Formosan termite colonies are some of the most dangerous pests to infest wooden structures. A single colony of this subterranean termite species can eat through your foundation walls and your exterior wall from the ground level up - which means you need to start termite treatment as soon as you start noticing signs of termite activity or structural damage around your property.

So what are the best ways to control Formosan termites? Control strategies include the use of termiticide, fumigation, treating the wood and soil around your property, and using baiting stations to affect the rest of the colony. By using the right control strategy (and some professional help) it's possible to kill this "super termite" before it causes too much structural damage.

Different Control Strategies For Formosan Termites

Before getting into these treatment options, you must make sure that you're dealing with Formosan termites. These destructive pests are not the only termite species that can feed on pieces of wood, and sometimes it's easy to mistake the obvious signs of termite activity for other pests like ants.

Once you've managed to establish the initial infestations, here are the control methods you can use to get rid of them:

1. Liquid Termiticide

Liquid termiticide functions as an excellent way to prevent Formosan termites from making their way into your property, but it relies on them having a colony that's not directly underneath your house. By creating a trench and mixing termiticide into the ground, you're able to create a chemical barrier that can repel most exploring Formosan termites from your house.

Liquid termiticide can come in several brands and strengths, though we recommend checking with a pest control expert if the formula you'll use won't affect your surroundings. Because of their strong chemical properties, most experts would recommend that you only use these termiticides in small amounts, to prevent any effect on the wildlife or any other smaller creatures in the area.

Liquid termiticide is advantageous for Formosan termite control for a few reasons:

• Formosan termites are far more likely to go towards moisture, which brings them to the termiticide
• Application is fairly easy for initial treatments and easier to keep up
• Several brands of liquid termiticide mean you never run out of options
• Particularly effective during humid seasons, less during hot summers
• You can create "bath traps" which can isolate colonies from one another

Keep in mind that liquid termiticide can also affect any nearby colony of termites/insects, which can be disastrous if there's a native species around your area that you're trying to preserve. For the best results, partial treatments of liquid termiticide can work to still keep out pests while protecting the local insect population.

2. Fumigation Treatment

Keep a lookout for termites swarming, since they can easily be handled with fumigation treatments. They'll usually swarm around light fixtures looking for a mate, after which they'll settle in the nearby wood and soil to start colonies of their own. Fumigation treatments can help take care of the huge swarms of flying termites, and can also settle near colonies to kill any stragglers left behind.

Fumigation is particularly effective if you've found aerial nests or other similar nesting places since you can liberally coat the area with fumes until you choke the termites out of their nest. Just be careful to not leave behind any moist patches, since termites can simply overwhelm your solution with sheer numbers to chew through the wood.

Fumigation treatments work particularly well if:

• You detect the colony around the spring and summer when they tend to swarm the most
• The infestation is large enough to create big swarms that you want to prevent from spreading
• You find nests in exposed areas
• You can spray directly inside the mud tubes used for transport
• You think you need more termite control after using another control strategy

Fumigation treatments should be done with caution since too many fumes can also affect you and other people in the area, which can be fatal to pets and small animals. As much as possible, have a pest control company take care of any fumigation that you might need, even in small amounts.

3. Ground and Wood Treatment

Formosan termites make their home in the wood and soil around your area, so if you want to tackle them by attacking their food sources, ground and wood treatment is a viable option. By applying termite poison directly into the wood and smoke - either by coating it or drilling inside them - you can create pockets of poison that can affect the entire colony.

This tactic is particularly effective if you have a small infestation that you're trying not to let spread: while it's not effective as an exclusion tactic, it can buy you some time to get rid of the initial infestation before it gets worse. Long-term, ground and wood treatment can also repel other termite species from settling on your property.

Ground and wood treatment works particularly well when:

• You have plenty of dead wood around that needs to be treated
• You have a wide area of dirt that termites can settle inside
• You've quickly identified and closed off the area where the colony is
• You're dealing with other native termite species aside from Formosan termites
• You have access to the termite galleries in the colony

One thing to keep in mind with this type of treatment is that it's ineffective at tackling an aerial nest or other carton nests Formosan termites can create inside structures. If your annual inspections turn up more than one potential colony, you may need to combine this treatment with something else.

4. Bait Stations

Baiting systems are by far one of the most effective ways you can treat a Formosan termite infestation since it takes advantage of the fact that these colonies consume plenty of food to survive. Bait systems can be easily placed near wood and soil where you suspect the presence of termites. Termite baiting systems need to be consistently topped up and supplied to hit as many termites as possible - this is particularly true for Formosan termites, which signal food sources to the rest of the colony.

Baiting for Formosan termites is fairly simple since they feed on almost anything even remotely close to wood and paper products. This includes plant matter, some soft metals, and even some synthetic materials like rubber and plastic.

Bait stations are effective for Formosan termites because:

• The colony will always gravitate towards easier food sources like bait stations
• It can work on other destructive termite species in the area
• Formosan termites are particularly vulnerable since they have large colonies that feed a lot
• It's easy to set up monitoring stations to check the effects of your baits
• It can be placed almost anywhere, including close to already damaged wood

Bait stations need to be used carefully to avoid any unwanted interactions with the native wildlife in the area, especially if there are plenty of scavengers. While the active ingredients in Formosan termite baits are unlikely to harm animals, they can make your applications less effective overall.

Control Subterranean Termites and Prevent Further Termite Damage With Permakill Exterminating

Subterranean termite infestations like Formosan termites need immediate intervention to make sure they don't cause too much damage. By knowing your options for treatment, control, and prevention, you're able to deal with Formosan termite infestations without too much trouble.

But if your particular colony has grown too big or you need identification for what exact termite species you're dealing with, call pest management professionals like Permakill Exterminating Today. We offer a comprehensive termite inspection and removal package which you can consider at the first sign of termite activity. Whether it's termite colonies or other insect species, we're the pest control company you should call.

Contact us today to get a free estimate on any pest control service you might need.