Are There Tentless Termite Treatment Options?

Let’s face it: Few people want to deal with the inconveniences of tenting your home during termite treatment. Fumigation not only requires you to leave your home for a few days, it is also toxic and dangerous if not implemented correctly. Thankfully, there are many more treatment options available that work well to control infestations in your home.

Pros and Cons of Tent Fumigation

Unless treating for drywood termites or wood-boring beetles, fumigation is often a last-ditch effort to remove a a termite infestation from your home. There are multiple pros and cons to consider when it comes to tenting your home:

1. Benefits of Fumigation
   • Fumigating is a highly effective way of controlling termites inside the home with almost always a 100% success rate.
   • Although it does require you to leave your home, it is by far the quickest way to control an infestation.
   • Fumigation works well to eliminate other pests at any other stage of life that may be in the home.
   • When fumigates are pumped into your home, the gas can reach spots where many treatments cannot.
2. Disadvantages of Fumigation
   • Fumigation is inconvenient, forcing families to vacate their home for at least two nights. Homeowners are also responsible to preparing their home by cleaning, removing, and sealing a variety of home items.
   • Fumigates do not provide protection from future infestations; fumigation is a one-time treatment.
   • There is a chance tents can damage the roofing, gutters, and shrubbery on the perimeter of your home.

Tentless Termite Treatment Methods

Unless necessary to treat drywood termites or wood-boring beetles, fumigation isn’t the only treatment for termites. Baiting systems (Sentricon), spot treatments, liquid termiticide (Termidor), soil treatment, wood treatment, orange oil, and even heat or cold treatments are all methods that have been used as alternatives to fumigation to varying degrees at success. At New Mexico Pest Control, the preferred method of control is almost always liquid termiticide or Sentricon, although fumigation services are available as well for certain types of infestations.