Posts Tagged Termites

DIY Pest Control in Georgia

Posted by outside_voices on Tuesday, 22 December, 2009

Would you like to learn about how to exterminate some of the most common pests in Georgia yourself?  If you live in Georgia, or if you’re about to move to Georgia, you probably do. 

The most common pests in Georgia are mosquitoes, termites, and rodents.  Ants, roaches, and spiders are also quite common as well.  However, how can you stop these horrendous pests?  Here is just a small sample of the options you have for fighting against an infestation of these pests.

Mosquitoes:
The best way to stop mosquitoes is to keep them from laying eggs.  Make sure that there are no standing bodies of water on your property.  Even seemingly inconsequential ones.  A bucket with a bit of water can become a new nest of mosquitoes.  Of course, you may not have a choice.  If there is a lake attached to your backyard, you will probably need to resort to lots of repellents instead.

Termites:
The most commonly recommended treatment to really rid yourself of termites is fumigation.  This can either be a chemical-based gas that is a general poison for anything, including termites, or a more natural gas that will be poisonous for termites, but not necessarily for other things.  Usually, the chemical gas is more effective at killing, but it can have some health-related side effects on your household.

Rodents:
The best method for eliminating rodents is by setting traps where rodents will set them off, but kids and pets won’t.  It can take a long time to capture all the rodents, but they reproduce slowly enough that this method is effective.  If you want to be more humane about it, catch-and-release traps can allow you to move the rodents as far away from your home as possible without killing them.

Ants:
The best pest control method for ants is most likely poisonous bait.  You will need to identify the particular ant you are dealing with and choose a bait that will attract them.  The ants will take the food and distribute it to the entire colony, killing the colony over time.

Roaches:
Battling roaches is hard, and almost the only option available for DIY is a variety of poisons.  Due to the fact that roaches grow up quickly and lay lots of eggs, you’ll have to hunt them down thoroughly and persistently.  Roaches are one of the few pests that are so difficult to get rid of that professional pest control is honestly recommended, but do it yourself options can sometimes be effective.

Spiders:
The best way to get rid of spiders is to eliminate their food supply.  Their food source is usually other bugs.  So, by getting rid of other bugs, you also get rid of spiders.  You should still kill any spiders you see, and be sure to destroy their egg sacs and spider webs.

These are just a few possibilities for exterminating these pests.  You may need to do more research if you want more detail or more options for DIY Georgia pest control.

How to Fix Holes in Wood when Preping to Paint

Posted by outside_voices on Saturday, 31 October, 2009

Repairing Holes in House Wood before Painting and Finish Sanding

It would be nice if your wooden home needed no more than basic house repair. Only caulk and scrape a bit, lay down some painting drop cloths, and roll on some layers of high quality exterior paint.

Maintaining your house is more difficult. Rather than easy, you usually have to repair the wooden facings of the house.

My property needed quite a bit of work. The steel sheeting near the roof gutters leaked and allowed rainwater to soak the wood behind the eve. As the years passed, the wood became rotten and caved in the painted surface.

This repair I wanted to do on my own. I was worried whether wood putty could fill in the gaps properly.

My friend down the block worked on the wood of his home many weekends to control those darn flying termites. This guy’s work quality held up very well. He knew something I did not.

Fill in Wood Holes with Bondo then Use Wood Working Power Tools to Finish Sanding

He told me a contractor had recommended to always apply Bondo to fill larger holes in wood. To get a better understanding see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bondo_(putty)

I had used Bondo on a car repair. This auto filler kept its shape. It permitted sanding and lathing. When he mentioned using Bondo, I instantly knew that this was the right answer.

Using Bondo, the approach is to make repairs in layer after layer with a lot applied first and thinner sections to finish. Furthermore, you can do fine finishing work, combining molding boards and regular kitchen wax paper. To prep for painting by sanding all you need to do is to use one of the wood power sanders to make the Bondo blend smoothly with the wood.

If you have a wooden deck, you should be aware that you can also apply this auto patcher to fill in gouges in the surface of your wood deck. It comes in handy, when you are doing redwood deck maintenance.

Note the fact that Bondo finishes with a reddish hew and this will be obvious, if you only use a transparent water proofing on your wood deck. When you desire to seal your wood deck after patching with Bondo, you might need to use an opaque sealant.

Also it is not necessary to go to an automotive store for Bondo. You can get Bondo at Lowes or Home Depot. Incidentally, my painting prep job shows no signs of deterioration after many years.

The Advantages of Choosing A Metal Building Kit

Posted by outside_voices on Tuesday, 27 October, 2009

Many people when deciding on their next building project often consider a metal building but want to know the advantages of building in metal. The two biggest reasons are that they are relatively simple to build compared to more traditional methods such as wood or bricks and mortar and they are fast to build. They also produce a very sturdy building which is very cost effective.

Metal building kits for sale  can be obtained for all types of buildings including garages, sheds, warehouses and even aircraft hangers. At home, the most common structures are those for garages and for building extra storage space. They are ideally suited for gardening equipment, toys and cars.

Many industrial complexes and commercial buildings are constructed from metal kits and have been for many years. It only requires a short trip around a local industrial estate to see this is the case as you will find nearly every one made from steel.

They can be erected at a very fast speed and fitted out quite easily which makes them very cost effective as an alternative. Less profit is lost from running a business or building up a business if time is not lost in the construction phase of a new property. Most companies want a short lag phase between deciding on a new building project and seeing and receiving the finished construction.

Metal buildings are extremely durable and, therefore, found in areas where erosion is a problem, where there are extremes of weather and where there is a susceptibility from insect attack, like termites. They exhibit both a combination of flexibility and sturdiness and, therefore, are ideal in areas of high risk of earthquakes. They are also much more resistant to fire than wooden buildings which may result in reduced insurance premiums.

If you are considering a new metal building kit, it does not necessarily mean a do it yourself self build project. It is often wise to employ the services of a professional building contractor that has built similar structures previously.

Unless you are an experienced builder or have plenty of time then I would recommend employing a professional builder to construct it. This way the building will go up much more quickly. As a result it can actually work out much more cost effective as you have your building more quickly and will possibly avoid expensive mistakes.

In summary, metal building kits are a much better option to brick or wood structures in terms of speed of build and their resistance to the environment. They are usually of very high quality and are well engineered structures. You will probably find that these features will add up to a money saving project.