Termite Baiting
The smart way to protect your home!

Termite Hotline 08 8340 8181

Termite baiting and monitoring systems

Termite monitoring and baiting systems have been on the market for over 25 years, and are a proven and trusted method of eliminating termites from buildings and providing lasting protection.

In many ways there are considered the smart termite protection system as they utilise the termites’ own foraging behaviour to gain control. They are also environmentally smart too, as they avoid the need to treat the soil around buildings with insecticides, as is the case with a traditional “barrier” treatment.

All termite baits are based on an attractive termite food containing a slow acting insecticide.

Termites feed on the bait taking it back to the nest where it is fed to the queen and other termites.

Depending on the termite species, the size of the nest and the time of year (baits work faster in warmer months). The more termites feeding on the bait the faster the elimination.

Termite baits are used to control active termites in buildings and also to provide long term protection as part of a termite monitoring and baiting system.

When used inside buildings, bait stations (small plastic boxes) containing bait are fixed to the areas where termites are feeding. The termites then move into the bait station and take the attractive bait back to the nest. It may be necessary to refill the bait station every couple of weeks if it is a large termite nest, to ensure the nest is eliminated.

Termite monitoring and baiting systems consists of plastic housing installed in the ground around your home (every 2-3 metres).

Traditional monitoring systems contain samples of wood attractive to termites. If termites are active in the area they will start feeding on this wood.

We inspect these bait stations every 3 months for termite activity. If termites are spotted then a termite bait is added which the termites feed on, taking it back to the nest and ultimately killing the colony. We will carry out more frequent inspections during the baiting period to monitor progress and confirm colony elimination.

Hindmarsh Pest Control utilise these ‘traditional’ monitoring to protect many of our customers’ homes. However, we have started to recommend the latest innovation in baiting systems – Sentricon AlwaysActive.

Sentricon AlwaysActive is the latest in termite baiting systems. It is different to the traditional termite monitoring and baiting systems in that it does not use wood and then replace it with bait – it simply contains termite bait from the point of installation, meaning it is always active, protecting your home.

The bait stations consist of a compressed cellulose rod containing slow acting insecticide. These rods remain attractive for many years and only have to be replaced if they are eaten by termites.

We still need to do regular inspections every three months to check for termite activity. If we spot activity we do more frequent inspections to confirm termite elimination and replace any eaten rods.

There are two options for termite management systems to provide the long termite protection:

  • Termite monitoring and baiting systems
  • Liquid termiticide treatments to the soil

Hindmarsh best control generally recommend termite monitoring and baiting systems as the preferred termite treatment. They are seen as the smart and safe way to eliminate termites and protect homes.

Generally we recommend the use of termite monitoring and baiting systems for protecting structures for three reasons:

  1. They are the only proven way to eliminate termite nests that cannot be located
  2. They can be used with a wide range of construction types
  3. They deliver protection in a wide range of soil types
  4. They are environmentally smart – no spraying of insecticides

Some pest managers will prefer to use dusts or foams to kill active termites or liquid soil treatments over monitoring systems, because they believe baits take too long to get control.

However, the problem with dusts, foams and soil treatments is that they only kill the termites that contact the treatment and rarely kill the nest, which means if you’re not careful the termites can come back to attack again

The key benefit of baits over all the ‘faster’ products is that baits actually kill the termite nest, reducing the termite pressure on your home for long term protection.

Although termite soil treatments are consider the “traditional” way to provide long term protection of buildings from termite attack, there are 3 main concerns with all chemical soil treatments:

  1. They are not suitable in all soil types, especially clay, sandy or rocky soils, where the chemicals cannot remain in the soil
  2. When they are injected under paths and patios, there is no way of knowing whether you have achieved a good distribution of chemical, meaning there could be gaps in the treatment which termites can get through
  3. They can get washed away in heavy rain and flooding

However, sometimes there may be a specific reason when we use a liquid soil treatment or when requested by a customers. In such situations, Hindmarsh Pest Control recommedn Altriset termiticide, as it has a great safety and environmental profile.

As with all termite management systems, a regular comprehensive termite inspections (at least once a year) is required to maintain any warranty.

Call now to arrange an inspection and quote