Termite Market Preview

Since the termite swarm season is just a few weeks away and many pest management professionals are making their purchasing decisions now, we offer some termite market information.

This month is PCT’s annual termite control issue. Since the termite swarm season is just a few weeks away and many pest management professionals are making their purchasing decisions now, we offer some termite market information on the following three pages.

In a contest sponsored by Premise Insecticide, three pest management professionals from the Southeast took home prizes from Bayer Garden & Professional Care. The three winners were AAA Termite Inc., Winter Springs, Fla.; Bryan Pest Control Inc., Ft. Walton Beach, Fla.; and Riverlands Terminix of Lapluce, La.

The contest, called Premise Termite Takedown, asked PCOs to share their most memorable successes in eradicating a termite infestation in an essay of up to 100 words, accompanied by a color photo of the treatment. Essays were judged on a point system that took into consideration, among other factors, termite species, soil type, construction type and severity of infestation. Winners received their choice of a personal computer, gas grill or a camcorder/TV combo.

AAA’s winning story centered on its battle with Reticulitermes subterranean termites, which had infested an Orange County, Fla., home.

Bryan Pest Control Inc. had a story of a Formosan termite infestation it treated at a motel in Ft. Walton Beach.

Riverlands Terminix told a tale of a house infested with Formosan and Coptotermes termites that required the company to go the extra mile.

Nisus Corporation recently introduced a brochure titled "10 Reasons Why Every Builder Should Specify Bora-Care Termite Pretreatments."

In recent years, a growing number of pest management professionals have begun offering borate treatments as an additional service and the Nisus brochure can be used by PCOs to sell this service. PCOs can distribute the brochure to customers and homebuilders to educate them about the benefits of treating structures with Bora-Care during construction.

Borate products, such as Bora-Care, have become popular because, unlike soil pretreatments, they are applied directly to the wood — a simple, highly efficient process that eliminates problems caused by pumping insecticide into the soil, Nisus says. Thus, builders can save time and money by keeping their crews on-site during the treatment process, not having to coordinate schedules with cement companies and PCOs, and not suffering weather-related setbacks.

The brochure also explains HUD policy regarding Bora-Care to builders. According to the brochure, in January 1999 the United States Housing and Urban Development (HUD) changed its 99A form to allow direct wood pretreatment of Bora-Care as a primary tool against termites in new-home construction.

The brochure is available to Nisus’ customers by calling 800/264-0870 or by visiting www.nisuscorp.com.

THERMAL PEST ERADICATION BECOMING POPULAR METHOD OF IPM

Thermal pest eradication is fast-becoming a popular method of IPM in some parts of the United States. The technique uses heat, rather than pesticides, to control termites, cockroaches, dust mites, lice and various other pests inside of buildings and homes.

ThermaPure, the thermal technology branded by Precision Works Inc. in Camarillo, Calif., has been used throughout the company’s 25 licensed businesses since 1996. ThermaPure uses a custom-designed, propane-fuel heater to pump 130-degree heat (or hotter, depending on target problem) into a structure through Mylar® ducts. Thermal tarps are placed around the edges of the house and pump to keep the heat from escaping. Inside, insects are killed and then sucked up with a HEPA vacuum.

In addition to pests, thermal heat eradication can eliminate entire structures of bacteria and viruses — including hantavirus, the company says. "Because the thermal technology kills bacteria, pests, viruses and even some toxic molds, in one swoop gives PCOs the opportunity to cross-sell their services," said CEO David Hedman. "In turn, they can make more of a profit from one client since they are performing more than one service."

The process usually takes six to eight hours to complete and the price of the treatment is comparable to the cost of a fumigation service, according to Hedman. With additional breakthroughs in the technology occurring regularly, Hedman hopes that it will catch on with more companies. "With the move towards more organic and ‘environmentally friendly’ products, this is just one more tool in the box for PCOs to use that avoids chemicals," he said.

For more information, visit www.precisionworksinc.com.

A new termite control tool, the Termimesh System, is now available to homeowners in Texas. Termimesh is a physical barrier made of a marine-grade, fine stainless steel mesh. The mesh is so fine that it prevents termites from gaining access (via either chewing or crawling) into a structure through any concealed accesses.

The product was developed in Australia and launched there in 1990. And in 2000, Termimesh Australia partnered with ABC Pest & Lawn Services, Austin, Texas, to form Termimesh LLC. Manny Martinez is the general manager/CEO of the joint venture.

The joint venture is a 50/50 partnership between Termimesh Australia and ABC Pest & Lawn Services. The initial market focus is in the Austin, Texas, area, but Martinez says the company’s future plans include expanding the product and services into other termite markets in the United States.

"We are talking to several states now and it’s just a matter of time before we move into those new states," Martinez said. Termimesh is currently approved for use by the Structural Pest Control Boards of Texas, Florida, Hawaii and Missouri.

In Texas, the Termimesh System is installed exclusively by certified trained installers from ABC. The installation team focuses on slab penetrations (plumbing, electrical, drains, vents, etc.), the perimeter of the slab/structure, cold joints and secondary concrete pours.

ABC currently has five technicians trained to install the product but as the demand increases, the company will continue to add more installation help.

The system is non-corrosive and the company says the product is a permanent solution to termite problems in that Termimesh will last the life of the structure.

According to Martinez, Termimesh has prevented termites from gaining access to wood in all of the USDA test plots 100 percent of the time for more than eight years.

For more information about the product, contact Martinez at 512/997-0066.

POP-UP TERMITE INDICATOR IN DEVELOPMENT

What if there were a device that adapted to any bait system and automatically signaled the presence of wood destroying insects? Gregg Henderson, associate professor of entomology at Louisiana State University Agriculture Center, and Jay Paxson, his research associate, developed a new "pop-up" termite monitoring system that does just that. "The monitor takes advantage of the fact that termites eat wood," Henderson said. "It’s basically a spring attached to a piece of wood. As the termite enters and eats through the wood, a flag will pop up indicating termite presence."

Henderson said the monitor reduces costs and labor associated with monitoring bait stations. Although termite indication could take from one to four weeks, it doesn’t require arbitrary checking of monitors.

"It makes the bait station much more proactive," Henderson said.

Henderson and Paxson were in the midst of developing a device for early detection based on the gases emitted from termites. "We were pummeled by the industry to come up with something for bait stations as well," he said. "So we put our heads together and Jay thought of the spring mechanism."

But figuring out how to get the spring to work on the bait station took some thought. Henderson discovered that if the spring was pulled rather than pushed the termite only needed to eat through a piece of wood to set the spring off. "So the light bulb finally went off in my head like it should when you’re inventing something and Jay fabricated our first prototype," Henderson said.

Henderson added that although the monitors were tested on Formosan subterranean termites they would work on any species of subterranean termite.

Right now the monitor device is patent pending and Henderson said it will probably take a year or two before it’s fully patented. When can PCOs get the monitor? It may take awhile. LSU is looking for companies interested in developing the monitors further and making it available for mass production. "We have a few companies interested right now," Henderson said.

The 2nd International Symposium on Coptotermes formosanus will be held from May 13-15, 2001, in New Orleans, La., at the Radisson Hotel on Canal Street. New Orleans is home to one of the heaviest Formosan subterranean termite infestations in the continental United States. The French Quarter is ground zero for the national Formosan termite control and management program known as Operation Full Stop.

In association with the program, top researchers from around the world will convene an International Symposium to provide updates on the scope of the infestation and new means of detection and control. Topics for invited presentations will include: Coptotermes formosanus worldwide distribution, nutrition and foraging behavior, physical and cultural control, colony organization, biological control, genetics, chemical control, detection methods, plus a wide variety of workshops, exhibits and other useful resources.

For more information, contact 504/286-4452 or visit the website at www.formosansymposium.net.