I receive many calls from people wanting to know what can be done to protect their home from termites — or if a certain practice or condition is likely to cause termite problems. So I put this information together based on the infestations I have found over the past 24 years.

Homeowners can reduce the risk of termite attack by following the suggestions listed below.

1.      Eliminate wood contact with the ground. Many termite infestations result from structural wood being in direct contact with the soil. Earth-to-wood contact provides termites with easy access to food, moisture, and shelter, as well as direct, hidden entry into the building. Wood siding, latticework, door and window frames and similar wood items should be at least six inches above ground level.  Eliminating wood-to-soil contact may require regrading or pulling soil or mulch back from the foundation, cutting the bottom off of wood latticework, or supporting steps or posts on a concrete base. Posts or stairs that are embedded in concrete are also vulnerable to termites since they usually extend all the way through the concrete to the soil. Contrary to popular belief, wood which has been pressure treated is not immune to termite attack; termites will enter pressure-treated wood through cut ends and cracks, and will also build tunnels over the surface.

2.      Don’t let moisture  accumulate near the foundation. Termites are attracted to moisture and are more likely to “zero in” on a structure if the soil next to the foundation is consistently moist. Water should be diverted away from the foundation with properly functioning gutters, downspouts and splash blocks. Leaking faucets, water pipes and air conditioning units should be repaired, and the ground next to the foundation should be graded (sloped) so that surface water drains away from the building. Homes with poor drainage may need to have tiles or drains installed. Lawn sprinklers and irrigation systems should be adjusted to minimize water puddling near the foundation.

3.      Reduce humidity in crawl spaces. Most building codes call for 1 square foot of vent opening per 150 square feet of crawlspace area. For crawlspaces equipped with a polyethylene vapor barrier (see below), the total vent area often can be reduced to 1 square foot per 300 to 500 square feet of crawlspace area. One vent should be within 3 feet of each exterior corner of the building. Vents should be kept free of leaves, dirt, and debris, and should not be obstructed by vegetation. Moisture and humidity in crawl spaces can further be reduced by installing 4-6 ml polyethylene sheeting over about 75 percent of the soil surface. The soil cover will act as a vapor barrier to reduce evaporation from the soil and condensation of moisture on joists and subflooring. Vents and vapor barriers are installed by our company.

4.      Never store firewood, lumber or other wood debris against the foundation or inside the crawl space. Firewood, lumber, cardboard boxes, newspapers, and other cellulose materials attract termites and provide a source of food. When stacked against the foundation they offer a hidden path of entry into the structure and allow termites to bypass any termiticide soil barrier which is present. Vines, ivy, and other dense plant material touching the house should also be avoided. Where practical, dead stumps and tree roots around and beneath the building should be removed, along with old form boards and grade stakes left in place after the building was constructed.

5.      Use mulch sparingly, especially if you already have termites or other conducive conditions. Many people use landscape mulch for its aesthetic and plant health benefits. Excessive or improper usage, however, can contribute to termite problems. Termites are attracted to mulch primarily because of its moisture-retaining properties, and the insulation it affords against temperature extremes. The mulch itself is of poor nutritional quality to termites and a non-preferred source of food. Since the moisture retaining properties of mulch are more of an attractant than the wood itself, it makes little difference what type of mulch is used (cypress, pine bark, eucalyptus, etc.). Contrary to popular belief, crushed stone or pea gravel are comparable to wood mulch in terms of attraction, since they also retain moisture in the underlying soil. Where mulch is used, it should be applied sparingly (2-3 inches is usually adequate), and should never be allowed to contact wood siding or framing of doors or windows.

6.      Consider having the structure treated by a professional pest control firm. Buildings have many natural openings through which termites can enter, most of which are hidden. While the above measures will help make the house less attractive to termites, the best way to prevent infestation is to protect it with a termiticide.

Preventively treating a home for termites is a reasonable investment, especially if the structure has had no prior history of treatment. If the building was previously treated by a pest control firm, it’s a good idea to maintain the warranty by paying the annual renewal fee. Should termites reinfest the building, our company will return and retreat the affected area at no additional charge.

Whether or not a person chooses to have their home treated, they should know the signs of termite infestation:

§  Pencil-wide mud foraging tubes on foundation walls, piers, sills, joists, etc.

§  Winged “swarmer” termites, or their shed wings, on window sills and along the edges of floors.

P    PestPlus offers you several solutions from baiting systems to liquid applications for termites. Our monitoring termite system gives homeowners a piece of mind knowing their property is protected!

I I  If you are in the Central NJ area, please contact us at 732-777-6857, if you are in other parts of the country, please use this information to protech your home.

        Scott Linde, Pest Expert

P      PestPlus  732-777-6757

P

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Anyway, something fascinating is happening today. It’s actually snowing. I think it’s pretty cool but what’s not fascinating is it’s starting to get very cold now and with that, you may have an influx of bed bugs. Let me explain why.

People are going to start to wear their winter jackets and their actual winter jackets are going to intermingle with other winter jackets. Whether you are going to work or your kids are going to school, there is a possibility, a likelihood that some of those jackets are going to intermingle, are going to have bed bugs. What’s going to happen is there’s going to be a transferability effect in which in fact you are going to bring bed bugs home or your kids are going to bring bed bugs home and you’re going to end up with a bed bug problem. So I would like to give you some pointers that you can use regardless of where you are around the country as you’re watching this video.

Number one, you want to assume that you’re going to have bed bugs and I know it’s kind of a horrific idea to have in your  head but you want to assume that and so then you can take the following precautions. Number one, when your kids come home from school, you want to get an allocated area in which they’re going to put their jackets and they’re going to put their book bags. It’s not a good idea to have them throw it over the couch and take that book bag and throw it on the floor. Unfortunately, these are the times that we live in today so we do have to make changes whether you want to or not.

If you think you’re never going to get bed bugs, you may be foolishly mistaken and so my goal is to help you to kind of avoid having that problem. So you want an allocated area in which they can put their jackets inside a particular container or teach them how to use the dryer.

If they come home and they take their jacket and they throw it in the dryer for about 20 minutes on high heat, that would kill every stage of bed bugs as well as also the eggs. You can also do that with book bags. Once a week, take everything out of your kids’ book bags and you can put it on high heat. If your kids have some kind of plastic book bag, that may melt. Of course that’s not going to be a good idea. At that particular point, you can pick up something from our website store at wwwPestPlus.net/catalog. You can pick up some Nuvan strips and what that is, you can put that in the container. There is no heat involved. You leave that in overnight and that would also kill every stage of bed bugs as well as also the eggs.

Now for yourself, if you’re going to work, again you don’t want your jackets or your clothes or pocketbooks to intermingle with other people’s garments that may be bringing bed bugs from their own house. So when you do come home, you either A, you want to take your garments also and throw it in the dryer in high heat.

Listen, again, this is a different era that we’re living in. When me and my wife and my kids, we go to the movies. We come home. We put all our stuff in the dryer. We’re not going to take a chance of bringing something home from the movie theatre and putting it in our house and having a bed bug infestation.

So you want to learn to put your garments in the dryer in high heat for about 20 minutes. That will kill every stage. If you do have leather garments or pocketbooks and you are concerned, you have several options.

Number one, you can still put it in the dryer but you have to use low heat of course so you don’t melt or damage any of your garments. Number two, you can avoid that if again you go and you get a container and you get some Nuvan strips and you put the Nuvan strips inside that container and let that go overnight. By the next morning, if you did have bed bugs in there or any stages of a bed bug including eggs, that would kill it.

Number two, when you do go to work is if you can bring some kind of little kind of carry case that you can put your garments in there as well and also your pocketbooks rather than hang it up with everybody else’s stuff. You have a less likely chance of picking up bed bugs and then you can just put that little case that you’re going to use whether it be a gym bag or something a little bit bigger in a dryer once a week just to add to that precaution. I’m not bringing bed bugs home. It is very common that people all go into work.

Again, you have different cultures and different people. Some cultures believe that you shouldn’t kill any kind of bugs. In some cultures, it’s not really a big deal to them and so you want to make sure that you understand it’s going to be a big deal to you. This goes with your pocketbooks.

Another thing you want to do is if you don’t want to do that or you can’t do that, you can pick up a garment back. They sell these garment bags whether you go to Nordstrom or other places and you can actually put your jacket, sweater, pocketbooks in a garment bag. Then you can hang that on a hanger and at least you will be allocated to a particular area and you won’t have that much of a problem of bringing bed bugs home.

Remember, the season has now changed. People are traveling with their jackets whether they’re traveling on the bus, whether you’re traveling on the train, anything to do with fabric. It is a likelihood that you’re going to pick up bed bugs from somewhere. It’s happening all over the country, all over the world and so there’s no denying it and there’s no being immune to it regardless of what your status is financially and you don’t want to be ignorant about these things.

Another thing is again, teach your kids when they come home. Do not take their garments. Throw it on the floor, book bags and even if they have other kids visiting. You don’t know how many houses we visited in which people got bed bugs from other people.

Now I’m saying you can’t – not that you can’t have people in your house but you got to use common sense. There was one house that we visited in Piscataway, New Jersey about a year and a half ago. The girl who was 13 years old had a friend sleep over and when the friend slept over, she opened up her bag to take her garments out and the girl said to her mommy, “Look, mommy. My friend had a bug crawling out of her bag.” It ended up being bed bugs. Her whole house became infested.

So until next time, I’m Scott you’re not! Hopefully you got some great information that you can utilize. Stay posted. Visit www.GetMyFreeBedBugReport.com. I want to give you some latest and greatest information and also stay posted to our videos at www.BiteBackThoseBedBugs.com. This is useful information that we’re always happy to share with you.

If you live in the New Jersey or Central New Jersey area and you’re looking to have a bed bug treatment. Feel free to reach out to my office. The number is – I think I have it on here. It’s 1-855-BUG-BITE. So give us a call. We’re happy to help you. We specialize in heat. We have more heat than anybody in the tri-state area. We have freezing. We have chemical. We have steam. We have whatever you need when it comes to bed bugs. I’m an expert in it and I can definitely help you or guide you in the right direction.

What you don’t want to do is start picking up store-bought products and just spraying all over the place and think you’re doing a great job. Another thing you don’t want to do is you don’t want to pick up products that are marked for fleas or ticks. You don’t want to set off bug bombs. You want to use the right products to get the right job done.

Until next time, stay tuned at www.GetMyFreeBedBugReport.com and I’ll catch you soon. Enjoy the snow. Bye.

1-Remove all old rotted wood in your yard and under your decking.

2- Have tree limbs pruned away from touching your house.

3- Have your gutters cleaned.

4- Make sure your rain spouts release at least 5 feet away from your foundation.

Taking some simple steps can help reduce your chances of a wood destroying insect infestation.

Know the difference:

Know the difference

The tenants claim they have been living with this Bed Bug infestation for 4 years now without ANY relief from their landlord. Quite honestly I don’t know how true this is but I do know I was there to help.

I initially found a lot of clutter and improper living conditions. I felt I was not going to get the cooperation I needed to pull off a successful application, but I was wrong (good thing).

The tenants worked very hard to pull off the proper preparation for us and they did! 

We went in with 2 guys, carpet cleaned, steamed and applied chemicals. Four hours later our 1^st application was completed.

When Bed Bug Attack!

I am looking forward to next week when we revisit this site. I am eager to hear about the relief the tenants have encountered.

You NEVER EVER have to be a victim, Even if you cannot afford a treatment, you can do things to help yourself.

Let me show you the way……visit www.bitebackthosebedbugs.com

 Until next time, sleep tight!

Scott Linde aka “The Solution”

www.bitebackthosebedbugs.com

Bed Bug Expert

A lot of homeowners are running to a large hardware chain in hopes of finding the right solution. Unfortunately their solution is wrong 10 out of 10X and they are left with Bed Bugs.

Some think throwing out their furniture is the answer but they quickly find out it was short term success.

There are definitely things a homeowner can do if they get Bed Bugs:

1- Don’t panic, grab your vacuum and suck up what you can.

2-take the infested fabrics and put them in a dryer on high heat for no less than 30 minutes.

3-If you have Bed Bugs on your mattress or box spring, spray rubbing alcohol on it. This will kill them IMMEDIATELY! (be careful the alcohol will damage wood and/or coated furniture)

4-Call a professional pest company to assist you. Don’t just price shop. Shop for the best solutions.

I can help you with all 3 or just #4. In my new book “Bite Back” I explain EVERYTHING about Bed Bugs, what NOT to do and what questions you need to ask any pest company prior to going into an agreement.

You can purchase my book here: Bite Back Those Bed Bugs.

Let me help you get Bed Bug free!

Until next time, I’m Scott and your not!

“Have A Bite Back Day”

Scott Linde

Published Author on Bed Bugs “Bite Back”

As featured on ABC Eyewittness news:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3-U8NTcFcM

As featured in the NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/22/us/22bedbug.html

(as featured on Extreme Home Makovers -Irvington, NJ project)

A PestPlus,LLC

518-7 Old Post Road, PMB 181

Edison, NJ 08817

http://www.pestplus.net

 P 1-855-Bite-Bac (248-3222)

I am happy to inform you of my new Bed Bug bible called “Bite Back” my book has been flying off the shelf!! Due to the fact it’s an effective tool to understanding and eliminating Bed Bugs.  The book discusses what every homeowner, landlord and renter should know when it comes to Bed Bugs.

You can purchase your copy of my book here: “Bite Back Book”

My goal is your goal, which is to give you the CORRECT education to keep you safe.

Check out my book, I have pictures, notes and facts on what NOT to do. I also discuss Hiring The Right Pest Control Company. This book can be used anywhere throughout the world.  Take advantage of my 22 years of pest knowledge.

Until next time, I’m Scott and you’re not!

Scott Linde, BBE

www.pestplus.net

A Carpenter Bee swarm indicates there is a nest nearby. Carpenter Bees nest in wood such as guard rails , decks, chairs, stair railings and eves.

Carpenter Bees are scary but won't sting you

A general pest spray from your local hardware store just won’t cut it. The area needs to be dusted by a professional company with pest products such as: Tempo 1% or Drione Insecticide. A licensed pest company will carry these products and one strong treatment should last approx 3-4 months.

Unless you are prepared to change the infested wood, expect an emergence every year.

PestPlus is happy to provide this service for you. We can be reached at 732-777-6857 or visit our website at: www.pestplus.net

If you haven’t had a chance to do so, feel free to check out our March 2010 addition of our newsletter. http://www.pestplus.net/pdf/March2010-Newsletter.pdf

I had to admit, no! And didn’t know what they were talking about. Research was being determined to see if Dry Ice was a fix for Bed Bugs.  The pubic ALWAYS gets it wrong! I heard from the horses mouth today that the research from Dry Ice is being used as an attractant for monitoring levels of Bed Bug infestations. The research showed great results in case studies.

Today I interviewed Dr. Changlu Wang Ph.D, the leading Urban Entomolgist at Rutgers University in NJ. I would like to share this interview with you. Take note on what Dr. Wang has to say: http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=KksCDl7_6ng

I hope you greatly benefit from this information.

Scott Linde, Expert

www.pestplus.net/blog

Know the difference

One of the things you can do is to make sure you don’t leave any old pieces of wood lying around the exterior of your home or under your deck.

Some believe that if a piece of wood is weather treated it will be resistant to wood destroying insects. However this is not the case. Any wood to soil contact will create decay in the wood leaving it vulnerable to insect infestation.  Over this winter between the rain and the snow the wood has experienced major rot and is now an issue as we move into spring.

Another big NO NO is tree stumps! Tree stumps are a welcoming invite for Carpenter Ants and termites. You MUST remove this and the longer you leave this on your property the more threat it poses for a termite infestation to appear.  I’m going to be honest it’s going to cost you a lot less $$$ in making these corrections then waiting until it’s too late and calling in a professional.

Another pro-active approach is to call us or your local pest professional in to inspect your property for current or potential threats of wood insects. The cost is minor and the benefits are hugs.

While I welcome your business I also welcome the idea of you taking a pro-active approach.

Call my office if you need us- 732-77-6857

Scott Linde, Expert

www.pestplus.net

I told her “bullshit” why would she take advice for a sales person in a bedding store as opposed to a Bed Bug expert? 

I have to admit stupidity makes me mad. The next time you have a heart issue go ask your butcher what he thinks you should do.

Get my point? Opinions are like noses everybody has one and everybody you ask whats to give you theirs.  Protect yourself don’t ask everybody their opinion when it comes to Bed Bug and insect issues.

If/when you should have a Bed Bug issue, please ask only a Bed Bug expert and not your neighbor. 

Hope this helps- if it doesn’t I feel better venting!!

Until next time……

Scott Linde, Bed Bug Expert