Help!! The have got termites!! Tenting a home vs. Orange Oil

Orange oil, or D-limonene oil is not orange juice. It is low toxic but not non toxic.  D-limonene oil is a volatile hydrocarbon, primarily used as a solvent (for cleaning tools machinery etc.)  It can be used as a "drill and injection method" to control dry wood termites  but there are no published studies that verify the efficacy of these materials in controlling drywood termites.  I can kill dry wood termites by injecting WD 40 into termite galleries, that doesn't make WD 40 (spray lubricant) an efficacious treatment.   D-limonene has no residual qualities (<24hours).  It does have a citrus smell but that smell can be overwhelming for someone with asma or chemical sensitivity.   Wood treatment with orange is only a localized type treatment and not whole structure.  So if one has multiple infestations or infestation of dry wood termites have spread into "inaccessible" areas, any type of drill and injection would not be effective.  do your research, don't  just listen to anecdotal evidence and buyer beware.  bill

I just had my rental unit inspected for termites....i asked the guy who came out,from Orkin, about ORANGE OIL,he said it is bull....Orkin tested it and it doesnt work,he said what those guys use is what he was using to treat some spots in the unit,a white foam that he was injecting into the wood,it has been out he thinks about 6-7 years,it was called i believe he said REPOSE,i could be wrong,but i saw with my own eyes as he injected it into the wood,it oozed out of a crack about a foot away from were in injected it,he said they mix it with orange oil for the nice smell,but this white foam is what does the job,not orange oil,he also told me their is a lawsuite pending about orange oil,about it being fraud....so we will see....anyhow that is what i have been told by this guy......

an add on to my previous post............its not REPOSE.....it was more likely this stuff........my brother in-law was reading the label and he said it was PREMISE......

 

 

Premise (Bayer Corporation, Kansas City, MO.) contains the active ingredient imidocloprid. Imidocloprid is unique because it not only kills termites that contact a lethal dose, but it also kills them at doses too small to cause immediate death. If a termite contacts even a very small amount of imidocloprid it will become lethargic and forget to eat and feed other termites. It will also forget to groom itself so it soon becomes infested with soil fungi. The termite eventually dies as a result of these indirect symptoms of imidocloprid exposure. A disadvantage to Premise is that it is somewhat more expensive than the pyrethroid termiticides and in some cases may not last as long in the soil.

 

In Southern California we have had great success in killing termites with Orange Oil.  With the right training application, Orange Oil boasts a really high success rate in controlling and killing termites.  Most often when Orange Oil doesn't eliminate the termite problem it has to do with mistakes and poor application techniques on the part of the service technician rather than the Orange Oil itself.  (www.dialusttermite.com)

see,  http://www.birc.org/JanFeb2008.pdf   we have all heard of orange oil because of the tremendous marketing campaign.  Yet there is still no evidence that it does what they say.  Orange oil can be bought at home depot for about $10. gal.  the orange oil folks will charge you thousands of dollars for their "drill and inject" treatment.  there is no skill other than knowing where the termites are.  if you know that you can drill and inject with wd40.  it would probably work better,   ORANGE OIL IS A CONSUMER RIP OFF CALLED GREENWASHING.  DON'T FALL FOR HIGH PRESSURE SALES TACTICS AND CLAIMS THAT ARE TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE.  BUYER BEWARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

COMMENTS FROM COLUMNIST, ENTOMOLOGIST, RICHARD FAGERLUND "ASK THE BUGMAN":

Q: A friend asked me to do some research for her about the use and safety of Vikane. She wrote: "My landlord plans on fumigating with Vikane and I'm concerned and am considering moving all my stuff out until several days after the tent is removed."

She doesn't say what the fumigation is combatting, but from what I've gleaned from a Google search, it seems likely it's for termites?

A: Vikane is the product name for sulfuryl fluoride, a fumigant used to control drywood termites. I used to recommend it, but now that orange oil has proven to be so effective and much safer, I never recommend Vikane anymore, except in very serious infestations.

When you fumigate, you have to remove certain items from the home and place others in the refrigerator, and then after the fumigation is complete, you have to have the house cleared by the company that fumigated.

And you have to hope its gas detector is working properly. Orange oil is much safer, much less troublesome for the homeowner and much less expensive. I can't believe so many companies haven't switched to orange oil. As it is, only a couple of companies do it. I can give you the names of two companies that use orange oil to control drywood termites throughout California.

Bug identification: I will be happy to identify bugs from anywhere in the country. Please put the bugin a vial of alcohol, pack the container securely in a box, and mail to Richard Fagerlund, P.O. Box 203, Sandia Park, NM 87047. The exception to the alcohol would be moths, which need to be placed in cotton and packed in a small container (such as a film canister). Please fill out an ID form (available at www.askthebugman.com) and include $10 (cash, check or money order) for any bugs you want identified. If you send more than one species of bug for identification, include $10 per species. All the proceeds from this service will go to animal welfare.

Richard Fagerlund promotes nontoxic methods of pest control. See www.askthebugman.com.

We have been using d-limonene (orange oil) over 25 years and have treated over 1000 houses.  Orange oil is  available to any Pest control operator or home owner.  The Bug Man who i have a great deal of respect for seems to think there are only 2 choices in treatment of drywood termites. There are options.  You obvioulsy have fumigation--the only whole structure treatment.  If the infesttation is localized.  there are several local options.  These include:

Heat,  Electro-gun, Drill and inject (orange oil or a better product), remove and replace the infested material.  Orange oil is not orange juice, it is a volitle hydro carbon.  only 2 years ago it was rated as a catagory II pesticide,  It now has a caution label.  There are other drill and injection products that are less toxic and work better. 

Low to not toxic products include,  rosemary oil (essential oil) cedar oil,  spinosad, 

Low toxic non reppelent residules (best)  fipronil, premise (imidachlorprid)

When we use local treatments for drywoods, we also use detection devices such as acustic emmission, device, electro-gun and orthoboroscopes

Do you research.  and buyer beware.  not everything you hear in advertisements is true.   

 

 

I too am hesitant as to which method is better.  A lot of people for orange oil, just as many for fumigation.  A big factor for me is cost.  I got a quote for $1000 for orange oil application and a $1400+ for tenting.  Of course the $1000 orange oil must be decided by a certain day or it's no longer good, (the usual high pressure tactics) otherwise they usually start at $1800. 

I'm still undecided, I've been reading a lot on this and like I said before, half is good, half is bad.

Does anyone know if $1000 is indeed a good price for orange oil treatment??  Help

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

liz,  read the above comment.  if you don't want to fumigate, sometimes you have options.  Of all the legitimate localized options, drill and inject, heat, electro gun, structural changes. orange oil, is the only option that has no scientific emperical data on its efficacy.  only anecdotal stories told by marketeers of orange oil.  d-limonene oil can kill termites but it is not the most effective, or least toxic product on the market.  d-limonene oil--orange oil or better known as turpene.  is a solvent/paint thinner found in any hardware or home improvement store (about 10.00 a gallon) .  don't be fooled by high pressure sales folks trying to tell  you it is magic. $1000 is way to much to spend.  buyer beware.    

We were given a quote of $2200 for Orange oil treatment of our house. This was for treatment in about 4 places, and some subterranean treatment.  This sounds like way too much.  Also, given the discussion above, if Orange oil is only localized treatment, should we think about tenting and fumigation.??  for a more complete treatment, once and for all?? 

I recently had my house checked for termites because we hadn't done it since we bought in 2002.  I called four companies, two were traditional "tenting" companies and two were orange oil companies.  They all said we had termites, but one company (Dial Us Termite) did a thorough inspection and spent almost two hours identifying exactly where they were and showed us the areas that needed treatment.  We were OK with tenting, although we thought having to be inconvenienced by moving out isn't the best option, and we were a little leery of pumping the toxic poisonous gas everywhere.  I still wondered how it can get through the wood, and those companies didn't have any plans to return if the tenting didn't work.  The tent companies said it would be safe after a couple of days, but in the end we decided that we didn't want to take that chance with kids/pets in the house.  

I never buy anything without researching and price shopping and they were not the lowest, but they did offer a free three year protection plan which nobody else had.  They did exactly what they said they would do, and had friendly people working for them.  After they treated the house, it smelled like oranges, but that also faded away after a couple of days.  

If I were you, I'd decide what was best for your house by doing the research. Orange oil does work (this company has done it for 20 years), and for us it was the right solution.

the last email sounds like another advertisement for dial termites.  they seem to say the same thing on all these blogs.  try to make it sound like they are a customer.  i agree with #23 above

Comment #22 I live in San Jose Ca. area and I just got quoted from Planet Orange $2000.00 for subterraneon and treatment for drywood as well, they included the prevenative treatments.  So, know I'm wondering if they are over pricing.  It would be common sense if they are charging for the sqft of the home for treatment.  What is the sq ft of your home and are they doing the same treatment I specified above? I'm gonna try to bargin my way if you tell me any different.  Even though I still don't know if I should go w/ tent or this orange oil company.  My sis. works in escrow and she says she has never heard of them and that she was not to sure if I should use them since all the realators are still going for the "more effective way terminex or casner companies. The orange oil inspector didn't seem to convince me that we even have termites I would actually like to see them with my own eyes before I throw $2000.00.  I kinda thought he was just throwing a sales pitch which left me feeling pretty skepticle.

In my professional home remodeler humble knowledgeable opinion, Orange Oil is a joke for treating termites.  It doesnt treat the issue with subterraean termites.  Recently a customer of mine had her house treated for the little buggers, a week later I went to remove some termited garage door jambs.  While I was cutting into the wood i smelt a pleasing aroma of orange citrus, and notice many living termites still operating in their tunnels where it was treated.  I would say that it was maybe halfday effective until the termites removed their fallen bretheren and then continued on their mission.  Only way to treat termites is to eliminate the food source.  Grade your house outside 8" from any wood to dirt or 2" to concrete.  Check your underfloor crawl space foundation and piers for termite tunnels and remove and laying wood down there.  And use the most deadly chemicals on your house.  I have previous experience with orange oil as a cleaner for computer screens and keyboards.  My father use to sell that product starting around 25 years ago.

 

I just had the Orange Oil done last March with a 1 year warranty for $1300.00.  Both the inspector and the tech that came to my house stated that this warranty was for the whole house but not any detached buildings on my property.  Now I have found other places around my home that have more termite damage, but the company now tells me that the warranty is only for the exact locations where they treated before and I will have to pay more to have the other locations treated even though the new area is only 10 feet from the previously treated area.  I AM AFRAID I HAVE BEEN SCAMMED BY THE ORANGE OIL PEOPLE.  I should have tented and been done with the whole house with at once.