Termites Eating My Investments

2 months after moving into the Pangsapuri Subang Jaya ground floor unit, my tenant informed me that the brand new wood skirting in 2 bedrooms and half a brand new wardrobe has been destroyed by termites along with a box full of books. I rushed over to see and nothing could be more heart breaking to see the destruction.

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When I bought this unit, I noticed from the floor markings that the previous owner had done termites treatment before. My mistake is, I should have followed up but it's not too late yet as the damage is not that big financially but it's still heart breaking to see brand new furniture and fittings being destroyed. It sort of left a scar in the property.

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I immediately went off to look for pest control companies. They seem to all recommend a baiting system. The termites will eat the bait and take the bait home for their colony. When the queen takes the bait, she will die and the entire colony will end. This method is different from what pest control companies used previously which is drilling some insecticide into the floor at regular spacings. The previous method of course is not very effective and not much cheaper at that because termites can still find gaps in the floor or they can even climb in via the ceiling or walls. The drilling method is also not possible for units higher up. I've heard of apartments on the 23rd or 30th floor being attacked by termites who climb up via the building riser. The riser is a tunnel connecting the floors vertically for cables or pipes to run. Sometimes the pipes leak, making the riser wet and most conducive for termites.

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Anyway, all the pest control companies recommended the baiting system, which I am convinced is the best method. However, it seems unfair that I will be solely paying for them to destroy termites colonies which also affect my neighbours. So, in effect they are getting a free ride from me. The pest control companies quotes came in a range from RM1000 to RM3000. This comes with a year's warranty. They will visit my property bi-monthly to check and they have this tool which can scan through the walls and floors for termites for early detection.

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The baiting system is actually cheap to implement. In fact, I found on the internet that you can buy a box of this bait and do it yourself - for less than RM50. The thousands that we pay is for the regular visits and early detection. I am all convinced except that we have to pay in advanced. This means, if for some reason the company fail to turn up, you can't really do much but the spend the tiring effort of chasing them. In fact, after the termites are gone, one might even forget. The company may also wrap up, move shop and set up a new one somewhere else.

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So, in the end, I went to my community forum to find out what everyone else been doing. I was recommended this contractor who also does the baiting system but only charging RM200. There is a 1 year warranty but it's up to me to notify him. Well, it's a risk I am willing to take this risk. Meanwhile I have notified all my tenants to look out for termites. Maybe when we notice, the damage is already done and perhaps thousands of Ringgit worth of furniture would be destroyed. But I still am willing to take the risk compared with potential blood vomitting effort to chase suppliers.

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Within a week of setting up the bait, the termites are gone. The contents of the bait box totally gone which means they have taken the bait. Earlier there was some panic as there were suddenly termites running everywhere. We thought more termites had turned up but they were actually those from the same colony went berserk after taking the poisonous bait.