Termites cause a tremendous amount of damage--as I found to my great cost on one shudderingly memorable occasion. And starting in the deep south ports, there's a new problem coming this way--the Formosan termite, much worse than the usual variety. The Formosan acts much like cartoon termites, where all of a sudden a beautiful, spotless house crumbles to dust without warning. Termite insurance is no good because if you read the fine print it says something about inspecting for "visible" signs. Formosans aren't visible! Here's an answer to a regular termite (not Formosan) question in the October 1979 edition of Organic Gardening and Farming. No guarantees, I'm no termite expert.

". . . The basic control method of all termite control is to break the line of contact between soil and wood. . . .

Perma-Guard diatomaceous earth, a natural household insecticide, has a 98 percent repellency and kills on contact. Since termites tunnel in the foundations of wood, seek out their damage spots by tapping the beams, listening for a hollow sound. If you find a section that sounds suspicious, drill a hole, probe and shoot in Perma-Guard dust, which destroys the insect by dehydration. If they keep popping up, be persistent about investigating potential hiding places."

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), April 05, 1999

Answers

Old Git,

Is Perma_Guard DE different than regular DE? Don't have termites now but who knows. I hate the thought of using those nasty chemicals. thx

-- (rick@ina.com), April 05, 1999.

Old Git - Perma-Guard dust? Not familiar with it. Just had to spend $1300 on termite treatment 2 weeks ago. Definitely SUCKED! Where would I find this dust? Thanks in advance!

Deano

-- Deano (deano@luvthebeach.com), April 05, 1999.

According to this:

http://www.theofficenet.com/~covyrbas/foodstor.html

"Diatomaceous Earth

D-10 Perma Guard, 1 lb., $ 1.20

Food storage additive Fossil Shell Flour"

looks like the same stuff.

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), April 05, 1999.