July 2005 / Vol.2 / Issue 7

Hello and Welcome to the July Greenpest News. Each month we aim to provide you with some useful information, keeping it short, sweet and pertinent.

Contents

1. Pest Talk
2. Bindii Warning.
3. Customer Question of the Month.
4. Quote of the Month.
5. Monthly Special

Pest Talk

How termites find timber.

We are now in the dead of winter when termites are least active. In the next few months termite activity around the nation is going to fire up and by summer it will be going full throttle again. If you have termites or can see termites in your yard or around your home during the winter months you need to be aware that when summer comes your home is at a much higher risk of termite attack than normal. Now is an excellent time to be making sure that your Green Termite Bait System is in place.

The reason we say this (apart from wanting to sell them!!) is because the longer a Green Termite Bait System is in the ground the better it will work for you. They actually improve with age. A bait that has been in the ground for three months works better than a brand new bait.

Why is this so?

Recent scientific evidence points to the possibility that termites are able to detect decaying timber in the ground. How? It is suggested that termites can distinguish the minute amounts of carbon-dioxide and other gases that are given off in the soil by decaying organic matter. Once again this confirms just how amazing termites are. Remember, termites are blind and travel underground in complete darkness. For a long time, many people have wondered about the mystery of how termites are able to consistently find timber in the ground. Now we have an explanation that makes sense. Termites and their creator seriously deserve a lot of respect.

We have always said that the Green Termite Bait System improves with age. We've even treated baits that were 5 years old. Now we have scientific backing that supports our statistical data. Data that we have gleaned from the thousands of Green Termite Baits we have placed in the field over the past 9 years.

What is even more interesting is that it is suspected that these decay gases spread in the soil for distances of approximately 2-3 metres depending on the soil type and moisture content. This also completely confirms our own field trials that led us to recommend an optimum distance for bait placement of 2-3 metres. This ensures that scouting termites are most likely to be attracted to the Green Termite Bait before they reach your home.

It also explains why our success rate is so much higher than our competitor's plastic termite bait stations. Although our Green Termite Baits are only small, they contain a greater mass of timber than the plastic systems with a small piece of timber inside.

Secondly our baits have the timber in direct contact with the soil so that they will begin the decay process sooner. Yet with normal decay rates, a Green Termite Bait will still last for 3-5 years before it needs replacement.

Statistically our success rate with the Green Termite Bait SystemT is better than 99.5%. We define success as follows:

A home that starts out free and clear of active termites on the inside (there may be termites outside in the yard) that then remains free and clear of termites on the inside whilst the Green Termite Baits are monitored and serviced on a regular monthly basis.

For example, we have been protecting some of our customer's homes with the Green Termite Bait System since 1996 and these homes are still free and clear of termites even though there has been regular termite activity in the baits and the yard around the outside of the home over the course of the past nine years. There is little doubt that these homes had a high probability of termite attack if no action had been taken at all. Instead the homes remained safe, and it was the termites who lost the war.

Your Green Termite Bait System works 24/7 by intercepting the foraging termites as they approach your home then destroys the termite nest after a successful application of an approved termiticide to the active bait. Compare this with an expensive and usually ugly chemical soil treatment that is biodegradable and breaks down over time needing renewal every 3-5 years and you can see that the bait system is excellent value for money and offers comparable if not better termite risk reduction.

The Green Termite Bait System is truly the leader in its field. They are just as vital for the safety of your home as smoke-detectors. There is no doubt that a properly installed and serviced Green Termite Bait System offers substantial protection and great value for money. It gives you an unfair advantage over termites, but they don't play fair either, so why should you?

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Shame, Shame, Shame.

It recently came to our attention that a local pest control company (fully licensed, insured and registered with the QBSA) inspected a large complex of units on the Gold Coast for just $70/unit. Residents reported that the so called 'inspectors' only spent 7 minutes/unit.

A true professional would spend at least 1 hour per unit, and even that would be rushing!

We'll say it again, buyer beware. And please, don't tar all pesties with the same brush. There are plenty of good honest pest control companies, but you may have to make a few phone calls before you find one.

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Bindii Warning.

Every year we give the Bindii Warning. There is nothing worse than having your own yard off limits because of bindii, especially if you have young children. Bindii are a nuisance even for dogs and cats, especially if they get into the folds between the pads on their paws.

Now is the time to spray for weeds in general and Bindii in particular. Don't wait any longer because once the Bindii go to prickle it is too late to spray. Do it now or if you don't feel up to it give us a call and we will do it for you. Remember, that if you do a good job of spraying for Bindii this year before they get a chance to flower and go to seed, then next year you will probably not have any Bindii at all.

We only charge $165 to spray an average family yard. (Southeast Queensland only)

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Customer Question of the Month.

Dear Jerry,

We have been in our home for three years now. It's a modern home in a new suburb surrounded by many similar homes and there is no bushland nearby. But every year around July - August we get rats thumping around in our roof. Where do they come from and why only in these months?

Regards Tony and Thelma C. Ormeau.

Answer.

The reason they come inside during the winter months is simply because it's cold outside. Rats are mammals and although they have a decent winter coat they also like to find shelter from the cold. Your roof void is a opportune shelter. They also find it a convenient place to nest and breed. It is unlikely that they are coming in to find food because there is no food in your roof void.

Tip: It is not a good idea to store valuable items or boxes in your roof void, because you are creating a perfect nesting site for a family of rats. They will soil, chew and destroy whatever is up there.

Once they do nest in your roof, it becomes a base from which they then explore. Heading off in search of food, they soon smell your pantry and your cooking inside the home. Since rats are rodents they will gnaw on just about anything, including your walls. Should they find their way through the walls into your home, then your pantry becomes their pantry and your food becomes their food, yuck! This is known as commensal behaviour, which by definition is a creature that shares the same source of food and shelter as ourselves.

You'd be nuts to allow rats to stay in your roof. They cause damage, bad odours, and spread many diseases once they enter your home, not to mention the racket they make at night. If they are left unchecked, the population will escalate to the point where it becomes a serious health threat.

The reason the rats may leave during the summer months is simply because it may get too hot in the roof. Sometimes they don't leave. They simply move further down into the walls where it is cooler during the heat of the day. You definitely don't want them in your walls. If they die there they can't be easily removed and they will stink terribly for 2-3 weeks.

It pays to kill rats as soon as they arrive. Once they establish a rat highway to your home and mark the trail with their scent, you'll not only have to kill the current invaders, but the many others that will follow the scent trail into your home in the following months.

Where do they came from in the first place? Most likely the stormwater drains. Usually homes that are located close to a stormwater drain have more rat invasions than their neighbours further away.

Tip: If you are looking to purchase a block of land in a new housing estate. Look where the drains are and try to pick a block of land that is furthest from the drains.

What about rat-proofing? It isn't at all practical to try and rat-proof your home either. There are simply too many ways for a rat to get in. But there is a solution if you are interested in prevention. Simply keep plenty of rodent bait in the roof void. It will not attract rats to your roof, but if they do arrive seeking a place to live then you can offer them a meal. Their first and last meal at your home.

Will they die inside? They will normally go outside to die because the bait makes them thirsty after a few days and since there is no water in your roof void they will return to the drains or gardens to seek water. They are usually too sick to make it back to your roof and so your problem is solved before it even begins.

Tip: Common mistakes to avoid when baiting your roof. Most people (and many pesties who haven't been trained properly) make four common mistakes when they decide to bait for rats:

• They use the wrong kind of bait.
• They don't secure the bait properly.
• They don't place it correctly.
• And they don't put enough out.

If D.I.Y. is not for you, we offer rodent treatments for standard domestic homes from $110 with a 12 month guarantee. Or just $77 with any other pest control treatment. SE QLD only.

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Quote of the Month.

After greeting a Chinese customer on the phone, her opening words were, "Hello, do you kill hairy things?"

quot;Do you mean mice?"

quot;No, hairy things."

quot;Rats?"

quot;No, no, hairy things."

quot;Processionary caterpillars?"

quot;No, you not listening properly. I want hairy things killed."

The phone was then passed to her 10 year old son.

He explained, "You know, all the cockroaches, spiders and ants. We want everything killed!"

Lesson: Hairything means Everything.

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This special is no longer available. Please go to our current newsletter for this month's special.

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The Greenpest News is Published by J & A Furnell Nominees P/L; Shop 23a Franklin Square, 60 Railway Street, Mudgeeraba, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of Jerry Furnell. The reader is encouraged to seek further information from appropriate government and statutory departments before taking any action based on this material alone.

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See you again next month.

Always... At your service,

Jerry Furnell
Green Pest Control & Green Termite Bait Systems.
Phone 1800 6 12345.

Copyright 2005 Green Termite Bait Systems & Green Pest Control. All rights reserved.

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