Termatrac — Conquer Termites

Termite Inspections – meet some of the tools of our trade.

If you’ve ever wondered what to expect during your termite inspection, we thought now was a good time to introduce you to some of the tools we use on the job. A termite technician’s tools range from the hi-tech thermal imaging products all the way down to simple screwdrivers and tappers.

A termite tapper is one of the most simple, but valuable pieces of equipment we will use in your pest inspection. It is run along the skirting bards and any exposed timber and a technician is able to hear a change in tone that may alert him to possible signs of timber damage.

A Termite Tapper is one of the most useful tools in a pest & termite inspection

If a difference in tone is detected, a simple screwdriver can be used to examine the wood and see if it is compromised – i.e if the termites have eaten it.

Our Tramex Moisture Meter

Another tool often seen at a Pest Inspection is a Moisture Meter. As it’s name suggests, a moisture meter is used to detect levels of moisture in internal walls. A higher moisture level than normal can be a good indicator of termite activity, as they require moist, humid conditions for survival. They also leave a moist trail as they work and feed. The termite tapper and the moisture meter are used in every termite inspection conducted by Conquer Termites Brisbane.

Borescope

A borescope would be used if the moisture meter is not conclusive, we would drill a small hole in the wall and insert the borescope to get a better look at what is going on inside of your walls. It can be used to determine if there is current activity or to get a better picture of how much damage termites have done to your structure. It’s a great chance for you to get a look at the termites (should you be so inclined) without having to disturb them.

Termatrac

Next in our arsenal is something we blogged about recently – our Termatrac. A termatrac detects motion inside walls and can be a better first step than opening walls and disturbing active termites (thus encouraging them to move to an even less accessible spot in your home). Invented and developed in Australia it uses microwave technology to detect termites hidden below the surface of timber, plaster board, brick or masonry with no interference to the building material or termite activity.
A termatrac is comprised of two parts: a sensor unit that is applied to a surface to pick up any termite activity, and a main control unit which we use to assess the data fed back to us.

Thermal Imaging Camera

We recently used one of these in a job in Sunnybank Hills (Nick’s South Central Territory) just the other day. Thermal imaging is a technology that will detect differentials in heat energy. If termites have a concentration of activity in a certain area or a nesting inside your walls, the camera will pick up the heat caused by that activity. If there is a lot of activity, it will show up on a Thermal Imagine Camera as hot spots. In the Sunnybank Hills job last week we had suspected termite infestation in a window frame, but our moisture meter had failed to pick anything up. By using the thermal imaging camera, we were able to detect a few hot spots and by also teaming this up with the borescope, we were able to find a lot more termite activity in the wall cavity and in the timber frame.

It’s a useful tool, but it has it’s limits, particularly here in Brisbane, or in the rest of South East Queensland. If the ambient temperature of the wall is the same as the termite workings (for example over 23 degrees celcius), a thermal camera isn’t necessarily going to pick anything up. As well, just as in our Sunnybank job, if that particular spot only has a small amount of termites, then we are going to need to introduce other tools to get a better picture of what’s going on.

While we all are inclined to feel ‘safer’ and better looked after if we have the latest gadgetry at our disposal, it’s good to remember that sometimes time honoured, simpler methods can be more successful, or should at the very least be used in conjunction with newer methods. They do not replace the tools we have been using successfully for years.

How Termatrac can be a useful tool in detecting termites – West Chermside Termite Treatment

Termatrac uses microwave signals to detect movement

Earlier this month, we were called to a house in the Northern Brisbane suburb of Chermside West, where the homeowners suspected that they had termites inside their home.

When we arrived at the job, we did, indeed find evidence of Schedorhinotermes – a very common termite found in South East Queensland.

We do a lot of work in West Chermside and surrounding suburbs such as Chermside, Stafford, Bridgeman Downs, Stafford Heights and McDowall, and come across this timid species of termite frequently.

While they are known generally to create their nests outside of the home, they often make small sub-nests (called bivouacs) inside walls, sub-floors and roof voids.

We found evidence that the termites were coming up the bathroom wall and eating into the window frame. Even when we can initially only see evidence of termites in one wall, it is vitally important in a good termite inspection, to know just how many areas have termite involvement. The last thing you as a homeowner want from any Termite Inspection is for the termite technician to miss areas of infestation. So we turned to one of a Termite technician’s most valuable tools – a Termatrac.

Termatrac uses microwave signals to detect movement

Termatrac is a small yellow monitoring device that sends microwave signals into walls to detect movement. Tempting as it can be when you first suspect termites, it’s not always the best idea to go in all guns-blazing and start tearing apart walls, trying to catch them out. A termatrac is a reliable way to quickly and accurately detect movement without making them more skittish before we can treat them.

When we used the Termatrac in this West Chermside bathroom, we found that the termites were also inside the adjoining, internal walls of the structure. Using Termatrac as we continued on with the termite inspection, we later also detected termites entering the house in the entertainment room, on the other side of the house! Once again, the Termatrac had done its job and helped us locate all of the termites in the property.

Termite Damage in Window Frame

All areas of activity were immediately treated with a foaming treatment using Termidor and our follow up inspection showed that all termite activity had ceased. The termites were gone.

We then installed a full chemical treatment using Termidor to prevent any further termite infestations and were able to also offer the homeowner a Timbersure warranty to the value of $100 000. (Read more here to learn more about the absolute peace of mind that a Timbersure Warranty can offer you).

Overall, we left this Chermside West homeowner with an excellent result – a neat and tidy finish to the treated areas, and more importantly – no termites in their home. And with the Timbersure Warranty, he can follow up with our yearly inspections to make sure his home remains termite free.

If you have a home in any of Brisbane’s northern suburbs, from Chermside or North Lakes to Redcliffe, Chapel Hill and The Gap, be sure to call Al, Andy or Joel from Conquer Termites North Side on 3356 8801. There’s a good chance that the Termatrac will form a part of your Termite Inspection.