I have in-wall pest control tubes installed in my home. Can I service these myself? If so, what procedure should I use, and what pesticide should I use? I do have an air compressor.
DIY residential pest control for termites and woodboring insects is not recommended. Professionals have the proper equipment and chemicals which are not available to DIYers. They offer a warranty. There is no warranty with DIY.
Thanks twelvepole. I was concerned more about household pests, ants, roaches etc.and not termites. The pest control service charges $96 for servicing, is only at the house about 10 minutes and says it should be done at least twice-a-year. This company is the only authorized company in the county who will service the system. There are 12 small plastic tubes, and they inject a fluid pesticide in each and circulate it through tubes installed inside the walls throughout the house Another option is to pay another company $275/year, and they service the wall outlets and dust the attic. Have lived in the country on a ranch for a number of years, took care of the bugs myself and didn't have much of a problem. Got too old to ranch so moved closer to civilization and find most people have the bug people do the job for them. May just go back to doing it that way.
Tubes in the wall is just one more gimmick in the Pc world it has nothing to do with termites
I have a friend that recently quit working for the group you speak of.
Do it your self and save.
The method that worked best for me and netted the fewest call backs was this
Treat the outside of your home with a good micro encapsulated or wettable powder formulated insecticide.
We used Demand but you can find the equivalent or near at your local DIY store (not the DIY pest control store, they are a rip off)
Tempo wettable powder or a product from Lowes called Perimeter Defense should work well.
Just make sure that the product says WP or SC or CS after the name, do not use an EC
Spray the perimeter up to the level of the window, around each window and doorway and the eaves where the wall joins the roof.
Inside use Combat Gel with either Hydramethylnon or Fipronil as the active ingredient
Treat kitchens and bathrooms
In cabinets and around water sources. The tubes comes with a long needle so inject a small half pea sized glob into cracks where it can not be seen (it looks just like poop when it dries)
Dusting attics is no longer recommended mostly because it did little and was a safety concern for workmen who may need to work in the attic plus the chance of a breach in the AC system filling the house with insecticide
Around the base of the house use a insecticidal bait not the water activated clay based insecticide granual like Dursban and Diazinon was. We used Niban again Hydramethylono or Fipronil are good choices for AIs
I would have charged you about $100 to do that every three months
But to answer your question.
No you cannot treat the tubes yourself unless you can get a hold of their equipment
There are two things to consider when we are talking tubes in the wall; 1) there is no cure all or end all pest control technique, tool, or material legally available any longer. We simply have many tools to work with, tubes in the wall being one of them; 2) be cautious that if you or another pest control company decides to service the tubes that you are not voiding any warranties which may exist. Generally speaking the tubes are a good tool under certain circumstances. I live in Southern California and our number one pest is the Argentine ant. Under certain conditions you can not only keep the ants out by injecting the tubes but also trap them in, creating more of a problem. Good sanitation and perimeter spraying along with making sure that trees and shrubs are kept trimmed off the house and properly cared for to avoid aphids and other insects can go along way. Baits are probably the best indoor approach.
I have an in-wall system also. A Truly Nolen rep said they promoted the system back when the house was built (1990s), but found out it is not effective. I have never used a pest control company before, but the prices he quoted me were outrageous!
I like ocoee's suggestions. TN charges the same, though ($$$). How much do those insecticides you describe cost to cover a 1600 sq ft, single story home?
The TN rep also mentioned about putting boric acid in the attic. After reading your post, I don't think that would be a good idea.
Is the Ortho Home Defense Spray available everywhere ineffective?
I don't think it is
If I remember correctly it is an EC product which is fairly obsolete
Home Depot sales, or used to, Tempo WP which is what I used for years with great success.
Demand is a better product but I don't know if it available OTC or what the civilian equivalent is
I will tell you this
Just about every product used by PC companies can be bought at Home Depot, Lowes, or Walmart
What you pay for is know how, and I don't see much of that with the companies anymore
They have opted for revenue generating cookie cutter treatments instead of developing the knowledge of their techs.
In Central Florida the only company doing the tubes legally is Home Defense which is owned by Centex Homes
A one time treatment with Boric Acid would not be harmful and would last indefinitely in a dry attic.
The problems arose when we started selling once a year attic treatments as a way of justifying our prices,
A normal attic would take about 6ozs of BA when workers get up in an attic that has been treated with pounds of Tri Di and Drione desiccants over the years and has to work in that environment for a coupe of hours it is unhealthy
Boric Acid is one of the active ingredients in some laundry detergents and a man my size would have to ingest over two pounds of it to get a serious stomach ache
What was the price that Truly quoted you?
Thanks for the reply. I'll have to visit my local Walmart first to see if they have anything similar to Tempo WP. They're always cheaper than HD Lowes for the same product.
I live in S. FL about 20 miles from the ocean. It isn't that humid here. Is a one time boric acid treatment still enough?
TN wanted $400/yr which included 4 visits.
Thanks again!
Truly's price comes out about right at $33 per month
And as I said in my PM I have a tremendous amount of respect for Truly, he's from the old school when we actually like our jobs and customers
His son Scott is one of if not the most knowledgeable people I have ever met in the field
When I first started in PC we charged about $20 when you figure for inflation that's not too bad, or it was way back then
The active ingredient in Tempo is Cyflutrin which is a synthetic pyrethroid.
Most have Cy or Thrin somewhere in their names
Just make sure that it is a WP, CS, or SC formulation.
Those letters will be at the end of the trade name,
Baythroid, Baythroid H, Attatox, Contur, Laser, Responsar, Solfac, Tempo are trades name products containing cyfluthrin
Charge, Excaliber, Grenade, Hallmark, Icon, Karate, Matador, are trade names for product containing lambda cyhalothrin the active in Demand
Lowes used to have a prodcut called Perimeter Defense that I believe also contained lambda cyhalothrin and cost about $50
The Demand that we used was $54 per pint
There are also new and better products out now like Termidor and Phantom that I am not familiar with because I am falling out of the loop due to the incredible increase in PC technology
If you are ever up in the central Fl area give me a shout I still have a quite an inventory left.
The advice I give is based on the experience I have had in central Fl
I was and still am amazed at the difference just fifty miles in either direction makes regarding the pest that you will deal with
I worked Orlando for ten years and did maybe ten carpenter ant jobs in that time
I transfered to Merritt island thinking that I knew everything and found that I was as lost as a newby
We did ten carpenter ant jobs by lunch time every day.
I tend to forget that sometimes.
Originally Posted by Leroy 1
I have in-wall pest control tubes installed in my home. Can I service these myself? If so, what procedure should I use, and what pesticide should I use? I do have an air compressor.
your best bet is to forget that you have the tubes and use REAL pesticide.
the tubes in the wall was a gimmick to produce more money and these are some reasons why..
1. there are not any bugs that hang out or live behind the wall. (bugs come thru the doors, windows, and cracks and hang out around pipes and base boards-where the tubes are not)
2. the idea that you dont have to smell the chemical once a month helped sell the product (not all chemicals have odor)
3. you dont have to let pest techs come into to treat the home nor do you have to be at home to be serviced (how do you know that they were really there or if they truly sprayed the amount they say?)
4. the Whitmire chemicals that they use for these systems are only available to certified pest techs and are nothing but aerosol sprays with little to no difference from what you buy in the store with little to no residual. They can charge you more for the chemicals that are not available to the public, yet they pay less than what what they do for real and good old fashion style chemicals.
Dont take my word for it, I have only been in the industry for 17 years and have seen every scam on the market.
The public has a right to know.
Dont get pest control from anyone other than ones using the original BG sprayer unit. Make them mix the chemical right in front of you. The amount of chemical to ad to water should be the the full catch at the top of the plastic container holding the pesticide.
DIY's, you dont get the quality chemical anywhere else than what a certified tech has. However, with that said, what you do get will do ok as long as you spray it more often. But, the best form of pest control is to keep your place clean and sink empty, all food sources properly put away, leave no standing water, trash can covered.
Tags: pest, control, pest control, pest control, have in-wall, sure that, tubes installed, tubes wall, active ingredient, boric acid, Boric Acid
