rdhutch

A few years ago I purchased/downloaded an excellent publication through someone in this group. It was a very detailed manual about primarily residential electric principles, requirements, and even a historical prospective of the evolving codes. Again, an excellent book. The computer I downloaded it to has recently crashed. Does anyone have an idea of where I can download another or even better, get a print copy?

I ran across this old GE unit in a house in coastal Georgia. It's a weekend get away, still works. The guys uses it for his beer and wine. I could not find a model #, but the serial # is 82-334-302. Any idea how old it is? Click to Enlarge 23.34 KB

We use them in our pest control department, but only in the sales phase. Its a handy tool to help close the deal, especially in commercial establishments. On the technical side, our technicians don't need them. They know how to track and trap rodents. Most of our equipment distributors don't even push them anymore.

It does not sound like Powder Post Beetles to me. I agree with Jim Katen's analysis. The most obvious clue was the presence of larvae. Wood destroying beetles do not exit in the larval stage.

I agree with Mr. Katen's question, what are attempting to accomplish. Boracare is a very effective fungicide, but once again, if you fail to eliminate the source of the fungi or mold, you are wasting time and money. Consideration should be given to the installation of a moisture barrier and increasing crawl space ventilation. Crawl space encapsulation, done properly, has shown to be a great method in my humid area, but it is very expensive. On the other side, Boracare is also effective as a pesticide that when applied properly, is very effective in the control or prevention of termites, powder post beetles, and old house borers. "Applied properly" is the key term, anything less than that is a waste of time and money.

That is not wood boring beetles. That frass is from Drywood Termites. Under a strong magnifying glass or microscope the fecal pellets look like this: Click to Enlarge 7.26 KB

When I do a tight crawl space, I always take a small shovel in with me. It's actually an old Army entrenching tool. It makes a good tool for clearing spider webs from my path, a good weapon if ever needed, most importantly, it permits me to make my way under tight spaces and will always get me out if I get stuck, which has happened several times over the years.

Here is Southeast Georgia we get frequent calls about wasps, bees, and other stinging insects. If the culprits are bees, we call in a bee keeper to extract them from the house. If they are wasp, a can of wasp freeze usually solves the problem. Yellow Jackets are aggressive but rarely nest inside a home. However, when they do, we drill small holes through the sheet rock (quietly) and inject a pesticide dust (Drione) to kill them. We try to do it during the evening when most of the workers have returned to the nest. Once they are dead we cut out a section of the sheetrock and extract the mess. My advice, call an expert like you would for anything else on your house that you are not familiar with. These critters can be deadly if provoked.

We use Timbor or Boracare. Both are very effective in combating mold and Powder Post Beetles. Read the labels, mixing instructions are critical, especially in cold weather.

Good observation on the 4 wheeler. No, it isn't mine but I wish it was. It belongs to the survey team. This was a rural property that has been tied up in an estate and vacant for 3 years. The vegatation you see in the background surrounded the detached work shop but is similiar to the entire 5 acre lot. The crawl space was infested with roaches, several wasps nest on the house, and the gnats were horrible (thus the long sleeve shirts in 90 degree weather). The house is a piece of crap but the lot will be great once it is cleaned up and all the critters are gone. I've had better inspections.

Killed this one last month during an inspection. Click to Enlarge 115.64 KB

I smelled gas around mine and suspected a leak. The gas company checked it and said everything was ok, that the smell will get stronger as the tank empties. I had a new tank put in a couple of years ago after some remodeling. Same thing, each time the tank gets low I can smell gas when I get near the tank. We don't bury them here either so I'm not sure of the affect there.

Standard practice is drilling through the hollow void in the CMU blocks. The purpose of which is to inject termiticide under the slab, and into the block voids. Current rules call for drilling each hole a minimum of 12" apart. If the blocks have been poured with concrete, then of course there would be no void so there is no harm in the drill locations that you see. If the treatment was done prior to 1995, the standard was to drill one hole every 18" (which could also be an indicator of why the drill marks are in the mortor joints in your picture).

To define a weed: any plant growing in a location it is not wanted.

I have never done a home inspection on a mobile home and have no plans to do one in the future. However, I have performed many termite inspections on them. Recently a local HI wrote up one for having the tongue removed but remaining under the house (in the crawl space). He stated this was not allowed. He did not answer my question, but why is this wrong? I see them under most of the trailers (correction, mobile homes) that I have been under and have never seen a problem.

Only the fire investigators can determine the actual cause, especially in an attic fire. On a separate note, my brothers house burned two weeks ago. The house was over 40 years old and had two DYI additions. The fire started in the attic above one of the additions. Investigators determined faulty wiring caused the fire. Ironic, the previous owner who did the additions was an electrician, and my brother is the fire chief in that city.

There are several companies in Florida and New York that are claiming good results with heat treatments. They basically seal off the house and inject heat to maintain an interior temperature of at least 140 degrees for 24 to 48 hours. We have stayed away from that because it is fairly new and we are not sure of the long term affects or consequences that such a treatment has on the home or the contents. By far the best method is a structrual fumigation using sulfuryl flouride. Its expensive and requires the occupant to leave the home for 3 days, but I've seen nothing that works better. On most apartments, motels, and other type dwellings, we usually evacuate the contents into an air tight trailer and fumigate the contents for 24 hours. Meanwhile, my crew treats the interior of the structure with a variety of residual pesticide formulations. After a final inspection, all of the contents are moved back into the home. These are the only two methods we use, and at the risk of bragging, we have never had to visit the same home twice. There are other companies that use steam treatments and others that are experimenting with other methods. We follow their research but have chosen to remain with what works for us. If you travel much, there are several web sites that provide recommendations of precautions you can take to minimize your chances of bringing these critters home with you. Simple things that take just a little extra time.

Bedbugs are not hitchhikers like ticks. Ticks latch onto you and stay for quite a while. Bedbugs feed on you for a few seconds and then drop off to go into hiding, until their next feeding time. They are usually embedded in mattresses and bed frames but I have found them in the seams of curtains, air pockets in popcorn cielings, table lamps, pictures on the walls, and of course in luggage, gym bags, stuffed animals, etc... We have averaged 40 to 50 bedbug treatments per year for the past 5 or 6 years. We have treated class rooms, houses/apartments, many motel rooms, a couple of cruise ships, a Coast Guard cutter, and even a passenger jetliner. So far, we have been extremely lucky in that we have not taken any home with us. Of course, we take precautions. As far as when I do home inspections, 90% of the inspections I do are on empty homes so I don't have to worry about brushing against beds, furniture, or other items. I have yet to come across bed bugs during an HI. If you ever suspect that you have encountered these minature beast, change clothes before you enter your own home. The clothes you were wearing should go immediately into the dryer on high heat for at least 40 to 45 minutes - this will kill the bug(s) and any eggs. If possible, do the same with any tool bag you took into the infested home also. If you ever get them in your house, beware of all the BS home treatments that you read about on the internet. I have yet to see one that works.

There are many theories, my best guess is we live in a very mobile and transient society. We have treated many boats (75 to 150 ft) that have sailed from the tropics and several rail cars from all over. There are 3 major sea ports near here as well as a very large Army base. That means lots of materials being shipped in and out of here. Same thing is happening in Charleston, SC. I guess that once they got here, they simply found a good home to multiply.

For those who have never seen formosan termites, I have included a couple of photos of some I discovered yesterday. Although rare in this area, this is the fifth discovery in this area in the past 6 years, all within 1 square mile. Notice there are no workers, only the soldiers positioned to defend the colony. Click to Enlarge 19.05 KB Click to Enlarge 29.46 KB

The first photo shows the conductors as they exit the main panel into the crawlspace. The conductors leading to the right are shown further downstream in the second photo, then lead to the grey box in the third photo. This box is laying on the surface of the crawl space. Any idea what this grey box is? I would have investigated a little more and perhaps taken better photos, but this was not a home inspection and I was invited to leave by a not so friendly copperhead who had taken up residence near the box. Click to Enlarge 77.21 KB Click to Enlarge 52.23 KB Click to Enlarge 50.95 KB

My guess is sawdust. Drywood termites leave fecal pellets, not dust. I have found similar debris from ants on monolithic slabs, but never on crawl spaces or supported slabs. Most ant infestations like this would usually include ant body parts, especially carpenter ants.

I'm in agreement with Kurt. I tried using the Ipad and found it to be a pain to use on the roof, in the attic, and in crawl spaces. The camera limitations affect everyone I know who uses the IPad. Second, I also find using the IPad to be a major distraction. I am comfortable using the digital SLR and moving the photos to the CPU. I did recently purchase a wi-fi adapter that is supposed to move the photos to the computer as I take the shot, but have been too busy to read the instructions and put it to use. My thought is, go with what you are comfortable with. I have yet to find a useful purpose for the IPad in my work environment.

You would think that in South East Georgia, where termite activity is extremely high, tha builders would take any precaution to prevent an infestation. That's not the case. I see things like this daily, and it's not always pressure treated. It's even worse on home additions.

First and foremost, Termidor is the only product I would recommend for termite control. I hae been using it since 2000 and up to this point have never had to retreat a house on which we used this product. Second, many companies offer 5, 7, and 10 year "warranties". They do this for two reasons, one of which is on the advise of their lawyers to minimize liabilities. The second reason is to regenerate revenue from existing customers. They will usually price the 10 year "booster" treatment just low enough to keep competitors away. In some states, the treatment method proposed by your existing company does not constitute a complete or legal termite treatment. Others would define this type of treatment as a "defined" treatment while the treatment method proposed by the second company is defined as a "comprehensive" treatment. Check with your local Structural Pest Control Commission for what is authorized in your area. Second, there are many good companies in your area that offer a lifetime renewable warranty with their initial treatment, meaning that as long as you pay the annual renewal fees and the home is inspected each year, then a retreatment would only be required in the event of a reinfestation (at no cost to you). And lastly, as far as baiting systems are concerned, I only recommend or push these when the construction of the house is done in such a manner that it prevents us from getting the Termidor exactly where it should be.