Termites cannot withstand extreme temperatures – very hot or very cold. In recent years, technological advancements have made it possible to control drywood termite infestations by creating temperature changes in their environment.
Depending on the extent and location of drywood termite infestations, your termite specialist may recommend a targeted heat treatment that focuses on a few areas or a heat treatment that will encompass your entire home.
How Does Heat Treatment Work?
Heat termite treatments involve raising temperatures in your home to a level beyond what termites can tolerate to survive.
To treat drywood termite infestations in furniture, your pest control professional may use special enclosed heat chambers. At 140 degrees Fahrenheit, the heat process will take 4 hours.
More information on how heat treatments work.
What About Using Cold Treatments?
In some cases, termite infestations can be treated by using extreme cold. Refrigeration chambers work in a way that is similar to heat chambers in creating an environment with temperatures too extreme for termites to survive.
For a cold treatment to effectively control a drywood termite infestation, the furniture must be kept at 15 degrees Fahrenheit for four days.
What Are the Risks of Using Heat Treatment or Cold Treatment?
While using heat treatments may mean a chemical treatment is not necessary, heat treatments are effective in controlling only current, active infestations. Unless heat treatments are combined with treatments that can prevent and control future activity, your home will not be protected over the long term.
Using heat or cold treatments also poses a risk to some furniture items, which may not be made to withstand extreme high or low temperatures.