Treatments.

The following is the methodology for the pretreatment installation of termiticide in foundations, for the purpose of subterranean termite control.

At the stage where the contractor is ready to place the construction film (all filling, compacting and laying of sand beds has already been done and all form work already in place), E.T.C. Ltd. is called in to treat. N.B. A small triangular trench approx. 2”-3” wide and 3”-4” deep, must be left along the sides of all ground beams or foundation walls and around all columns, conduits and plumbing, etc.

This is to allow the vertically downward penetration of the chemical, along the subsoil faces of these components, please see attached diagram.

An Imidacloprid or Fipronil formulation is applied in a 0.05% to 0.1% mixture @ a rate of approx. 1.5 gals/10 linear feet into the small triangular trenches and another 1.5 gals/10 linear feet, in a band not less than 12 – 18 ins. wide, along beams and around pipes, conduits, etc. This process is repeated to the buildingʼs outer perimeter (aprons), prior to the casting of the slabs.

With retaining walls, termiticide is applied in at 2 ft. increments maximum, as the back fill is put in but prior to compaction or can be applied to the face of the excavation just prior to the placement of fill.

Termiticide can also be applied through the TERMITUBE system, see TERMITUBE disclosure.

N.B. Treatment is only required to the foundations of vertical structures. Areas such as swimming pools & tennis courts do not require any treatment. However, if such areas have accompanying structures such as changing room facilities or pavilions, the foundations of these structures will require treatment.

IMPORTANT: Please note that all the licensed termiticides presently available locally, including the Pyrethroids, degrade relatively quickly when exposed to the elements. Under slab cover, the effective life is approx. ten (10) years (this will vary, dependent on a number of factors). Exposed to tropical field conditions, they can be depleted in 6 months or less. Hence we recommend that there should be apron slabs on the entire perimeter of the building to protect the chemical.

Where apron slabs are undesirable or impractical, remedial touch ups will be required from time to time at the clientʼs expense. ETC Ltd. can also offer a variety of alternative solutions such as our bait station or Termitube systems.

It shall be understood, that approval of the estimate and award of contract, indicates understanding and acceptance of the above conditions.

EcTerCon uses only the newest generation termiticides, which have several advantages over all the older classes of chemicals, including the Pyrethroids. With little or none of the associated health hazards, a lack of persistence in the exposed environment and enhanced, multiple modes of action, these are the preferred choice of ecologically responsible professionals. These chemicals are non-repellant, meaning, termites do not recognize them as toxins and as such donʼt try to avoid them. Their very slow action allows foraging workers time to return to the colony, transmitting the toxin and achieving colony kill. In addition, long after they have degraded below toxic levels, there is a second mode of action that persists, debilitating the termitesʼ natural defences against fungal pathogens in the soil, which invade and kill and in turn create an epizooty effect, that lingers on. This translates into more effective, longer control.

To avoid accidental damage to any utility lines, plumbing and electrical drawings (blue prints) must be supplied to ETC Ltd. by the client. In the event that plans are not available or plans do not correspond with actual utility lines as they have been run, ETC Ltd. shall not be held responsible for any damages incurred to any line or equipment during drilling and repairs will be at the customerʼs expense.

Step 1: Where there are aprons slabs in place, holes will be drilled at approx. 12 – 18 inch intervals and termiticide is pumped in under pressure at a rate of approx. 2 – 3 gallons / 10 ln. ft.

Step 2: Where there are no apron slabs , the soil is trenched and the chemical drenched and/or rodded into the soil.

Step 3: Once a continuous treated zone has been established in the

subsoil, then all holes are plugged with synthetic plugs and capped with a specialty grout and soil replaced in trenches and treated.

IMPORTANT: Please note that all the licensed termiticides presently available locally, including the Pyrethroids, degrade relatively quickly when exposed to the elements. Under slab cover, the effective life is approx. ten (10) years (this will vary, dependent on a number of factors). Exposed to tropical field conditions, they can be depleted in 6 months or less. Hence we recommend that there should be apron slabs on the entire perimeter of the building to protect the chemical.

Where apron slabs are undesirable or impractical, remedial touch ups will be required from time to time at the clientʼs expense. ETC Ltd. can also offer a variety of alternative solutions such as our bait station or Termitube systems.

It shall be understood, that approval of the estimate and award of contract, indicates understanding and acceptance of the above conditions.

Gone are the days when termiticides had lives of 60 plus years. One of the environmental factors of the modern chemicals is their reduced persistence, just five to twelve years in a foundation. This is reduced even further to six months or less when exposed to tropical field conditions. 

In circumstances where physical factors make re-treatment difficult or impossible to execute, with the Termitube system in place, re-treatment is as easy as 1 2 3. In addition, not only is all the mess and inconvenience of drilling or rodding eliminated but the cost as well. Rains can severely delay foundation treatments, when conditions are to wet for chemical application, Termitube can be laid and chemical pumped in at a later date. 

Initially there is the cost of the system, its design and installation. This is separate and additional to the termiticide and its application. However, the advantages and savings later on, far outweigh this cost. 

The Termitube system uses a durable irrigation type hose, consisting of 65% recycled tyre rubber, making this an environmentally conscious product. Laid in the appropriate design in a foundation or behind a retaining wall, it allows for ease of re-treatment whenever the need arises. 

The system terminates in valves, which can be concealed in several ways. These valves are where the service technician will connect to pump the termiticide. 

With the Termitube system you can be certain of one thing, no matter how many times re-treatment is required throughout the life of the building, you will probably only be paying 50% of the going market price.

Within the last few years bait stations have really come into their own, with quite a variety of brands on the market. Stations provide an alternative to soil treatments where application of liquid termiticides is not a feasible option. 

An advantage of the use of baits over conventional pesticides is that very small amounts of toxin is being strategically placed, usually in some container that further reduces the possibility of environmental contamination. 

The two types of bait on the market are either insecticide or insect growth regulator (hormone) based. EcTerConʼs BACTRAC has a very unique active ingredient. A harmless strain of bacteria that is found and thrives in some common foods we all eat. Completely safe to us and all other non-target organisms, only the termites are destroyed. 

When termites feed on the bacteria inoculated material, the fauna in their gut is fatally affected. Cellulose is not easily broken down and the termites rely on these microbes to digest their food. Without their intestinal microbes to do the digesting, they simply starve to death in a matter of days. 

Bait stations are placed at no further than ten (10) feet apart and must be checked and replenished every six months.

NATURAL TERMITE CONTROL AGENT 

Diatomaceous earth (diatomite) system to control termites. 

Diatomaceous Earths are rare deposits of the fossilized shells of  microscopic one-celled organisms, approximately 300 million  years old. Made of amorphous silica extracted from the water, it  can absorb many times its own weight in fluids. Milled by a  special process that splits the individual diatoms, exposing their  porous internal structure. The razor sharp edges scratch and  puncture the insects cuticle absorbing and wicking away its body  fluids. The insect quickly dies of dehydration once it has lost 60%  of its body moisture. 

The termite’s anatomy and physiology, makes them perfect  candidates for diatomite. Being very small insects, they have a  large surface area to volume ratio, meaning they can contact a  

high proportion of the powder in relation to body mass. Soft  bodied, they are already far more susceptible to dehydration than  insects with hard exoskeletons and more vulnerable to the action  of the diatomite. 

DE has many applications in termite control. It can be applied to  void spaces such as ceilings, hollow walls panels and under  buildings. It can be injected directly into termite nests or their 

galleries in wood. It can also be applied to retaining walls and roof  timbers. 

The true beauty of diatomite is that it is totally non toxic and  environmentally friendly.

The SAND CASTLE system is a natural physical barrier. Similar  systems have been successfully employed in several places around  the world, Australia, Japan, Germany, Canada, Arizona, Florida,  California and Hawaii. 

Material type varies from one brand to another, granite, basaltic  rock, volcanic cinders, fossilized coral, slag (sinter) & glass globules.  SAND CASTLE uses a silica, well suited to the task, silica is not  soluble and are resistant to acid attack. 

The secret to a termite sand barrier is the size of the individual  particles, the principle being a simple one. Grains of a very specific  size are to big and heavy to be shifted by the termites, while the  spaces between particles are too small to be passable by the  termites. For any sand barrier to be efficient, it is critical that it be  comprised of a minimum of 60% of particles in the effective range  of between 1 to 3 mm (1.5 to 2.5 mm preferred). 

SAND CASTLE contains 75% particles in the range 1.6 to 2.4 mm,  putting it well in the upper range of efficacy as a physical termite  barrier. Pre and some post construction installations are advised.

Borcure wood preservative is a water-based, safe, eco friendly, anti-borer, anti-fungal and fire retardant boron formulation. It has multiple modes of killing termites while at the same time impregnating the walls of their chambers, preventing any future infestation in that location.

EcTerCon offers homeowners a non-toxic, wood treatment product, perfect for deck waterproofing. Whether you wish to treat a wood deck, wood fence, wood dock or wood posts with a non toxic natural wood pest treatment or you are seeking a deck seal, deck stain, exterior wood stain or fence stain, our products are the first step to long lasting wood preservation. If your project includes deck refinishing, deck maintenance or sealing pressure treated wood, we can help. Customers often ask us how to stain a wood deck or how to stain a wood fence or which is the best deck seal or best deck stain. If you want your work and investment to last a lifetime the best stain finish starts with PETRI-SOL, an environmentally friendly wood sealer that stabilizes and waterproofs the wood from the inside out. The Science Behind EcTerCon’s Alternative Wood Treatment is 100% Non Toxic.

All woods and bamboo contain two different forms of moisture. They are referred to as “FREE WATER and BOUND WATER. Free water harbors in the fiber structure of the wood. Bound water is found in the Hydroxyl molecule that is the sole make up of cellular compounds. A hydroxyl molecule has two tails. A hydrogen tail and an oxygen tail. The uptake of these two compounds creates H20 or water. Expansion and contraction of wood is created when the hydroxyl molecules take on more or less airborne or liquid moisture.

PETRI-SOL is a solvent treatment. Solvents will instantly displace free water from the fiber structure of wood. Certain silanes used in the PETRI-SOL formulation are water scavengers. Since they are of extremely low molecular weight they are capable of penetrating the cell wall structure of the molecule, attacking the bound water inside. The water is then replaced with a Si-Jel Matrix, a pliable silicone compound made up of silicone and cedar oil. This phenomenon is created by a catalytic conversion that uses the bound water to trigger a hydrophobic reaction inside the hydroxyl molecule. The un utilized and excess water is then released and exits the wood in the form of ethanol gas. The Cedar Oil component of the formulation is a synergism which allows the solution to bond with the water and subsequently water proofs the wood from the inside out. It further performs as a termiticide and a fungicide that provides additional protection to the wood.

Summary: When the hydroxyl group molecule is stabilized, the wood is moisture free. The hydrogen and oxygen tails of the molecule are sealed from liquid or air borne moisture and cannot expand or contract as they would in non-stabilized wood. Stabilized wood cannot move and therefore no cracking, splitting, cupping or warping will take place. Fastener rejection is eliminated. Subsequently, the absence of moisture becomes the absence of issues as the early stages of wood Petrifiction are triggered. Petrified wood is moisture free wood laced with silicone deposits. The cedar oil component of the formulation is encapsulated in the wood and provides perpetual protection from insect and fungal organism attack. The reaction and conversion that takes place at the cellular level within the wood, creates the opportunity for junk wood to now have commercial value.

PETRI-SOL is next generation technology at its best. It is a patented formulation that when applied correctly provides a ONETIME-LIFETIME Treatment to wood and bamboo of any species. 

Dr. Ben Oldag, Wood Scientist, KES Technology publication 2005