Prevention of Termite Tubing Over Non-Wood Construction Materials Using Glycol Borate

IRG/WP 04-30358

W R Smith, J D Lloyd

Glycol borates have been demonstrated to prevent termite tubing and attack of wood materials and are extensively used as termite preventative applications in new construction in the USA. This study evaluated the ability of such systems to prevent Formosan subterranean termite tubing over non-wood materials. Concrete was selected as a common inert construction material and tests were carried out following topical treatment of the concrete with a commercially available glycol borate. It was found that a glycol borate treatment on concrete restricted the ability of termites to construct tubes. Exploratory tubes were less than 20 cm and the treatment caused near complete termite mortality. The results suggest that glycol borates offer a novel approach to protect cellulosic materials within structures not built from wood.


Keywords: Borate; concrete; disodium octaborate; Formosan; glycol; termite; tubing

Conference: 04-06-06/10 Ljubljana, Slovenia


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