Few things are as annoying as the discovery of termites on your property. Whether it’s seeing the small lines appearing on your wooden floorboards, your skirting boards crumbling away or, it’s natural to feel concerned about how you’re going to safely eliminate termites from your property and ensure your family and pets are not at risk.
At Specialist Termite Control we know how you feel. Finding out your home is being eaten away by termites can cause stress. Not only do you want to take action, but you’re worried about how you can stop termites in their tracks.
You might be asking yourself how to get rid of termites. Many homeowners are talking about it because while you want a solution that works, you also want something safe for your family and environmentally friendly. That’s where Specialist Termite Control can help. Our treatments target termites right at the source allowing you to rest easy.
Preventing termites from damaging your property is the best option. Professional termite protection not only keeps your property safe but also your possessions and family. No more guessing games or worrying about harmful DIY solutions. Let us take care of the termites for you!
But how do these chemicals actually work? To understand why professional chemicals are so effective, it helps to look at how termites actually live. They don’t just wander aimlessly through timber — they operate from concealed colonies almost always ‘remote from the infested building’. Such colonies can be in trees or underground up to 100m away. Once you understand that behaviour, the way termite treatment chemicals work starts to make a lot more sense.
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Understanding Termite Nests and Their Behaviour
Termite ingress is often encouraged by ‘conducive conditions’ such as poor ventilation, water leaks or building design. However, it’s important to remember these are ‘conducive’ conditions, not necessarily ‘causal conditions’. Many homes suffer termite damage without these conditions and ultimately, if there is a termite colony within the vicinity of your home and your home is constructed from their food source, then termite ingress may occur.
Many suburbs across Australia provide the perfect conditions for termites to become active, sometimes faster than you might think.
What Do Termite Nests Look Like?
Customers often ask us what do termite nests look like. Well, it depends on where you are in Australia. In the tropics, arboreal termite colonies are common and can be seen as a large mud cluster attached to the trucks of trees often many meters off the ground.
Large mud colony structures are a real feature throughout Australia varying in size dependent on the termite species. In the Melbourne region, it’s rare to see any visual sign of the termite colonies where they are often located within the bulbous base of trees or below the soil structure itself.
How Termite Treatment Chemicals Target Termites
Professional treatments won’t simply kill termites on contact or in the area that they’ve been seen. The goal is always termite nest elimination and our treatments work towards that goal by using products that have a ‘transferability’ thus contaminating more termites than are initially contact with the product. Advanced treatments allow termites to move about as usual so they can continue to spread the treatment to their nest undetected. Once the poison hits the colony, it can, on occasion, cause it to collapse.
This method is much more effective than sprays and DIY fixes that only target termites on the surface.
Active Ingredients and How They Work
Different chemicals work in different ways, so depending on the severity of your termite infestation and your property’s requirements you may need to use one repellent or non-repellent over another. Bifenthrin for example is a repellent that aims to create a repellent zone around your home. This will last you around up to ten years according to the label and works on both new and existing buildings.
Chemicals such as Altriset, Premise and Termidor are non-repellents so they don’t try to repel termites away from your home.
Instead they allow termites to roam freely back and forth across the chemical-treated areas, slowly dispersing the chemical throughout the termites using a process known as trophallaxis. This chemical treatment works verywell in more risky applications. Being non-toxic Altriset is great to use around the family and pets. I
Premise works in a similar way to Termidor using the trophallaxis effect. Premise is water-soluble so it can pass through the soil easier and into even damp areas of your property searching out termites. “Premis” doesn’t last as long in wet areas but is also less toxic. You need to take care when applying as it can be absorbed by plants and bees.
The Difference Between SoilTreatments and Baiting Systems
Depending on your property and the severity of your infestation, we may implement chemical soil treatments or install a termite baiting system. Chemical soil treatments create a treated zone around or underneath your home that prevents termites from entering your home.
Termite baiting stations are often combined with monitors and are placed throughout your property and work by having termites feed from the station and carry the non-classed poison (hormone inhibitor)material back to their nest. Both of these treatment types utilise termite behaviour to your advantage.
Safety Considerations for Children, Pets, and the Environment
Termite treatments used by professional technicians are perfectly safe for homes with kids and pets when applied correctly. Some chemicals like Altriset are not toxic at all and can even be applied to areas that people and pets walk on. Other products may have a higher level of toxicity but require only that you keep your pooch and progeny away from recently treated soil until the product is dry, leaving your home is rarely necessary nowadays.
What matters is that the application is done correctly: knowing which product works best for where and how to keep kids and pets out of trouble allows the technician to be both safe and effective.
Increasingly clients also want to know about the environment. Today we have less toxic options, and options designed to limit impact on surrounding plants, bees and creatures. Our specialist technicians take care when applying treatments to prevent runoff, unnecessary exposure and over-applying.
When you choose Specialist Termite Control, you can feel safe knowing we take both people and the environment into consideration, and you can both keep termites out of your house and keep your backyard happy.
When to Call a Professional for Termite Control
Termites are tricky pests — they don’t announce themselves and often stay hidden until damage is serious. While DIY treatments may seem appealing, they rarely address the full scope of a colony and more often than not increase the chances of long-term undetected termite damage. For real protection, professional intervention is essential.
Sprays and do-it-yourself treatments may kill visible termites, but they are unlikely to have a lasting effect. DIY termite control l efforts can waste your time, deliver incomplete results and allow damage to continue. When you engage a termite specialist, they’ll target both visible termites and apply treatments that work to eliminate the colony.
Trust trained eyes to see what you may have missed. During a termite inspection, professionals will look for tell-tale signs of termite activity. They can also analyse environmental conditions and determine how timber structures interact with the soil and other moisture sources. This information can be crucial when it comes to selecting an effective termite treatment solution.
Leave it to the experts instead of experimenting on your own. Termite treatment plans should only be carried out by qualified professionals who have the experience and products to do the job right. At Specialist Termite Control, we know how frequently your property should be inspected and what areas put you most at risk. We can also advise on the various termite treatment methods that are best suited to different conditions. Our technicians can advise you on average termite treatment cost for Melbourne homes.
Protecting Your Home Safely and Effectively
Termites can often go unseen until major damage is done to your home. Fortunately, with some expert knowledge and care, you can treat your termite problem safely and effectively without harming your family or pets. Whether it’s knowing how termite colonies function, identifying nest locations or applying chemicals safely and legally, each step of the process is crucial. That’s why you need an expert by your side.
Specialist Termite Control has years of experience in safely taking care of termite problems with a methodical, researched approach. We won’t only treat the termites you see, but rather attempt to take care of the problem from the colony as a whole while keeping your loved ones and the environment in mind. The earlier you act, the better. Contact us directly or schedule a termite inspection today and keep your home safe, secure and termite-free from those you can see and can’t see.
With the right professional help by your side, you can rest easy knowing your home is in good hands.
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