White ants, popularly known as termites, can cause hundreds and thousands of dollars in structural damage in your home. Unfortunately, detecting their infestation isn't always easy. You will likely only notice when the ants have already set up their colonies and the damage done. And because they live in significantly large colonies, getting rid of them can be hard.

Knowing your home is infested by these ants is usually the first step to getting rid of them. Therefore, watch for indicators like damaged timber, clicking sounds coming from inside your walls, tunnels in broken wood pieces around your home, frass, mud tubes, discarded wings, and swarms (for the flying species). If you notice any of these signs in your home, here is a list of control and treatment tips you can use to keep the ants at bay.

Fix Leaks And Other Moisture Related Issues In Your Home

Moisture can attract all kinds of pests to your home, including white ants. Therefore, it would be helpful to identify any moisture-related issues in your home and fix them early enough to keep the ants away. You can do this in many ways. For instance, a dehumidifier can come in handy if you live in a humid area. It would help if you also worked to fix leaks quickly. Moisture-laden framing, roofs, ceilings, etc., can make perfect hosts for the ants. Therefore, inspect your entire home regularly to identify leaks and fix them quickly.

However, it's worth noting that the dry wood species typically have lower moisture requirements than the rest. Therefore, fixing moisture issues alone may not do the trick in controlling them, so it would help to combine several control measures for the best results.

Use Termite Baits

Using termite baits is another effective technique to control and eliminate white ants from your home. They contain slow-acting ingredients or toxins that inhibit the ants' natural growth. Infected termites bring the toxins back to their colonies upon being infected, transmitting the infection to other ants and eventually killing the entire colony. It's an effective way to control these ants because tracing their colonies is not always easy and typically requires professionals.

Use Barriers

As the name implies, barriers are treatments applied around your home's perimeter to prevent the ants from finding their way inside your home. These soil-applied treatments are typically undetected by the ants, which die upon consuming the treated material. Like termite baits, infected ants can also spread the treatment in their colonies. It's worth noting that proper application of these treatments is critical to avoid contaminating the surroundings, especially if you have a drinking water well. Therefore, it would be helpful to follow the application instructions carefully or leave the exercise to professionals.

For more information on white ants pest control, contact a professional near you.