Infrared technology has been used for decades to search for humans and other animals. It even has applications in various fields of science and technology, but until very recently, no one had had the idea of making use of infrared to locate termites and other insects. When, you hear about it, it makes sense, because a huge number of animals working and living together will produce heat, even if they are termites.
However, now that the connection between infrared and termite location has been made and there are devices on the market, professional pest controllers have welcomed the new technology with open arms and accepted it into their armoury of weapons against termites that invade our homes. Nowadays, thousands of forward-thinking pest control companies can offer termite detection by means of infrared cameras.
Now, these infrared cameras are not cheap, but as with all other forms of new technology, the price is dropping as there is more and more demand. This will have a big effect on the cost of a termite survey, because formerly, people had to go digging holes all over the place to find the nest. You see the real issue is that the most destructive termites are subterranean, that is to say, their nests are underground.
It was always very tricky to find and destroy the nest and nearly all the damage caused to timber in the USA is made by these subterranean species of termites. The latest estimation I can find for termite damage and prevention in the USA is $11 billion – but that was in 1999. More than a decade ago!
Prior to these infrared termite location cameras coming on the market, the method of finding termite runs, was to tap a joist and listen to determine if it was a little bit hollow. Then, the expert would break the timber open to see whether he was correct. Discovering termite galleries or walkways by this method was necessarily damaging and so not optimal.
Additionally, disturbing termite workers in this manner, causes them to signal a withdrawal and they all run back to the nest. This can decrease the effectiveness of further detection and subsequent spraying. The termite pest control industry was looking for a way around this predicament for a long time.
Then along came the infrared termite detection camera. So, nowadays, a termite exterminator does not even have to interrupt much, he can sneak quietly around the property inserting the lens of the video camera into nooks and crannies and see what is going on. The camera lens is on a stem which allows it to be inserted into galleries in timber and earth to make tracing them back to the nest simpler.
The infrared termite location camera has taken the battle against the termite up to a new level. It has also lowered the amount of damage that an examination for termites leads to and it should bring the cost of a survey down too. The only thing that an infrared termite location camera cannot help you with is the cost of eradicating the termites if you actually do have an infestation.
Owen Jones, the author of this article, writes on many subjects, but is at present concerned with Termidor termite treatment – a termite killer. If you are interested in this or if you are wondering: What Does A Termite Look Like?. Please go to our web site now for further details.
categories: termites,insects,pest control,home repair,house,real estate,structural engineering,gardening,landscaping,engineering,outdoors,other,uncategorised,environment
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