[mtdjed]

Got a clean bill from our XXX Termite Bug Man (TBN). Bought in 2006 and here it is 2014 and we are clean after 8 years.

TBN said that we only had a 5 year Guarantee and we need $499 retreatment of injection or bait traps. I got letter from XXX saying protection available for next year at normal fee. TBN said letter was from home office but was a mistake but would be honored. Guarantee is that any damage will be fixed. So why pay more?

TBN said that 23 Village homes had damage 2 years ago, 17 Homes 1 Year ago and 5 this years. How many homes in The Villages? I think this whole thing about Termite insurance is overstated. He spends 30 minutes with a flashlight looking for mud tubes entering the outside of the home thru cracks whatever, and then looks for dead termites or termite "Wings" inside the homes looking especially around water pipe entrances and baseboards. I do that every time I wash the floors.

Why pay the $499? Why pay $150? Has anyone found termite damage in The Villages in a 10 year old home?

I am sure well discussed in the past but thought recently quoted numbers and $499 vs Mistake Invoice would be of interest.

[missypie]

This is excellent information. Thank you for sharing.

[Bonnevie]

same thing happened to me. I bought house a year ago. many of my neighbors have the same service and did not get letter for re-treatment. I have Dean's now....I also wonder why it's needed. I had a house in St. Pete area for 20 years. Had a yearly pest control service....treated just once a year. never had anything special done for termites. had pine bark mulch in the yard....passed termite inspection no problem when sold.

[MSGirl]

It's needed! As a southern girl, in our last home we opted out of the termite inspection program and did our own. Years later, and thousands of $ later, we had unseen termite damage inside the window sills and some walls. $150 a year is piece of mind. Anything over that, is a rip off.

[sunnyatlast]

So……Do all of you who can remember the horrors of polio, diphtheria, and smallpox advise your children and grandchildren to NOT spend the effort and money to get their kids vaccinated, simply because they've never seen a victim die a horrible death or be maimed/disfigured by these plagues?

That is what you're doing by "saving $400" by not treating for termites. When one neighbor gets them, many more will get them, and the cost of repairs inside walls etc. can be a minimum of $30,000. I like seeing that our neighbors have concern for each other's property as well as their own, and they treat/insure for termites.

[Susan G]

Originally Posted by Bonnevie

same thing happened to me. I bought house a year ago. many of my neighbors have the same service and did not get letter for re-treatment. I have Dean's now....I also wonder why it's needed. I had a house in St. Pete area for 20 years. Had a yearly pest control service....treated just once a year. never had anything special done for termites. had pine bark mulch in the yard....passed termite inspection no problem when sold.

I also have DEAN'S for termite treatment only. They are the only ones I found willing to RE-APPLY termitacide yearly (Premise is product they use). Best product is Termidor but most won't use it because of the cost $$$.

Coming from New Orleans I have seen first hand the damage these little buggers can do - and fast! I would assume there are subterranean as well as Formosans in our general area. Save your self some $$$ and do your own pest control for bugs if necessary but do not skimp when it comes to termite treatment.

If you wish to do your own bug prevention/extermination to save some $$$ you should purchase BENGAL spray (red can) at Home Depot or ACE for indoors and Home Defense for outdoor perimeter. Maybe spend $50 for a years' worth total including buying one of those round dusters that the pest control companies love to use on your eaves. Then you'll have an extra $300-400 dollars to spend on termite prevention :-)
I would not purchase a pre-owned home without a termite bond contract in place and Bonnevie is correct - it should be about $150 per yr unless you have a home with a huge perimeter.
Hope this helps...

[HMLRHT1]

We have termite protection here. We did not continue are protection at the house we sold in AZ in 2012. Had the house for 15 years. Inspector found termites. It had just started and had we not gotten the inspection to sell the home we would have had a lot worse damage. It cost us several thousand dollars to treat at that point. They have a saying in states like AZ and FL that have a high concentration of termites. It's not IF you get termites it's WHEN!

[mtdjed]

I know that this question has been asked in the past. Does anyone who owns in The Villages or know for sure of any termite infestations in The Villages that have caused significant damage.

If 23 homes had damage in The Villages @ $10K per home there would be $230K of damages which I doubt. Assuming 40,000 homes and if all paid $150 per year, there would be $6 Million collected. Not counting the after 5 yr upcharge of $500.

If you were running a business , you might ask for the basis of the charges. We don't do that but willingly pay the Fee based upon some horror story of $30K damage. Was that to a 5 or 10 year home? Were the owners halfway observant? Was the home wood or block? Was it ever inspected? Was it in The Villages? Is it an urban rumor?

I know that we pay for insurance for peace of mind and I know that termites are a problem, but wouldn't it be great to know the facts and not pay simply because you are given a bill. I paid $150/year for 8 years now to have someone with a flashlight look for mud tubes and wings and bodies and no additional treatment and they say all is ok in 20 Minutes. Then they want $500 for added treatment even though all clear.

Even though I am still covered since I paid the $150, I feel that I and others are being scammed by lack of true knowledge. Most of us feel that $150 is just a peace of mind and go on paying.

[bonrich]

Seems to me if during an inspection for termites and indications of termite activity is found it would seem to be late to take preventive action and now it would look like repairs would be necessary. Where as if you have the termite protection applied once a year and then when the annual inspection is done and no activity is found then one would assume it must be working.

Kind of like putting the deer warning devices on your car bumper. Haven't hit a deer so far so it must be working. Right?

[champion6]

Originally Posted by sunnyatlast

<snip>When one neighbor gets them, many more will get them, and the cost of repairs inside walls etc. can be a minimum of $30,000.<snip>

I can only assume that these are your opinions and assumptions because I haven't read from anyone on TOTV supporting these thoughts.

Originally Posted by Susan G

I would assume there are subterranean as well as Formosans in our general area.

Why?

[pauld315]

I have seen termite damage in Florida and NC. We were fortunate and caught it early here in NC. In Florida a friend of mine was not so lucky and had them throughout the house eating the inside of moulding, walls etc. It was a huge expense to get repaired. I pay about 200 a year here in NC for the peace of mind.

[KeepingItReal]

Originally Posted by Susan G

I also have DEAN'S for termite treatment only. They are the only ones I found willing to RE-APPLY termitacide yearly (Premise is product they use). Best product is Termidor but most won't use it because of the cost $$$.

Coming from New Orleans I have seen first hand the damage these little buggers can do - and fast! I would assume there are subterranean as well as Formosans in our general area. Save your self some $$$ and do your own pest control for bugs if necessary but do not skimp when it comes to termite treatment.

If you wish to do your own bug prevention/extermination to save some $$$ you should purchase BENGAL spray (red can) at Home Depot or ACE for indoors and Home Defense for outdoor perimeter. Maybe spend $50 for a years' worth total including buying one of those round dusters that the pest control companies love to use on your eaves. Then you'll have an extra $300-400 dollars to spend on termite prevention :-)
I would not purchase a pre-owned home without a termite bond contract in place and Bonnevie is correct - it should be about $150 per yr unless you have a home with a huge perimeter.
Hope this helps...

Termidor is highly rated but it is not really that expensive and even cheaper than Premise on the site below...If I'm going to the trouble of doing it myself I would use the best chemical I can find since it is not a very easy job if done correctly.

Click below: Both Termidor and Premise are on the site.

Termite Spray - Termite Treatment & Control Chemicals – Termiticide Termite Poison | Do My Own Pest Control


How they work:

Premise is a non-repellent termiticide, meaning that termites do not detect that Premise is present. Premise creates an undetectable �€œTreated Zone®�€ around the home, where termites unknowingly eat treated cellulose or tunnel into treated soil. The exposed termites then remain unaffected for a few days, before sudden death occurs. In the meantime, the exposed termites are able to spread the Premise chemical to unexposed termites by physical contact when they feed or groom the other termites, resulting in a domino death effect which wipes out more of the colony. Imidacloprid, the active ingredient in Premise, is the most widely used insecticide in the world with a proven track record of success - less than one percent retreat rate. - See more at: http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/pr....sPIjZqJi.dpuf


Termidor will protect your home and eliminate almost any termite problem in less than 90 days. In addition, when used as an in-ground barrier treatment, Termidor will protect your home or business for over 10 years. Termidor is completely undetectable by termites and once termites touch it they contact, ingest and spread the termiticide until it eliminates the entire colony. Termidor controls all types of termites including subterranean, formosan, and drywood termites. Termidor SC is also one of the best outdoor ant control products that money can buy. An exterior above ground spray one foot up and one foot out is all you need to knock out ant colonies and carpenter ants trying to invade your home! - See more at: http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/te....kybkNuNN.dpuf

[Susan G]

Originally Posted by KeepingItReal

Termidor is highly rated but it is not really that expensive and even cheaper than Premise on the site below...If I'm going to the trouble of doing it myself I would use the best chemical I can find since it is not a very easy job if done correctly.

Click below: Both Termidor and Premise are on the site.

Termite Spray - Termite Treatment & Control Chemicals � Termiticide Termite Poison | Do My Own Pest Control


How they work:

Premise is a non-repellent termiticide, meaning that termites do not detect that Premise is present. Premise creates an undetectable “Treated Zone®� around the home, where termites unknowingly eat treated cellulose or tunnel into treated soil. The exposed termites then remain unaffected for a few days, before sudden death occurs. In the meantime, the exposed termites are able to spread the Premise chemical to unexposed termites by physical contact when they feed or groom the other termites, resulting in a domino death effect which wipes out more of the colony. Imidacloprid, the active ingredient in Premise, is the most widely used insecticide in the world with a proven track record of success - less than one percent retreat rate. - See more at: Premise 2 Termiticide - Free Shipping


Termidor will protect your home and eliminate almost any termite problem in less than 90 days. In addition, when used as an in-ground barrier treatment, Termidor will protect your home or business for over 10 years. Termidor is completely undetectable by termites and once termites touch it they contact, ingest and spread the termiticide until it eliminates the entire colony. Termidor controls all types of termites including subterranean, formosan, and drywood termites. Termidor SC is also one of the best outdoor ant control products that money can buy. An exterior above ground spray one foot up and one foot out is all you need to knock out ant colonies and carpenter ants trying to invade your home! - See more at: Termidor SC - Termidor Termite Treatment Spray - Toxicity, Label & MSDS

THANKS FOR THE RESEARCH! I've always had Termidor applied back home and have seen how effective it is.

[Susan G]

Originally Posted by champion6

I
Why?

In response to champion6:
Because thanks to foreign shipments coming into ports such as Tampa, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale to mention a few Formosans have spread. Add to that hurricanes that bring debris from foreign islands thru the Gulf and Atlantic. If you doubt they exist nearby, talk to a UF Ag Center entomologist. As for subterranean they are widespread across the south. Trees=Mulch...how much of that is used in our area...?

Although I live in a poured concrete & stucco residence, I know how much damage they can inflict and choose to spend $$ on termite prevention by applying a quality product yearly as well as walking the perimeter or my home and keeping bushes and other growths such as vines away from the foundation. Any such growth acts as a bridge allowing termites to cross the treated area without being affected.

Hope that answers your question...