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+--- Thread: termite advice (/showthread.php?tid=18888)
termite advice - birdmove - 10-21-2017
Pretty sure there is termite sign in one of our kitchen cabinets. Wood dust on the floor between that cabinet and the fridge. Also little holes in the thin wood of the cabinet next to the fridge. Of course there is no way to get access to the area where they must be without drilling holes either from the inside of the cabinet or the outside where the little holes are and where the wood dust is falling from.
Should I just call in a termite company next week? If so, any suggestions? Can they treat without tenting? How long does tenting take?
I did spray some Home Defense on the outside of the cabinet, but maybe should drill some little holes and spray some inside where they must be.
Jon in Keaau/HPP
RE: termite advice - HereOnThePrimalEdge - 10-21-2017
If you can see the tiny termite pellets (if it's a fine dust it's not termites), you should be able to locate the tunnel from where they are ejecting the material.
Place a wide piece of tape where you see the droppings. Once a small pile has collected on the tape run a line up from that exact spot to the cabinet and look carefully for a small hole in the wood. A magnifying glass may help. Once you locate the hole you can use one of the canned termite sprays that Home Depo carries to spray into their tunnel. One type is a natural based lemon or orange extract.
“Facts fall from the poetic observer as ripe seeds.” -Henry Thoreau
RE: termite advice - birdmove - 10-21-2017
This stuff seems more like a fine dust.
Jon in Keaau/HPP
RE: termite advice - HereOnThePrimalEdge - 10-21-2017
A wide assortment of termite dropping photos:
https://www.google.com/search?q=termite+dropping&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjdj87XvYLXAhUKiVQKHbedD9EQsAQILg&biw=1580&bih=982
“Facts fall from the poetic observer as ripe seeds.” -Henry Thoreau
RE: termite advice - terracore - 10-21-2017
We had a similar problem. Fine dust. I sprayed the area with the only pesticide we had on hand which was ant/roach spray (the kind that kills for 6 weeks). Coated the surfaces as best I could. Problem solved and they haven't returned (yet).
RE: termite advice - birdmove - 10-21-2017
Thank you! I think it looks more like this:
http://www.thrasherpestcontrol.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/wood-beetles.jpg
This is supposed to be from wood boring beetles, according to the website.
Jon in Keaau/HPP
RE: termite advice - DTisme - 10-21-2017
I'm guessing the fine dust is probably from powder post beetles, not termites. Termites here in Puna leave poo, which looks like poppy seeds. Fogging cabinets might help, but we had it in some baseboard and it continued even after house was tented for termites, so we got rid of the baseboard.
RE: termite advice - Lodestone - 10-21-2017
We have similar issues with our cabinets (but not the walls/floors, thankfully). Tiny pellets, not dust. Dousing the hole with mint/orange/lemon sprays stops it, only for it to reoccur a foot or two over in a couple of weeks.
RE: termite advice - ElysianWort - 10-21-2017
So does that mean calling the exterminators that do the "friendly" orange oil treatment instead of the toxic sulfuryl fluoride gas (which kills everything under the the tent including geckos roaches and the grass and plants around the house) is a waste of money?
RE: termite advice - birdmove - 10-22-2017
There are lots of little holes in that cabinet side.
Jon in Keaau/HPP