Termite Protection in New Construction

Many new home buyers understand that the home they are buying will have a pre-construction, termite treatment included but most do not understand what type of treatment is being provided.

Florida Building Code (Sixth Edition,2017, Section R318) details specific requirements for termite protection in new, residential construction. Florida Building Code allows new construction to be treated using registered termiticides (approved by FDACS per Section 2 of FBC under F.S. Chapter 487) including:

• Soil-applied liquid termiticides
• Bait systems
• Salt borate solutions applied to wood framing

A home cannot receive a Certificate of Occupancy until a Notice of Termite Treatment has been provided to the building department.

Home builders will typically subcontract the termite prevention to a Certified Pest Control Operator who has approval from FDACS to apply Preventative Termite Treatment. Most builders are not overly concerned about which method of treatment is performed but they are generally interested in the method which provides the least amount of disruption to the workflow or coordination in the schedule. Your long-term termite protection is not a high priority to the typical builder.

Homebuyers Beware

Homebuyers should understand most builders pay very little or nothing at all for termite pretreatment. In fact, some builders receive payment from the termite company. Many termite companies are willing to absorb the cost of certain pretreatment to capture your potential business going forward. By holding the guarantee on your termite protection, they will typically have the first year to sell you additional services such as termite renewals beyond year one, general pest control, lawn treatment, lawn sprinkler, and other services. Of course, you should understand the termite company will probably want to provide the least expensive option.

Most new construction homes receive treatment for subterranean termites only. Few, if any, treatments will include coverage for drywood termites, powderpost beetles, aerial nesting termites, or any wood-decaying fungi.

New home buyers should understand they are not obligated to accept or to continue service with the company that provided the initial treatment on the home. New homeowners should take the time to read and fully understand exactly what treatment was performed on the home and the terms of the termite guarantee offered. The initial termite guarantee is valid for one year.

360PestControl

You can read more about termite contracts in our August 2022 article – Termite Contracts 101. For more information, or to request termite treatment services, contact 360PestControl at (904) 637-1109 today.