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| Small pile of termite frass on window sill. Frass is poop. Why they call it frass, I don't know. |
-Termite poops are tiny little brown spheres. They shove their poop out of "kick-out holes" leaving tiny little mounds underneath. So, "kick-out hole" = termite outhouse.
-Much like the Terminator, termites most definitely will be back. Exterminators recommend tenting your house at least once every ten years. That seems like a lot to me. But that was their recommendation. So, termites = sequels.
-Ants eat termites. Really?! Yes, ants eat termites. I suggested releasing ants into my garage as a solution, but the exterminator looked at me like I was crazy. So, ants = Australian cane toads.
-Termites have wood preferences. They'll eat anything if they have to, but there are certain woods they like better than others. So, termites = gourmands.
-Termites swarm when the weather gets really hot or if their colony is overcrowded. So, swarming termites = heat wave or suburban migration.
I hate termites. I especially hate that because of them, it cost a lot of money for someone to come out, drill holes in my walls, and spray poisonous foam into the holes. And this probably won't be enough. I'll probably have to start pulling the walls off the garage to look for more infested wood and replace it. Uuuuugh. I'm still thinking about ants as a solution.
-J
holy hell you are funny. if you do go for the ants, just avoid the Argentinian ones because those are the only breed of ant that can have more than one colony in a specifically sized ant colony area. The rest of the ants refuse to be so overcrowded. Argentinian ants = New Yorkers.
ReplyDeleteYou could always get spiders to eat the ants, or train the dogs to eat the ants? Aren't termites a lot bigger than ants?
HAhaha! Argentinian ants are totally New Yorkers. All pushy and speedwalking and generally being aggressive.
ReplyDeleteI think my spiders are too busy eating the earwigs. Every time I uncover a new earwig colony, there's usually a fat black widow hanging out on top. I think I just start needing to eat the termites myself. Isn't it a delicacy in Africa. I feel like I saw that one on a nation geographic special...
It's my understanding that termites in our region don't just fly in on the hot wind, they come up from the ground. In nature they are designed to breakdown dead plant stuff, which makes sense given that they go after our structures made of dead wood. I have classic 1950s knotty pine kitchen cabinetry. When I moved in I noticed their tell tale poop in my silverware drawer. So gross. The landlady sent out an exterminator.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if folks who wrap wood with Tyvek for new construction get the same sorts of termite issues later on?
Tyvek really doesn't last forever, so there must be a point when the wood becomes exposed again to hungry mouths. I think I just need to learn to accept their presence to a certain extent. My neighbor is terrified of termites, so he put up cinderblock walls around his yard instead of wooden fencing, and concreted over his entire backyard. His family lives in essentially a prisonyard, and ultimately I don't think it's going to stop the termites. (Especially since my garage is right next to the property line and the termites were swarming. Oops. Bad neighbor Jen.)
ReplyDeleteYou certainly wouldn't like that. While some species of ants are mostly harmless and beneficial, you have no way of knowing which is which until they start to cohabit your home. And think of the amount of money you'll pay for having, not only the termites exterminated, but the ants as well. It's better to stick with the termite prevention treatments.
ReplyDeleteEagle Pest Control & Chemical, Inc.
termite frass looks like. Most of them cannot mention what the differences between ant droppings vs. termite droppings Termites Frass
ReplyDelete