Termite Treatment necessary or just making money?

Hello,

I am in the middle of buying a house. Closing will be next Friday. I had a termite inspection yesterday and the inspector told me after he came back from he crawl space, that there were activities, but not anymore and he would like to do a treatment just to make sure.
I had the feeling that he just want to sell me more service.
Do you guys think I should do this or can I do it by myself?

Thank you

 

I always thought the termite inspection and any recommended treatment was the sellers responsibility.

I spray under my house myself with whatever termite poison Lowes sells..... but that's all preventive, I don't have any termite evidence. I'm sure the pros can get and use a better termite spray than we can get at a big box.

 

It's a HUD house and they sell it as it is.
So I should get the pro treatment?

 

That would probably be a good idea. Check with a few companies to make sure the price is inline.

 

Termite treatment never hurts. If you can find the age of the home and if it has ever been treated would be helpful. If you have a cement block foundation then you might see a series of holes drilled in the block. If it was done 20+ years ago the it's probably still good since I've heard that the old chemicals are very good and last a very, very long time. Newer chemicals are not as long lasting and require periodic treatments say every 20 years (I'm just guessing at the time frame. Talk to your exterminator for professional advice.).

 

He said he can't find any previous treatment. House is build in 1988.
They would charge $600 for the treatment.

 

$600 sounds like too little for a serious treatment. Pretty much all of our prices start in the $800’s and quickly get into $1000-$1200 and our prices are about mid-range in our area. This is not a high cost area either.

Since you don’t need the treatment/paperwork done for closing, don’t do anything yet about the “termites”. Can you get into the crawl yourself? Get references from friends, colleagues, etc about pest control guys in your area. Make sure that you have an honest inspector and go from there. Termites are rarely an emergency. You have the time to educate yourself, learn about your house, and make an informed decision.

Keep us posted with what you find/learn about the situation.

 

Company is a family owned one here in Nashville with pretty good reputation.

I just send them an email asking what's included in the treatment. I will post it here if someone is interested in.

 

I highly suggest a fipronil based termiticide.

 

But it is used only if you have an infestation, right? And not for treatment or prevention.

 

Fipronil is an excellent choice to treat for termites. Here in the northeast I don’t reccommend treating preventatively unless there are circumstances that make it compelling. The further south you go, the more compelling it gets. Fipronil is good as a prevent and treatment for termites and carpenter ants.

 

Thank you. I will use this and do it by myself. It will save me $450.

 

Thank you for your reply, but I had this done about 6 month ago.