Ask the Termite and Pest Control Guy, Part II

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Now that spring has finally sprung over most of the country, the bugs and pests are waking up.

April marks my tenth anniversary in the termite and pest control biz, and I’m willing and eager to share my expertise with the Teeming Millions. Many pest problems can be solved by the homeowner/renter, as long as they know what to do. Let me help.

My answers will be based on my knowledge of such matters, and the laws that prevail in New York State. I am not up on every law in every state, though, and I encourage everyone to research and follow their local laws regarding pesticide applications.

So let’s hear it. What’s bugging you?

2

How long does it take for termites to destroy a house?

3

What’s the most unusually large critter you’ve ever seen?

E.g./ Roach the size of a rat, silverfish the size of a mouse, mouse the size of a daschund.

4

I had the new termite bait ports system installed last year. Sounded like a great concept. They come to check periodically if the bait’s shown signs of termite activity. So far nothing, no news is good news I suppose. Or is this a scam? I basically look at the yearly premium as an extension of my homeowner’s insurance. Ya’ just gotta’ have it in case something does happen. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

5

Carpenter ants must die.

Any suggestions on mode of extermination?

6

I have ladybugs coming out of the walls, I swear. I suck them up with the vacuum and they stink.
How do I get rid of these beetley things?

7

LunaSea, on average, Eastern Subterranean termites can destroy one foot of a 2X4 in one year. In terms of completely eating an entire house, you can do the math for yourself. If you use the term “destroy a house” to mean cause substantial structural damage, I would say five to seven years. If those babies get into a main support beam and do their work unimpeded, floors can sag and collapse. Other species, such as the dreaded Formosan termites, are more aggressive and the colonies are larger, so they’ll cause more damage in a shorter time. Being in the northeast US, I don’t deal with anything other than Eastern Subs.

Eats_Crayons, I once dreamt about termites the size of woodchucks (and they weren’t happy with me), but in reality, probably a good sized rat. Some of them can grow to fairly large proportions. In the case of insects, it’s mostly a matter of the size of the colony, if they’re social insects like ants or yellowjackets. For roaches, it depends on species. American roaches are alarmingly huge, and I’ve seen some roughly the size of my thumb.

quiltguy154, there are a number of termite baiting systems out there. For my money, and from my experience and knowledge, the Sentricon system is the best. Independent tests have made it the only termite treatment clinically proven to eliminate the colony. It can take a while for termites to find the stations, though, since nothing attracts them to their food. They literally bump into it as they forage randomly, continuously, and blindly. So I can’t tell you if no news is good news or not. The really good news would be, if you know you have termites infesting your house, that one or more stations was hit and baited. The system can’t kill termites if they don’t eat any bait. But baiting systems, in theory, aren’t jive. Some are more effective than others, however.

imthjckaz, carpenter ants are a bane, I agree. Nasty rotters which must be eliminated. Couple qualifying questions first…

  1. did you notice ants in the house during the winter? If so, they have a nest in your house somewhere, since where you live, they wouldn’t have come from outside at that time. If you’re just starting to see them, they’re either coming in from outside now that the weather is warm, or they got in last fall and deposited some eggs and you’re seeing the hatchlings.

  2. have you had this problem before? Are they showing up in the same area all the time?

  3. do you see other evidence of them? Carpenter ants don’t eat wood, they excavate it. So they push out coarse sawdust-like material called frass to make room in the chambers they create. You’ll find piles of frass, likely with ant body parts mixed in, under the place they’re nesting.

Look in your basement, around window frames, in crawlspaces, especially in areas where you’ve noticed actual ants. Look for frass and entry points (any gap, no matter how small, is a potential entry point). Once you find them, treat as far inside the crack or crevice as possible. If you can find an insecticide in a dust formulation, use that. Poof the dust into the crack. It resembles talcum powder, and will spread out and settle like talc, creating a poisonous environment where they’re living and nesting and traveling. Teat the surrounding areas as well, above, below, and to the sides, so they will get it if they run from the main area.

In fact, I’d recommend treating the surrounding areas before treating what you believe is the main area. Let’s say you find them in the basement, under the kitchen sink, where the pipes go. Treat the cracks and crevices in the kitchen first, where the pipe openings are, under the cabinets, remove the plates from the wall outlets and put dust in the wall void (don’t use a liquid or aerosol around wires, which I hardly need tell you; this is why a dust formulation is good. You won’t electrocute yourself or set your house on fire, although the latter will eliminate your ant problem). After treating the surrounding area, then go down and treat the main area. If you are correct in your evaluation of their nesting location, you’ll have the pleasure of seeing panicked ants by the dozens running around, spazzing out, and subsequently dying before your eyes. Beat your chest and dance the victory dance of the Species with Opposable Thumbs, for you have bested nature and remain the sovereign of your environment.

misstee, in New York state, ladybugs are a protected species, and it’s against the law for a professional pest technician to target them. No lie. Ladybugs eat aphids, which destroy roses and other plants, so they are a beneficial insect. People who raise flowers actually buy ladybugs through the mail and keep them in their gardens. I don’t know if this is true in your locale, but I’d contact the local Cooperative Extension if I were you, and ask.

Once thing that we tell people who have lots of ladybugs in their home is to take a hand-held vacuum and suck them up. It won’t kill them, as such things are fairly gentle in the suction department, and ladybugs are beetles with hard shells. After sucking them up, just dump them into your garden. They may stink, but they’re relatively harmless, and who knows, it may do your ornamentals some good.

8

I have just found that I have ants. I found about 20 of the little buggers crawling around on my lounge floor. Ugh! :eek:

Had no idea where they were coming from so sat and watched the general area and after about 10 mins, i saw another 5 crawl out of a gap between where the skirting board meets a doorframe.

I was thinking of sealing up this gap, but now am wondering about this. I could well seal up all visible gaps, but then that could lead to the problem of the little sods finding an entry way that is not visible. While I know where they are coming from, it could be easier for me to deal with them(?).

I also found the location from where they were appearing a bit disturbing, as it is not an external wall. It is an internal wall between the kitchen and lounge – which joins onto another internal wall between my neighbour’s property and mine.

So would you say that I might have a colony established in the middle of my house? The thought creeps me out.

I got rid of the ants that were crawling around; but still, I wondered what they came out for, then remembered, a couple of hours previously I had been drinking honeyed beer – only a meter away from where they crawled out of. I can only figure it was this that they were after?

I am hoping that the smell of the honeyed beer was so strong it just attracted a few ants from nearby an external wall who popped in to investigate (and only to be severely disappointed).

I hope that this is the case – I did read up on the issue at the time on the net, and found all sorts of advice – one point being to ensure all external walls are clear of foliage and any other items that may give insects etc some kind of cover. Well, I had a wheely bin against my rear external kitchen wall – and noticed a neat pile of leaves stacked between the bin and the wall. I moved the bin away, and cleared the leaves with my foot, to find oodles of (now probably very peed off) ants scurrying around, most of which quickly disappeared into the cracks between the patio paving slabs.

This was about 3 days ago and I have not seen any since. In light of this, do you think I should still get some bait (where they take it back and feed it too each other and die off?) and / or powder poison?

Also – I have seen that there is some bait that they take back to the nest, feed each other with it. It then causes them to hallucinate and attack each other! The advert for this particular product is one of the main hits when you look up this issue on google. You ever heard of this stuff, and if so, what do you think of its effectiveness?

9

No, I’ve never heard of the stuff that makes ants hallucinate and attack each other. Sounds positively Machiavellian, if you ask me. Not to mention overkill.

But I would recommend you treat for these ants somehow. Seeing as how they made their way inside once, and also seeing as how they disappeared into the ground close to the house when you disturbed them, it’s not a stretch to assume they’re nesting right nearby and will get into your house again.

You didn’t mention whether these were carpenter ants (which are alarmingly large, black ants) or ordinary ants (commonly called house ants, sugar ants, pavement ants, etc.). In either case, you want to get rid of them.

Clearing out harborage from close to the structure, as you did, is a good idea. Leaves, wood, other debris, as well as shrubs growing too close to the structure (i.e. touching it) is a good start to keeping ants outside where they belong.

Sealing gaps would be a good idea after you treat for them and are sure you’ve eliminated the problem.

You don’t mention if you have a basement. If not, your building is sitting on a slab, which means the ants can live in the soil under the slab and find an access crack to get in. Even if you do have a basement, though, ants can travel quite a way to get to food sources and water, so having them come up near your kitchen is not unusual.

I would use an insecticide dust or a spray with residual power and a straw-like applicator tip to apply it inside the crack. As I mentioned in my reply above, it is probably a good idea to treat surrounding areas first, so that they will be doomed if they run (and most insecticides have flushing agents, so they will run).

You may have noticed that I’ve recommended twice now that cracks and crevices and wall voids be treated. Topical treatments are not nearly as effective, and leave you more exposed to airborned pesticides. Insects nest and travel in wall voids. By making the effort to treat where they are, rather than where you see them, you’ll be able to use less pesticide to greater effect. And you’ll be safer, too.

Now would be a good time for me to make the general statement that you should always read and follow the label directions on pesticides. Make sure it’s made to target the pest you’re after, and make sure you understand how applications are to be made. The label is the law, as we say in the biz, and it is a violation of federal law to use these products in a manner contrary to the label directions. We’re not kidding, folks. The onus is on you, the applicator, if something goes wrong and you kill your parakeet in the quest to eradicate your ant problem.

10

I’ve been spotting these light yellow-green spiders. I’ve seen them before, and it seems to me that when I see one, I can count on finding a few more soon. Then I don’t see them for months.

I’m not worried it… I just kill them when I see 'em and go on. I’m just wondering why the seem to come in spurts.

Oh- one of my cats likes to eat those spiders. Is that bad???

11

DAVEW0071, I wish I had spotted this thread sooner! We actually have a termite problem, and we are tenting the house tomorrow, starting at 8 AM sharp. We have emptied the fridge and freezer as much as possible, and we’re moving any open containers of food and medicine out of the house.

How worried should we be about the lingering poisons? Will things like tubes of toothpaste, bars of soap, etc. be harmed, or could they harm us? We’ll wash all the sheets and pillowcases after the tenting, but can you think of any other precautions we should take? If you’re still awake tonight (Sunday), let me know, because I won’t be online or at home all day tomorrow! Thank you.

12

How can I get mice out of my attic? I do not want to trap them. Yuck. I can’t poison them because I am afraid my dogs will find one in the yard and eat it. I do not want them to die in my attic. Yuck. I do not want to get the sticky stuff because I do not want to hear them squealing and I do not want to have to remove them. What other options are there?

I found a mouse in my cabinet, dead. I have no idea how he got in but I have made the effort to plug every single crack or hole that a mouse could use. I have a doggie door and I am thinking one of my dogs could have brought him in half dead and it crawled into the cabinet somehow. What am I going to do?

Thanks.

13

I have a mouse. I put down D-con poison and a couple traps. I put peanut butter on the traps. Is that good bait? Is there a better bait to use?

14

Seeker74, most likely the reason you see several spiders at once is because they’re hatching and emerging. If you do an inspection of your basement, or attic, or any cool, dark, dry place where spiders are likely to hide, you’ll probably find many cobwebs, small, round pill-like objects made of webbing. These are egg sacs (yes, Charlotte’s Web is remarkably accurate in this regard). It’s just time for them to be born, and it happens pretty much all at once.

I doubt they’ll cause your cat any gastro-intestinal distress.

Big Bad Voodoo Lou, sorry I didn’t see this before now. It’s too late for me to give you any advice which you won’t see after the fact, but in case you’re able to check on this at work, I have to tell you that I’m unfamiliar with tenting. We don’t need to do that in New York, although I understand it’s fairly common in Florida.

Having said that, I will say that you should follow the instructions of the company doing the work. I assume they gave you a checklist of procedures. They did that for a reason; you need to pay attention to them. Keep in mind that these technicians are trained and certified professionals, and they know what they’re doing. The potential for liability alone forces them to not cut corners and be very careful. Hopefully, they also conform to a higher level of conscientiousness. These procedures have been carefully planned and tested over time, so following the company’s instructions (and calling and asking if something is unclear – remember there are no stupid questions, and these people deal with this all the time) is more valuable than anything I could tell you.

jacksen9, let me get this straight; you want to get rid of your mice, but you don’t want to use traps or poisons? Short of calling the Hogwarts Exterminating Company, there aren’t any other options. They’re not just going to up and leave on their own. And you can’t chase them out and exclude them, since you’ll never find all the potential access points (mice can squeeze through a hole no larger around than a dime).

There are downsides and upsides to both types of treatment. Traps, whether glueboards or the traditional snap traps, are unpleasant to deal with sometimes, especially if you’re squeamish about dead things. The upside of traps is you know when they’ve been effective.

Poisons are an indirect way of dealing with the problem. You can toss some bait into the attic or crawlspace and just assume it’s going to do its job. And you’re less likely to be forced to deal with mouse corpses. The downside of poisons is that you don’t really know how much they’ve eaten, only how much they’ve taken. Mice don’t sit and eat their food where they find it. They carry it off and store it to be eaten later, along with the seeds and acorns and other junk they’ve found. Another downside is, you don’t know where they’ll be when they go toes up. If they die in the wall, or someplace you can’t reach, you may have a stench for about a week or so.

You also pointed out the risk of secondary poisoning, or of poisoning a non-target animal. Households with pets and small children should really think twice about using rodenticides. As a professional, I prefer traps. I suggest you suck it up and do the same.

NurseCarmen, peanut butter is an excellent bait for traps. I use it myself. The aroma of the peanut butter is very alluring and effective in drawing them to their doom. Placement of traps is just as important, though. Traps should be placed near corners and along vertical surfaces, as mice have poor eyesight and keep close to walls and the like to navigate. Traps are much more effective in high-traffic areas.

I’ve heard also that a cotton ball soaked in vanilla extract is a good lure for mice. Apparently the aroma is appealing to them, and since the cotton is potential nesting material, they’ll be attracted to it, but I dunno.

Mice like bacon, too, but that’s kind of expensive, and the meat may turn rancid if the trap isn’t spring right away. Chocolate is another mouse favorite.

You may want to rotate your bait choices, especially if it seems that one isn’t as effective anymore. But I’ve always stuck (heh) by peanut butter.

15

So, does Dale Gribble on “King of teh Hill” accurately portray pest contol workers? :slight_smile:

Brian

16

What do you consider the best pet-safe method for dealing with ants? I have two cats and I obviously don’t want them to come in contact with any pesticides that I might use around the house. Every year I see ants ($#@%&*!) and their points of entry seem to be around the area where my cats’ litter box is located. Whenever I get fed up with the ant infestitation I end up having to move the litter box to another location and closing off the small room in which the box is located for a few days after I’ve sprayed ant killer in there.

17

Good thing. It’s rumored that those Western Dommes can put you in a world of hurt! :wink:

A comment about your response to nemesis about the carpenter ants: the reading I’ve done suggests that carpenter ants prefer to make their abodes in wood that’s easy for them to work with, e.g. rotting wood. If this is so, ISTM that his solution is twofold: (1) snuff the ants, but (2) locate and check the wood they’ve been nesting in to see if there’s another problem (e.g. water getting into the walls) that’s making the wood more hospitable to the carpenter ants. Does this agree with what you know?

18

Have you ever heard of this type of homemade mousetrap?

There’s a peanut butter thread spool suspended over a bucket filled with antifreeze, and a ramp leading up from the floor to the edge of the bucket. Ideally Mr mouse would be drawn up the ramp by the scent of the bait, jump at the spool which would turn and dump him into the antifreeze. I guess they use antifreeze to preserve the mouse until the trap can be skimmed.

My buddy uses this trap for his hunting shack and says it works very well, but I’ve never heard of it before.

19

I kept finding carpenter bees inside the house last fall. I moved some furniture and found a perfect carpenter-bee-sized hole in the floor. I sealed it with caulk. Then I found a few more dead carpenter bees on the windowsill.

My point. As it’s spring now and I live in an entirely wooden house… how do I make my house NOT attractive to carpenter bees. Little bastards will literally eat me out of house and home, eventually. I hate 'em.

And I know Seven dust will kill 'em.

20

N9lWP, no more so than Cliff Clavin is an accurate portrayal of postal workers. I suppose it’s endemic to people in the service industry to be a little high-handed to lay-people while still maintaining a certain level of unimaginative ignorance (your humble correspondent excepted, of course). And I can’t say that you’ll find too many of my colleagues discussing Shakespeare or Haydn on their off-hours. But Dale is a caricature.

dwc1970, pretty much any pesticide labelled for ants will work and be safe if it’s applied into the wall void. As I mentioned above, topical treatments are less effective and expose innocent people and animals to needless levels of the stuff.

If you’re really concerned, start early in the spring and spread a granular ant bait around the perimeter of your house. This will help a little in keeping ants from getting in, but I doubt it will be a complete solution. Just take care and don’t use a ton of whatever it is you’re using.

RTFirefly, I was talking about sandwiches, you pervert! :wink:

While you’re correct in saying that wet wood is a carpenter ant’s delight, and while it’s never a bad idea to check for leaks and rot, it’s not a given that one condition means the other exists. But you do make a good point. Excessive moisture conditions are conducive to a variety of pests, so if they’re noted, it might be wise to check for leaks.

Anonymous Coward, that’s a new one on me. Sounds like an awful lot of bother, though. And I wonder why the smell of the antifreeze doesn’t override the smell of the peanut butter. I still say a few well-placed snap traps will do as good a job as anything, and a better job than most. More economical, too.

Dogzilla, carpenter bees are a real problem, and one not easily solved. Now is the time of year when they start to show up, and not only do they drill those perfect holes in the wood, but they excavate chambers in which to deposit their eggs, thus causing extended damage to the interior of the wood.

There are a couple of things you can do, though, that should help in the long run.

First, get a microencapsulated insecticide in a compressed air sprayer. I’ve seen these things at home and garden centers. It has to be microencapsulated, though. This type of formulation won’t dilute or wash off once it’s dry. Use a light fan spray to hit the most popular areas on the outside of the house. These are usually eaves, facia boards, the underside of porch railings – any place that is somewhat sheltered from birds and other natural predators. This may discourage the bees when they approach the house, or even kill them when they start to chew through the treated wood. One application should last for a couple months.

Second, any holes that exist, especially if you’ve seen bees going to or coming from them, should be treated, as far inside the hole as you can get. Dust is excellent for this, as it should stay active for a couple of months as long as it stays dry. This will kill an adult bee going in or coming out, but it will also kill the ones that hatch, since they will have to expose themselves to the dust as they make their way out of the hole.

Not only does that kill the ones you see now, but it will reduce subsequent generations, which will make treating them in years to come a little easier. It may take time, but if you want instant gratification, watch MTV. Long-term solutions are more desirable, IMO.