No, you just can't "get something from Lowe's"

Termite damage in a baseboard.

Our 100 gallon spray rig.

Drilling holes through a concrete slab to reach the termites in the soil.

Wall and slab after treatment.

When I find termites at peoples homes I always get asked "can't I just get something from Lowe's to take care of this?" I wish that I could say yes, but termite treatments require a little more than a spray can. The first picture is a pretty mild termite infestation, the termites went through the wall and wound up eating through a bookshelf and into some books. We injected chemical into the holes that we drilled in the slab as well as the cinder block wall. The idea is to break the termites contact with the soil so that it kills the termites while providing a protective chemical barrier for your home. Termites must have a source of moisture to live, most of the time this source is the soil. In some rare cases leaky roofs and pipes provide this source making them very hard to detect. Again, this is a rare situation and I have only seen it a few times over the past 10 years. Termite treatments aren't by any stretch rocket science, but like anything else you need to know what you are doing. Some of the hazards faced in this particular treatment were underground utilities and electrical wires in the wall. You just have to be careful, and think before drill and inject chemical. To end, I would just say that your home is the largest investment that most people make, it pays to have your home inspected at least once a year. Sure treatments are expensive, but repair cost are often much higher and you would still need to have the home treated after the repairs.