Termites can be a nuisance, especially when they establish a colony inside your home. Their presence is not only worrisome to see, but they can cause some real damage to property, specifically items made out of wood due to their need to consume cellulose. In Singapore, termites are a threat in every season so watch out for their wings, mud tunnels or swollen wooden floors to identify an infestation.
The best way to deal with termites is prevention. Even after they have already infested your house, take up precautionary measures for termite control at home before trying to kill the existing colonies. This ensures that they will not be able to settle down again after you have already spent the time and money hiring a Singapore pest control company in killing off the infestation.
Preventing Termites at Home
To prevent termites from getting inside your house, keep a screen on all doors and windows that remain open on a regular basis. Keep checking the door and window sills to note wings or droppings. If there are any signs of termites there, this means your house is at risk of an infestation, and you should take further steps to prevent them from moving in. This generally involves reducing debris in and around your home that may be a source of food for the termites, such as plants, stumps, etc.
Termites are more likely to infest near the foundation of a house that also has one of these food sources close by. To prevent this, many houses in Singapore are built with a waterproof membrane in their foundation acting as a deterrent to termite infestation.
Killing off Termites
With these precautionary measures in place to prevent infestations, you’re ready to eliminate any existing infestations. Many shops in Singapore offer chemicals that help you remove infestations. Some of them work as bait, where the termites consume the chemical and eventually die out; whereas others can be applied directly on wood or soil, as needed. These chemicals can also be sprayed around places where wooden items, such as lumber, furniture or books are to be stored for longer periods of time.
Effective Additional Prevention Methods
Other ways to indirectly control termites include preventing water from accumulating around a foundation and preventing any standing pools that form after rainfall. Keeping the gutter clean is equally important as clogged gutters easily becomes a water source around the foundations of a house. Finally, good air circulation helps control moisture and, therefore, prevents the formation of colonies inside homes.