Termite Protection

Every Day America's homes are targeted by a dangerous predator that causes thousands of dollars worth of damage - subterranean termites. And often, there's no evidence of their presence until it's too late. 

 

These termites live in underground colonies and work 24 hours a day to destroy your home from the inside out.

Do I Have Termites?

There may be no warning signs to tell you if termites are in or near your home, but look for these:

  1. Termites "swarming" during the day and often after rainfall.
  2. Mud tunnels appearing on or around the foundation.
  3. Baseboards and floors which may sound hollow.
  4. Dead termites or termite wings on window sills or along walls
Unfortunately, without our HomeCare Termite protection plan, termites can go unnoticed for years while continuing to damage your home.

*Most homeowner policies do not cover termite damage.
*Termites cause damage in hidden areas, behind walls, in crawl spaces and basements.

 

What Do Termites Look Like?

The Eastern Subterranean termite is normally 1/16 to 1/2 inch in length. They are soft-bodied insects that require moisture to live and therefore spend their lifetime within the soil, shelter tubes they build or wood in which they feed. A heavy infestation can contain a quarter million workers.

Termites seek out and feed on wood from the inside out, causing the wood to appear normal until it is almost completely destroyed. Moisture damaged and decayed wood is preferred and eaten faster than sound wood.

Because termites avoid exposure to light and air, they are seldom seen and can cause serious and costly damage to your home before you ever see them. When termites are observed, it is usually the winged reproductives (swarmers) that are the first visible indication that termites are present. Swarmers emerge from the nest on warm, sunny days in the spring and fall.

Reproductive Cycle


The Queen
The Queen is the active reproductive and lays dozens, sometimes hundreds of eggs a day and can live up to 25 years.
 
Eggs
Most of the Queen's eggs develop into your real enemy - the workers.
 
Nymphs
Nymphs hatch from the eggs and develop into either a worker, soldier, reproductive, or supplementary reproductive depending on the needs of the colony.
 
Workers
The worker is the only termite that damages wood. Because workers are soft-bodied, they require areas with high moisture content to survive. Exposure to air and light will kill them.
 
Supplementary Reproductives
It's their function to rapidly increase the size of the colony by increasing egg production, and to replace the primary reproductives when they die.
 
Reproductives
These are the "swarmers" often confused with "flying ants". They leave the colony in the spring and fall to form new colonies. These are the termites usually seen, indicating a colony nearby.
 
Soldier
The soldier termites' sole function is protecting the colony against outside enemies. It is distinguished by a long armored head and large jaws.

Interior & Exterior Inspection

First, a Modern team member will thoroughly inspect your home. We will carefully graph your entire house, noting where termite activity or possible damage has been found along with their contributing conditions.  If termites are found or if the risk is high, we will tailor our HomeCare Termite protection program to your needs.

HomeCare Termite Baiting System

Now, with the Advance Termite Bait System, Whitmire Micro-Gen offers a new generation bait system that addresses the challenges presented by first generation baits–effectively making our bait system a superior option to all other types of termite control.

Termite bait stations will be installed in the soil around the perimeter of your home, leaving the interior of your home chemical free.  To learn more please visit Advance Termite Bait Systems Website.


How Does The Bait System Work?

First, a pest management professional will inspect your home for termites and if they are found or if your risk is high, the Advance Termite Bait System will be installed in soil around the perimeter of your home.

• The stations will be checked regularly for termite activity. (Fig. 1)

• When termites are found in a station, (Fig. 2) the Termite Inspection Cartridge (TIC), containing no active ingredient, is replaced with a Termite Bait Cartridge so termites can start feeding on the bait. (Fig.3)

• As termites feed and then travel back to the colony, they share termite bait with other nestmates (trophallaxis) and send other termites back to feed on the bait. As feeding on the bait continues and more and more termites are affected, the termite colony starts to die and is eliminated.

• After a colony is eliminated, the bait is replaced with new monitoring cartridges. Modern will continue to inspect these regularly to discover and treat new colonies that might invade your property. (Fig. 4)

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Careful Targeted Application

We use conventional termiticide as a supplemental treatment to our HomeCare termite baiting system. These applications are used to quickly suppress localized termite activity or to protect exposed areas around your home.

Quarterly Protection

Each quarter we will return and inspect and service the stations around your home. Termites that feed on the stations travel back to the colony and share the bait with other nest mates. As feeding on the bait continues, the termite colony starts to die and is eliminated.

Prevention Measures

After the termite colony is eliminated, we will replace the bait with new monitoring cartridges. We will continue to inspect these stations regularly to discover and treat new colonies that might invade your home.