Liquid borate treatments are used by some builders in our area for creating the ground-level termite barrier required by the State of Florida for new houses. It’s sprayed over the first three feet of wood up from the floor slab and the solution usually has a green tint to mark where it has been applied. The treatment is environmentally friendly and supposed to keep termites from reaching the untreated wood above it.

    Borate is a slow-acting stomach poison. Unfortunately, termites are sometimes able to run their mud tubes between or across the treated areas without consuming any of it, and then continue munching further up along the untreated wall studs of the house. 

    An example of this is shown above, from a home that is less than five years old. You are looking up from near the ground and between two borate-treated wood studs, with the bottom of a flush-mount electrical panel visible at the top of the picture. Arrows point to mud tubes crossing the green area of borate treatment, running up the groove between the wall and a stud, and a large mud tube (at right) climbing up the drywall. The termites continued going, right across the electrical panel, and were heading towards the roof trusses when we discovered them. 

    While liquid borate has several advantages, such as being non-poisonous to pets and not requiring ground injection, it is not recommended by many pest control professionals as the sole termite prevention treatment. By the way, the wood frame and trim at the front door and sidelite of the same home had also been termite-damaged. This is likely because the door assembly was not installed until after the borate treatment and untreated wood was in contact with the floor slab.

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To learn more about termites, see these other blog posts:

• Should I be worried about termites if my neighbor's house is being tented?

• Is the WDO (termite) inspector allowed to poke holes in my wood siding and trim? 

• Do carpenter ants cause structural damage to houses in Florida?

• How long before closing can you have a WDO (termite) inspection done?

• How long does Bora-Care® last? 

• Why is it a mistake to store lumber in the crawl space under a house?

• Does the presence of carpenter ants in a house indicate that there are probably also termites? 

• How do termites infest a house and remain hidden while doing major damage?

• Are homes in Florida required to have termite protection? 

• If termite damage appears to be old, does that mean that termites may no longer be present?

• How do I know if my WDO/termite report is "clear"? 

• When do termites swarm in Florida?

• Does a recent termite company inspection sticker mean there are no termites? 

• Can a mobile/manufactured home get termites?

• Do I have to tent the house if I have termites? 

• What is the difference between a subterranean termite and a drywood termite?

• What are the green plastic discs in the ground around the house? 

• What is a termite shield?

• How do termites get into a concrete block house? 

• Do termites eat concrete?

• What is a clean WDO?  

• What do termites eat?

• How do I treat wood rot  that's listed in my termite-WDO report? 

• Do I really need a termite-WDO inspection? 

• What's causing those holes in the fascia?

• Does wood chip mulch in the yard attract termites?

• I think I have termites. What does a termite look like?

• I'm buying a concrete block house. Do I still need a termite inspection? 

• I saw a little termite damage on the baseboard. Should I be concerned?

   Visit our TERMITES, WOOD ROT AND PESTS page for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.