How to Treat Your Soil for a Termite Infestation

How do you treat your soil when there’s a termite infestation?

1. Confirm if you have a termite infestation
2. Have the proper tools and chemicals
3. Soil treatment proper

 

Termites are some of the most common household pests that you can encounter. That being said, dealing with a termite infestation is not only frustrating, but it could also leave your house vulnerable to structural damage because termites eat wood to survive.

If you have the best interest of your house and family in mind, termite control is your top priority when faced with an infestation. There are many ways to do it, from treating the soil around your house to treating the wood inside it.

Usually, employing professional pest control personnel would be your best bet to combat any sort of infestation. However, if you are feeling determined, there is a proper way of doing it yourself.

To help get you started, here is how you can treat your soil for termite infestations.

 

Confirm if you have a termite infestation

One thing you must do before anything else is to confirm that your house is infested by termites. There are a couple of telltale signs, and it would do you well to be on the lookout for the following.

Subterranean termites live in the soil instead of having colonies. You should always look out for ‘mud tubes’ or brown looking trails that are connected to the ground level of your homes. Aside from that, you should also be mindful of the following.

 

Head banging

If you are hearing faint knocking sounds around you while you’re home alone, don’t panic. It’s not a poltergeist at work. It could actually be termites eating away at the wooden structures of your house.

What most people don’t know is that solider termites bang their heads on the wood in order to notify other termites of potential danger. Make sure to keep an ear out for these sounds.

 

Flying termites

On the more visual side of things, one of the first signs of a termite infestation is the presence of flying termites called swarmers.

Termites that leave their nest in order to find a mate and establish a new colony. If you see a few outside your home, it might not mean that you are infested just yet.

But if you see many flying insects swarming light sources and discarded wings along surfaces inside your home during the rainy season, then you should be concerned because you are probably already infested.

 

Have the proper tools and chemicals

Once you have confirmed your termite infestation, the next thing to do is to prepare for treatment. Soil treatment is not simple. There are specific tools and chemicals you need in order to do it properly.

The process almost always involves digging a trench around the foundation of your home. You’re going to need tools for digging — a shovel, a grub hoe, or a pickaxe should do the trick. You would also need termiticides for different formulations.

Since you are going to do soil treatment, find a termiticide from your local hardware or specialty store that works best with the type of soil you have. Make sure to get copious amounts if your lot area is particularly big.

In order to apply the termiticide, you would then need a combination of a spray-tank and an injector rod to effectively implement it. Make no mistake, doing termite control without the proper equipment and chemicals will be a futile effort.

 

Soil treatment proper

Once you’re properly equipped, soil treatment is done in three major steps.

The first thing you need to do is to dig a sizable trench in the area where your soil meets the foundation of the house. This will serve as the area in which you will apply the termiticide. You don’t have to dig that deep if you have an injector rod because you can just inject the soil directly.

Once you are done digging, you can start applying your chosen termiticide. Make sure to use copious amounts on the treatment area so that it can deeply penetrate the soil, leaving no safe area for the termites to pass through. Injector rods and spray tanks are your best friends for this part of the treatment as they help you apply the termiticide efficiently.

After applying the termiticide, proceed to refill the trench with soil.

This type of treatment has two benefits: it helps prevent future termite infestations and kills any termites in your house when they eventually return to the soil to breed.

 

Key Takeaway

Termite control is usually something that is best left to the experts. That, however, shouldn’t stop you from trying to do things on your own. If you have the time, energy, and resources to do your own pest control, then you should give it a shot. It could deal with your infestation in a timely manner and help you save some money along the way.