Termite barrier for building construction in Albury, Wodonga, Rutherglen, and surrounding areas

The Australian Standard AS 3660.1-2017 was updated in 2017 to exclude the use of non-replenishable chemical soil barriers as the only form of termite protection.

We are able to spray under the slab, but we have to also install a physical barrier or a reticulated termite chemical soil barrier. Please contact us for more information on reticulated chemical soil barriers. 

Our pre-construction physical termite (white ant) barriers come with a 50-year product warranty. 

This warranty requires that the barrier is not disturbed after installation and that the homeowner arranges for us to inspect the house and the barrier at least annually.

To date, we have never had to treat termites in a house where we have installed a physical termite barrier. We have been installing Homeguard since 2008 and Greenzone since 2018.

Homeguard and Greenzone are industry-leading products.

Homeguard is produced by FMC, one of the largest chemicals manufacturers in the world.

Greenzone is a new product on the market that has demonstrated great quality and ease-of-use, as well as flexible labels that allow us to solve problems that Homeguard cannot.

For the first part, we need to get in prior to the concrete poor, when all the service penetrations are installed. We prefer to come before the mesh goes in, but this is not essential.

After the concrete is poured, we need to get in before the frames are stood up.

1. Through cracks in the slab larger than 1.5mm.
2. Around penetrations like pipes, as the concrete shrinks back from them, creating a cavity.
3. Over the slab footing on the perimeter of the slab (which is underneath the soil).

Slabs poured to Standard should not crack large enough to allow termite entry. So termite management on concrete slabs mostly involves protecting the service penetrations and the slab perimeter.

Termites can still travel along treated timber and steel frames and attack skirtings, architects, door jambs, cupboards, furniture, and other timbers.

Termites can also attack treated timber. There are many cases of termites eating through the centre of treated timber. The timbers are treated from the outside but the treatment often doesn’t make it to the middle.

Treated pine is only rated for 25 years protection against termites. Most modern termite management systems (in particular physical systems) are rated for up to 50 years.

Yes, they are still required for extensions. A termite management system is also required for internal renovations if they involve cutting through the flooring.

A termite management system is especially important for extensions involving concrete slabs as the join between the two floors is a common concealed termite entry point.

Yes we do, but we prefer chemically treated plastic physical barriers to termite reticulation systems. This is because they do not require ongoing pumping up to be effective

The only type of termite management system that can be installed to new buildings and existing buildings is a reticulated chemical soil treatment.

This type of system involves pipes that are installed around the perimeter of your concrete slab which have emitters at regular intervals. The pipe can then be pumped up with termiticide which will release into the soil, stopping termites from travelling through it.

In new builds they are installed before the concreting and landscaping is done. For existing houses, you need to cut the concrete and dig out garden beds to install them.

Modern termite management systems are designed to expose termites and prevent concealed entry. They are designed to make termites easier for a termite manager to detect during an inspection.

For this reason, an inspection is required at least annually, under the Australian Standard AS3660.2: Termite Management.

Learn more about our termite inspections here.

Historically, for a concrete slab, Part A meant a termite management system installed before the concrete was poured, and Part B was the second part, done after the concrete was poured.

Our industry doesn’t use this terminology anymore (not since the 90s!), because it implies that a new building termite management system is only done in two parts. Not all builds can be done in two parts.

• Now, we just talk about the specific building component that will be treated:
• slab penetrations.
• joins and cuts in concrete.
• slab perimeter.
• piers and other external parts.