I've struck TERMITES!!

[wombat]

Good ol’ Mum had decided that she had had enough of her 1970’s speckled vinyl floor tiles that were in her house and decided to get them ripped up and to polish up the Tasmanian hardwood floorboards that lay underneath. What we discovered when the tiles and masonite base was lifted was that the floorboards have had a visit from termites – DAMN! There doesn’t appear to be any termite activity but I am no expert on termites.

I can get the damage repaired quite easily it seems but I want to be sure that the critters are gone and if they are not gone I would like them to be Kaput (or get them to pay rent )

Can anyone recommend a pest controller for the Melb Eastern Suburbs (Box Hill), and what would should I expect for the cost of the inspection and treatment?

wombat

 

[Macca]

Hi Wombat,

I am not a pesty but have had probs with nasties before.

Can you get under the house ? if so, take a large torch and try and find where they were / are entering the house.

If you can find the track, break a little piece off and see if they are still active, if they are Bu**ar

If not then it would still be worth getting a pro to have a look as they are really sneaky little B.............s.

I would be getting a pesty to go over my internal walls and mouldings with his / her meter just to make sure they haven't moved on to another part of the house.

If you are on a slab, check around where the bricks join the slab on the outside, there may be a garden bed covering the slab/wall joint, they love that, don't disturb it if it is outside and still get the inside checked.

Can't help with a name in VIc as I live in NSW.

 

[wombat]

Hi Macca – The house is on stumps and I could get under and I have found a trail originating on one of the hardwood stumps, It does not appear to be active and I have been told that they may come back when the weather cools. I couldn’t trace the trail much further yet.

wombat

 

[Macca]

Hi Wombat,

They can come and go, so I have been told, but I think I would still be getting a pesty to do an inside scan with their meter, just to be on the safe side.

Good luck

 

[JFisher]

Was there any ant caps on the stumps? Or maybe they were dinted/damaged. You could get the antcaps replaced (or installed properly) to prevent them going up the stumps again. Also get the pest controllers to check the stumps once a year and spray when the chemical lifespan is over. You may need to spray earlier if you get alot of water under the house for some reason. Check for and resolve any areas of dampness under the house; termites love damp soil. Termites are also light sensitive and will die shortly after being exposed to light so if you find a mud tub then remove it; they will be forced to rebuild the tube before they can retrace their steps. By then it will be too late as you will have put some permanent measures into place.

As a rule the termites will quickly eat out the softwood before they continue with the hardwood, so check the arch's, skirts and cabinetry that could be made with softer timbers. There are many naturally resistant timbers which are primarily used for subfloor and floor manufacture and this may explain why they gave up (if they went away by themselves).

 

[WinstonWolfe]

As a rule the termites will quickly eat out the softwood before they continue with the hardwood, so check the arch's, skirts and cabinetry that could be made with softer timbers. There are many naturally resistant timbers which are primarily used for subfloor and floor manufacture and this may explain why they gave up (if they went away by themselves).

appreciate your view Julie. Can you give an opinion about using treated pine for frame and trusses. Do you think it is worth paying more for. Am quoted around $5/m2 extra.

 

[sailor]

I've had two brushes with termites.

The first in a besser block of units. There were a couple of termite mounds in the surrounding gardens. Pesty said "don't touch". He came and drilled holes in the surrounding concrete paths. Cost to body corp...over $3K for a block of 6 units.

The second is an old (60+years) timber house I've just bought (with full knowledge there had been termite activity previously). There are some timber and some steel stumps (lowset). However, I've just discovered two floor boards where they are still active. You can tell cos they leave tiny piles of sawdust looking stuff on the top of the wood. I've been advised by a pesty to leave as is, until I raise the house (should be in the next couple of weeks), and they can easily check under all the floor boards. Ripping out a couple of walls has also been interesting in that I've found heaps of mouldings that look like honeycomb (termites are obviously hungry little critters). I'm expecting it will cost around $1500 to have the new steel stumps fitted with termite caps, plus around $3K to have many of the floor boards replaced (price includes sanding and polishing 90 M2).

Here's a couple of good sites for more info:
http://www.labyrinth.net.au/~dewart/whatr.htm
http://www.termite.com.au/

 

[wylie]

All I would add is that our well known, knowledgeable pesty says not to disturb them. Once you disturb them, they go off to find somewhere else in the house to be left alone.

We bought a house a few years ago with a free standing garage which was almost falling over it was so riddled with active termites. Another pesty came along, poked and prodded and pulled off bits of timber.

Our chap was dismayed and said this should not have been done. He treated the place, drilled the timber stumps in the main house but in his professional opinion the other chap had done completely the wrong thing by disturbing the site so much. I think his plan of action would have been to set a trap near the active site to bait and poison the queen.

Wylie

 

[sailor]

The termites that attack timber in houses is called Pycnoporus coccineus and they leave little tracks like this, so are easily recognised:

Ants mainly are the predators of termites...especially the little winged ones.

"After the discovery of an active infestation, it is important that the termite workings are not further disturbed until management methods have been determined. Premature attempts to repair or replace infested timber may cause the termites to withdraw temporarily from the area and hinder effective treatment. Where possible, soldier termites should be collected during the inspection, preserved in alcohol (methylated spirit is suitable) and submitted to a specialist for identification. Knowledge of the species of termite involved may affect the choice of treatment."

Source: http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/forestry/4999.html

 

[AndyP]

I have discovered termites in the IP we recently purchased. halfway through renovations and pulled out a wall to see the little guys crawling around everywhere.
3 pest controllers came around and gave quotes all ranging between $2-3.5k for chemical treatment (3 bedroom house on 650sqm block in Melb SE). Been told baits may cost a little more. Two of them also tried to charge for the inspection. Came as a bit of a shock considering its my first house and doing all the renovating on my own due to low budget.

Had another pest guy come out and actually drilled out some trees in the yard till he found one containing a nest. Didnt charge me anything, just told me to get the big 40 foot gum removed and call him back in 6 weeks time. I wanted to get rid of that tree anyway so has worked out well. Said he was 80% sure they would all be dead (unless there is another nest).

Got tree cut down for $800 and he is coming back next week so fingers crossed.

Company is Termistruct and his name is John DeBenedictis. You can contact him on 0438 115150