Date Posted: June 12, 2019
Category: Termites
In our New England service area, subterranean termites can be a serious threat to property. When these tiny, wood-eating insects get into a home or business they can create damage that is difficult to find and repair. For this pest control threat, the team at Big Blue Bug Solutions uses an active ingredient called Fipronil.
If you're not familiar with fipronil, it is a broad use insecticide that is in the phenylpyrazole chemical family. And, when we say broad use, we mean it. This product is in a lot of products. If you own a cat or dog, it likely that you have products in your home that contain fipronil.
The reason fipronil is so widely used is connected to is low toxicity to humans and mammals. While it kills termites, ants, beetles, cockroaches, fleas, ticks and wide range of other pests, it does little or no harm to people, pets or vegetation. So this product is a good choice for pest control around the foundation perimeter of homes.
Since subterranean termites come up from the ground near foundation walls, perimeter treatments are the perfect way to stop them in their tracks. The products we use are undetectable to termites. When they pass through it, they pick it up and share it with the other termites in their colony through grooming and the sharing of fluids.
Regular applications of fipronil products can work to control ticks, fleas, cockroaches and other pests as it is protecting structures from subterranean termites. But there is a downside. When the wrong products are used or applied in the wrong amounts and in the wrong locations, they can be neutralized by sunlight and broken down by organisms in the soil. If too much product is used or it is applied in the wrong locations, it can be toxic. Pest control products are best applied by a licensed professional. If you intend to use a product that has fipronil as its active ingredient, read the direction carefully.
When fipronil is applied by a pest professional with the proper certifications and licenses, it does what it is designed to do: It prevents pests, like the subterranean termite, from getting into your home. It is a widely used pest control ingredient and not a threat when it is properly applied. The next time you pet your cat or dog, keep in mind that you are probably running your hand over a collar that has fipronil in it. It takes a lot more of this ingredient to harm you that it does a termite.
For more information or to schedule to meet with a knowledgeable and certified pest professional, reach out to us today.
