If you have wood siding please consider the following:
- Remember when it rains, the wood will act like a sponge and wick the water up.
- Don’t plant grass or any type of plant to close, the plan is to make the foundation visible for inspections.
- Just my opinion but don’t plant anything under the drip-line of the home. That is where the roof extends out away from the house.
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Just after monsoon rains is when we encounter more termite activity and that time frame is July – December, depending on frequency of rains. I recommend an inspection yearly, ProBest Pest Management offers a free service! If you are familar with termite tunnels or tubes you can make a cursory check yourself and if you spot something you can always give us a call at 480-831-9328.
Here a few pictures to remind you of what you are looking for.
Homeowner’s Insurance – Covers termites doesn’t it?
I get this question a lot and the answer is pretty straight forward – NO. To my knowledge I know of no homeowner policy which covers damage from termites and to my knowledge I know of NO policy which covers pest of any kind. I’m aware of only one policy which was created for Bed Bug issues from the stand point of hotels/motels.
Here are some favorite quotes on termites…
“Termites – it’s only a matter of time” or “Termites – not IF but when” or “There are only two kinds of homes, those with termites and those waiting to get get them”
My suggestions:
- Have an inspection done yearly if you live in the South.
- Walk around your home and check the foundation. Check the roof line for Bees.
- Don’t allow stucco to go beneath stone or dirt, you always want an open foundation to see termites tubes.
- Don’t plant trees to close to the home.
- Don’t install sheds or buildings to close to the house.
- Don’t allow sprinklers to hit the home or foundation.
- When in doubt call a professional, often times an inspection is free http://www.pestworld.org
Artsy – fartsy…. or so they say…
I don’t exactly know who is in charge here, but somebody is having a BAD day at finding wood. Termites search for wood all the time and sometimes they plain and simply come up the wrong place. This wrong place is the center of the garage and at least 10 feet from any wood. What I really think is cool is notice the termites even attempting to build the tubes up….
Termites here in Arizona are not as voracious eaters of wood as they are on the East Coast of the US but they can and do cause damage if not taken care of. Please call ProBest Pest Management for all your pest/termite issues at 480-831-9328 or 623-414-0176 – we offer free estimates and inspections (except for WDIIR – Wood Destroying Insect Infestation Reports often required for the selling of your home).
24/7/365 Termites on the Move!
Termites work everyday and they are only interested in finding wood (your home) sometimes they make mistakes and come up in the wrong place. The thing they have – is that they don’t ever give up. A few tips:
- Don’t plant tress or bushes near the foundation of your home, don’t put mulch up near the foundation and don”t pile stone or rock up to the stucco.
- The same applies to planters, putting a planter up next to the home will only encourage moist and pests.
- Reduce water next to the foundation. Check your drip irrigation, if sprinklers are involved direct them away from the home.
- Watch out for pests like rodents (ground squirrels, rats and pocket gophers) digging near the foundation.
- If you add a concrete slab to your home – pretreat it.
- If you must dig around the foundation notify your Pest Control company.
- Store firewood away from the structure.
- Inspections are good, very good.
Contact us to find out more about Termidor Termite Treatments https://callprobest.com/termidor-termite-treatment
What are they thinking?
It’ just not a good idea to stack anything up near the foundation of your home. This goes for stone & rock, mulch, firewood or for that matter anything that blocks the foundation from view. The reason that the stucco doesn’t go to the dirt is so you can see the foundation and spot any trouble before it happens.
Termites can sneak up the foundation wall and begin to eat your home very quickly, so please do those monthly inspections and we won’t be seeing you!
But we are always there if you need us ProBest Pest Management 480-831-9328
Cimex K9 – A Bed Bug Experience by ProBest Pest Management
I often speak about technology and with the advent of Bed Bugs it is great to see an ally in the industry. Dogs can smell way better than we can and can be rated – in this case by The Bed Bug Dog Registry. We use a team of dogs from Cimex K9 and the other day I had an opportunity to see them in action. Eric (handler) and Kohl (expert bed bug sniffer dog).
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Well anyway here is the story, somebody got Bed Bugs and after the treatment wanted to make absolutely, positively certain there were no Bed Bugs in this home. It was also a great experience for us, Seth did a remarkable job (as always) and Kohl didn’t find anything except a few dead things. Which is good because Kohl only hits on LIVE. Eric does play a little game with Kohl, just to be sure he is on the game, after the inspection he hides a bottle with a few Bed Bugs in it just to make sure Kohl in on game and you see by the pictures that Kohl did an excellent job.
So whether before or after we can get the K9 involved to assist in either the pre-inspection or post-inspection.
Sleep tight and Don’t let the Bed Bugs Bite!
Dr. Bug says “Meet my Friends”. Realtor Sandi Nilson 
- What is your name and business? Sandi Nilson, Associate Broker with Realty Executives.
- Describe something unusual about your business and why a customer might choose you over your competition? 32 years of full time real estate experience. Almost 100% of my business comes from referrals from previous satisfied clients – and most real estate agents don’t come CLOSE to that number of referrals. I also worked to attain the GRI and CRS designations which signify extensive experience and training; and I also have accounting and business law education in my background.
- Can you describe a funny story or opportunity that happened while doing your work? There was the time I got a street name mixed up and showed the wrong house on the wrong street. The listing was brand new, so it was typical that no sign had been installed yet; the owner of the correct house had said “there isn’t a lockbox yet but the back door is open, so go through the gate and go in the back door.” The back yard had a somewhat familiar, but not so pleasant, smell. Once inside, I wondered why the listing said the pet was called “Dog”….. but the pet in THIS home was a pot belly pig! After leaving, I realized I had shown “Aspen” and the correct street was “Ash”. When I went to the home to apologize, the owner thought it was hysterical (I was lucky). I eventually was called to list a neighbor’s home (and eventually several in the neighborhood) after meeting that first homeowner – she passed the story on to her neighbors! As a farm girl from North Dakota, I had smelled hog manure a few times before that day but never before or since in Arizona!
- How did you come across our little group of ANTS “A Network of Top Strategist“? I was introduced to the group by Lin Bourgeois, who I have known for many years, and also Mary Contreras.
- What one thing would you do to improve the economy of Arizona? BUY AMERICAN – the whole US economy would benefit! And BUY LOCAL whenever possible.
- Anything else you would like to share with my readers of my home seal? I want homeowners to remember that when it comes to selling real estate, there is no substitute for KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE, and INTEGRITY.
Sandi Nilson can be reached at office 480-839-2600 – cell 602-579-8899 or by email at [email protected] and her website is http://www.sandi-sells-arizona.com and she also home seals frequently at http://sandinilson.wordpress.com/
National Real Estate Trends 
So as the World turns, these are the days of our lives…. So I’m sure everybody has heard those words from the TV show and I’m sure none of us thought this economy was going to be so terrible. This report explains the foreclosure forecast and I think it helps to give us some hope that things are on the mend – National Real Estate Trends report.
I also recommend you follow my personal Realtor’s home seal Sandi Nilson Sells Arizona, this will allow you to stay ahead of the curve on the Arizona housing market. Also please check Realtor Matthew Coates home seal @ http://livingchandler.com
