix together Borax with water and/ or sugar to create a spray solution or small balls to place around your home. This method is not something that could be effective in the long run because of how termites burrow deep underground or within the walls and woodwork of your home. Buckaroo Pest Protection aims to rid both your home and the environment surrounding it from termites while using products that can be used inside and outside your home.
Though this borax method may be effective in killing termites on the surface, it’s highly unlikely that it will reach far enough down to eliminate the rest of the nest. Some of these methods require a more hand on consistent approach where you would have to repeat treatments quite often to see results. This is primarily ineffective because you would have to constantly replace powder or reapply a spray solution that won’t kill off the rest of the colony. This would only provide temporary relief and will not hamper the further development of the termite colony.
Diatomaceous Earth Treatments
This product comes in the form of a white powder and is commonly sought out as a popular treatment for termites, bed bugs and other pests. This product is safe for human use and consumption and is commonly used as a health supplement. To kill termites indoors or outdoors, it’s most effective applied directly to the termites to dehydrate them and prevent them from molting. This method could be effective short term but will not do anything for the termites you can’t see or reach within or underneath your home.
As termites prefer damp environments, this may be an effective method to dry out moisture rich areas outside of your home but will not target the heart of the colony. The most important method to termite prevention is to directly make contact with the queen and the bulk of the colony. This will prevent any future development within the colony and will effectively take care of the infestation. An important thing to consider is that the methods we use at BPC prevent the recurrence of infestations and ensure the protection of your home.
Wet Cardboard Method
This method may seem effective because it’s the perfect termite bait. Termites love damp environments and feed on cellulose which makes this method pretty top tier in terms of gourmet termite food. Unfortunately, this method requires you to wet cardboard and leave it out in the open. This may draw termites out from hiding, but it won’t kill them and requires you to remove the termites from your home to dispose of them. Another risk involved with this method is the unintentional spread of termites throughout your home. This may bring termites out from hiding but will also encourage them to explore areas they may not have touched before. We definitely do not recommend this method because it doesn’t take care of the problem at all and can make things worse.
Orange Oil Treatments
his method is considered to be the ‘bees knees’ of DIY treatments for Drywood termites. This treatment has to be applied as a spot treatment and can damage the furniture or wood it’s applied to. Why create unnecessary damage to your home? Though this is effective in killing termites, doesn’t target the heart of the colony or ensure that all of the termites in your home will be killed off. Like the other methods above, this does not provide a long-term solution and may be more costly in the end. This is also a poor treatment to use because you may have more than one type of termite in your home and this would only be effective for Drywood termites.
Long-Term Solutions are KEY
DIY treatments may seem more cost effective and easier to implement than a structured prevention plan, but we want to remind you of the effectiveness of our methods. Most diy treatments are not long-term solutions and tend to allow for termite colonies to keep coming back. We at Buckaroo Pest Protection aim to provide your family and home with a treatment plan that takes care of the infestation for good.
These professional treatments such as the usage of liquid barrier solutions and systems like our famed Sentricon©, ensure that your home will stay protected no matter the change of season or rise in temperature. It’s important to consider professional treatments over traditional diy methods because they may pose a higher risk to your family or cause damage within your home. Though we understand that pest control services may be pricey, they’re an important and essential investment toward the long-term protection of your home.
Feel free to give us a call at (469) 598-0560 or click here to sign up for a free professional home inspection or information regarding our services. Check out our latest promos! For current covid-19 related updates click here to view a message from our company.
