April 15, 2024 • 16 mins
Join Laura and Jim as they explore the trenches of DIY pest control, equipping you with the mightiest of strategies to reclaim your kingdom from the tiniest of foes. We discuss the power of knowing your enemy – whether it's termites, carpenter ants, or the elusive beetles. Especially for those in the Buckeye State, we've got tailored advice for Ohio's notorious home invaders that will save your sanity and your structures. And for the real estate pros, we're serving up tips to ensure your clients' new abodes are pest-free paradises.
This episode isn't just about the battle, it's about the harmony of coexistence with nature. Discover how food-grade diatomaceous earth can be your pet's best friend and your parasite's worst nightmare, all while keeping Mother Nature's balance in check. We'll dive into the microscopic warfare that beneficial nematodes wage in our gardens, protecting our roses without harming the ladybugs. Laura and I reminisce on our personal victories using these eco-friendly warriors and guide you on when to wear the pest control cape yourself or when to pass the torch to the pros. From home care to real estate deals, we've got the blueprint for a pest-free life, naturally.
Here is a place for nematodes Beneficial Nematodes - Organic Control, Inc.
To learn more about Habitation Investigation, the Three-time Winner of the Best Home Inspection Company in the Midwest Plus the Winner of Consumer Choice Award for Columbus Ohio visit Home Inspection Columbus Ohio - Habitation Investigation (homeinspectionsinohio.com)
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to the Standing Out in Ohio podcast,
where we discuss topics,upcoming events, news and
predictions with real estateprofessionals and entrepreneurs.
Listen and learn what makestheir companies and themselves
stand out and gain advantagesover the competition and gain
market share.
Subscribe for the latest newsand discussion on what it takes
(00:23):
to stand out from the crowd.
Now here's your host, jim.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Hey everybody, welcome to the Standing Out and
how podcast.
This is Jim, and with me, ofcourse, is Laura, the office
goddess.
Speaker 3 (00:47):
Hello everyone.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
All right, we had a question the other day and
really nothing to do with thehome inspection.
We will have past clientscontact us.
Hey, do you know a painter whoyou recommend for plumbing?
What do you do about this thatthey look at it for a long-term
source?
(01:08):
Yeah, assistance with theirhome.
We had somebody ask about pestcontrol, so that is going to be
the topic today isdo-it-yourself pest control for
the homeowner or, if you're anagent, this is good information
for you to relay to your currenthomeowners or future homeowners
(01:28):
.
But first let's listen to this.
Speaker 4 (01:31):
Habitation investigation is the way to go
for a home inspection in Ohio.
Trusted licensed homeinspectors for your needs from
radon to mold to warranties, fora great home inspection, you
really can't go wrong.
(01:51):
Visit homeinspectionsinohiocom.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
All right, laura.
So pest.
When people think about pest,what kind of things are they
normally thinking about?
Do you think?
Speaker 3 (02:05):
Bugs, raccoons, squirrels.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
The whole gamut.
The whole gamut, from littletiny things to big things,
little tiny, itty bitty thingsto big things that need traps to
get out.
All right.
Well, if it's a big thing,we'll say, well, I don't know.
If it's a rodent, we'll say,like mouse or bigger.
Probably the best thing to dowould be contact an animal
control company to get that.
(02:31):
Yes, if it's just mice and thisis common Get cats.
Keep the cats a little hungry.
Even that doesn't work.
Some cats are lazy.
But anyway, you could take careof that yourself easily.
I don't like those glue traps.
I do not like those.
Speaker 3 (02:48):
No, I don't like them .
Speaker 2 (02:49):
If you're going to kill the mouse, kill it quickly,
don't make it suffer.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
And don't poison it, because if something else eats
it you're poisoning that animal.
So I don't like poison either.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
Correct.
So get the traps, get those,make it quick.
The best thing to get rid ofthose is don't leave food for
them to get.
That's the big issue for mice,so mouse size are bigger, unless
it's a really small issue.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Call an extermination company.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Call an extermination company to take care of that.
But here in Ohio there are.
You gotta be licensed to dopesticide application like a
termite treatment treating forcarpenter ants, carpenter bees.
You have to be licensed to dothat to somebody else's house.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
Right or for a real estate transaction.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
For a real estate transaction?
Well, yes, for a real estatetransaction.
Or for a real estatetransaction For a real estate
transaction?
Well, yes, for a real estatetransaction.
If you're the homeowner, youcan treat your home, your own
house yourself, withprofessional grade treatments.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
Now if it's involved in a real estate transaction, no
, the loan company is going towant verification from the
professional licensed companythat yes, this was, we'll say,
termites.
Plus, they also offerwarranties, usually for like six
months to a year.
After they treat that says, hey, we've treated, you, should be
good for this period of time.
That's important in a realestate transaction.
If just the homeowner does it,you're not going to have that.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
Correct, so you could get it.
We'll say termites.
You see one tube somewhere andyou want to get that treated.
You could do that yourself asthe homeowner.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
So how would I do that as a homeowner if I have no
clue and I've never done thatbefore?
Speaker 2 (04:37):
First, proper identification.
You need to be absolutelycertain what you're treating,
because there's fourwoody-stranded insects
recognized here in Ohio andthose are termites, carpenter
ants, carpenter bees and powderpost beetles.
Carpenter ants and termitesmake those tubes.
Speaker 4 (04:58):
Right.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
That's probably the easiest thing to find is the
termite tubes on the outside ofthe wood.
So you have that, but so nowyou gotta go get some pesticide
for it.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
There is a place in columbus I think it's columbus
pest control but they uh helphomeowners treat their own place
and they will help you identifywhat bug it is or what the what
situation is so take a clearjar, clear glass jar, whatever
(05:31):
the bug or critter is, take thatinto them and they will walk
you through the steps of what itis, what you need to get and
then how to actually treat yourown house correct or or they can
do it Correct, or they can doit for you.
Or they can do it for you.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
But their website.
They are really geared tohelping people identify the
issue and then help them takecare of it.
Speaker 3 (05:55):
Well, it's like if you give somebody fish, you feed
them for a day.
If you teach them how to fish,they've got food the rest of
their life, correct?
Or, in this case, they've gotthe ability to take care of
their house.
They've got food, the rest oftheir life Correct, or, in this
case, they've got the ability totake care of their house.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
They've got the skills and knowledge to treat
this forever.
So you being part hippie, youfor regular ants in your house,
regular bugs, little bugs, notthe wood-destroying insect type.
You have some ways to wherehomeowners can treat that and
(06:28):
does not involve harsh chemicalsat all no, because I don't like
the chemicals.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
And yeah, okay, so maybe I am part hippie you are
part hippie, yes, so what?
Speaker 2 (06:37):
what are some of those things?
Speaker 3 (06:40):
so one of the things that you can do is put out
cornmeal um.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
For what?
Speaker 3 (06:47):
for ants?
Okay, ants will take thecornmeal and ingest it, but
ultimately they end up starvingto death.
So they can't digest it andthey can't get any more food in
their stomach because they'vegot the cornmeal.
So they end up dying.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
Okay, that sounds painful, but it's ants, but it's
an ant Okay.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
Yeah, so that's one way.
Another way I've done is I'vetaken honey and I've mixed borax
in it and I put it in an areawhere I make sure other little
critters can't get to it and Ilet the little ants eat it, and
that is essentially killing thethe nest.
Then they take that back to thenest and they ingest the borax
(07:30):
and the borax kills them isthere a ratio for that?
Speaker 2 (07:33):
can you have too much borax?
I know termites.
If you.
This is why you do yourselfpest treatment.
If you're treating termites,you have to follow the
instructions, because if you puttoo much of the pesticide, the
termites are gonna go.
Nope, I ain't touching that.
There's something funky with it.
I'm leaving alone.
Is there a ratio with the borax?
Speaker 3 (07:52):
I just sprinkle a little bit in.
There probably is a recipesomewhere online.
Just look up honey, borax,treatment for ants, and that'll
probably get it to you.
I just put a little bit in.
I I mean I don't make a hugeamount, like it's barely enough
to heat up on the stove, and Iput the borax in and just just
enough to to melt it in thehoney, and then you put a little
(08:15):
bit of borax in and I make sureit's all right, I see, I think
I've seen it.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
It's like maybe a quarter cup of honey if that,
and maybe just like maybe half ateaspoon of borax if that.
So it's not much now there's.
There's nothing diatomaceousearth I love diatomaceous earth.
This is your favorite one thisis well, there's two.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
There's two that are my favorite and I've used them
in conjunction for years.
So the first one isdiatomaceous earth and basically
what that is is ground upseashells.
So it's very small, almost sandlike, but it has very jagged
edges because it's seashells andbasically what that does is the
bug will crawl across it and itputs a crack in their
(08:58):
exoskeleton and they basicallyjust dehydrate.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
So that's what was like a microscopic little
critter and that's theexoskeleton of like little, tiny
sea creature.
Speaker 3 (09:08):
Yep Right and it just puts a hole in their
exoskeleton.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Interesting Diatomaceous earth.
You don't want to breathe inthe powder because it will
irritate your lungs, but you cantouch it, you can eat.
They make it food grade.
You can eat it.
They're now supposed to behealthy for you to consume.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
I buy food grade and I sprinkle it on cat food and it
helps treat worms, because itdoes the same thing in the
intestines.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
It puts a cut in the critter's system yeah and they
end up dying and dehydrating soit'd be a good preventative as
well as well and then anotherthing I use is um nematodes.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
now I know you're all thinking spongebob and the
nematodes.
Now I know you're all thinkingSpongebob and the nematodes come
running through and eateverything I do remember the
Girls Are Little.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
There was a Spongebob episode where nematodes came
across Bikini Bottom and justsee like little.
They look like little wormsjust bouncing and just consuming
everything in their pathway.
Yes, so what really arenematodes?
Do they look like littleworm-like?
Speaker 3 (10:13):
I don't know.
They're like micro, so I get itin like a powder and I get
three different kinds ofnematodes, because each kind of
nematode but they're microscopic.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Yeah, they're microscopic.
There's no way we can see them.
They're microscopic.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
They're in like a powder, and then you mix the
powder with water and then youspray it over the area.
So what?
Each nematode?
Wait, wait, wait, directly onthe ground.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
But what?
Each nematode?
Wait, wait, wait.
Directly on the ground.
Yeah, directly on the groundYou're talking about soil, not
inside the house.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
No on the soil Okay.
So what you do is you've gotthree different types of
nematodes and you can go onAmazon and you can look this up
and I always get the one thathas all three in it.
We used to have a horribleproblem with Japanese beetles
(10:59):
and we also have cats outside sowe had problems with fleas.
So I have treated using thenematodes.
For years now.
I haven't seen a japanesebeetle.
What five years, maybe it'sbeen a long time since we've had
.
It's been a long time so thenematode?
Speaker 2 (11:12):
what do they do in the soil?
Speaker 3 (11:13):
they will attack the larva in the soil and basically
kill them as they're gestatingand growing and then that way
they don't become bugs and itbreaks the life cycle so
nematodes go against fleas ticks, japanese beetles, what pretty
(11:34):
much name it.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
What else but?
Speaker 3 (11:36):
each.
Each type of nematode goesafter specific types of bugs, so
that's why you need to look andsee what each type of nematode
does and what you want it for.
I get all three because we havea bunch of different bugs
around here and especially atour property.
I've been doing all threebecause we want to take care of
(11:57):
fleas, we want to take care ofticks, we want to take care of
you know, there's a bunch ofants.
There's been a bunch of otherthings that we've tried to get
rid of.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
It's the woods, it's the woods, but we don't want
those next to the house or thecampsites, but we don't want
them next to the house.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
We don't want them next to the campsites.
I've kind of been concentratingthem and there's been a
difference.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
Oh yeah, now my understanding is you can treat
with the nematodes and and theyspread each year.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
They don't die.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
But they last several years.
Speaker 3 (12:25):
Oh, they multiply.
Like once you put them in, theywill continue to multiply.
But what I do is each year I'llgo and I'll seed out farther
from where I did the year beforeand I kind of give them a
little boost and I let themexpand their territory and it's
worked great.
Speaker 2 (12:43):
Now the nematodes.
Do they harm any beneficialbugs?
Speaker 3 (12:48):
I would imagine that they would not be able to
distinguish between the two.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Okay, so you may want to be careful.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
So that's why I said you need to make sure that when
you read, you read what theyattack and what they're going to
eat.
And do you want that particularbug gone or do you want to keep
that?
And if that's the case, thendon't get that kind of nematode,
get the other ones.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
Yeah, I know you got the ones that target the fleas
and ticks and.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
I get the ones that target the fleas and the ticks.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
And it's made a huge difference.
I don't know any benefit to theworld for fleas and ticks.
Ticks just all need to die.
I hate them.
They are nasty.
But anyway, it is legal forhomeowners to treat their own
house for, you know, any kind ofwood-distorted insect, rare
(13:41):
insects, pests you can treatyourself.
You don't need to getprofessional if you want to save
the money, but if you have abig job it could be worth hiring
somebody to do it.
Go to that.
I think it's Columbus PestControl.
They're out there in West Broad, 1015 or 1510 West Broad For
some of you that don't rememberthat.
They're out there in West Broad, 10-15 or 15-10 West Broad For
some of you that don't rememberthat.
Speaker 3 (14:00):
Well, and here's another idea.
Speaker 2 (14:02):
They can tell you you might want to do this yourself.
It's small enough.
Or they can help you also, orthey can sell you the equipment.
But if it's your house and sayyou're going to need to put the
pesticide into the ground on theof the house, that equipment is
probably not super cheap andthey may go hey, we'll do it for
you and here's the feed.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
you don't have to buy this stuff well, and another
thought I have is at least havethem come out, maybe the first
time, and show you how to treatand then, from there on out, you
know what they did and how theydid it.
Maybe you could rent equipment,maybe you could you know,
whatever, but they would be ableto help you work that out.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah, there probably are other places you can get
your pesticides or treatmentequipment from, I'm sure of it,
but they're just the one thatI'm aware of here in Columbus,
my Columbus area, ohio.
So so I think that's about iton this one.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Yeah, all right.
Nematodes and diatomaceousearth are the best two.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Yeah, and I am Before our new house, before they put
the drywall up, I'm going totake the diatomaceous earth and
I'm going to put that all alongwithin the framing of the walls
Right on the outside.
I'm going to frame all that in.
So if you ever get ants, startfinding little cracks, start
coming underneath they got to goacross that.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
Barrier that barrier.
Speaker 2 (15:20):
And they're not going to like that and they'll
hopefully just back up and go adifferent direction and it won't
work out for them.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
Yeah, I have some left down there now.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
But I am going to be doing that down there as a
preventative.
That's just one of the thingslike a builder's not going to do
that for you.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
No, and I wouldn't expect him to no.
No, but we are going to do thatand we're going to tell our
builder we are dead, that wewere going to be treating for
stuff beforehand, but we'regoing to remind him.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
He's learned all kinds of things.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Yeah, I'm sure he's having a blast.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Oh yeah, so all right , that's it, everybody.
Thank you, have a great week,bye-bye, bye.
Speaker 1 (15:53):
You've been listening to the Standing Out in Ohio
podcast.
Be sure to subscribe on Spotifyor Google Podcasts to get new,
fresh episodes.
For more, please follow us onInstagram, twitter and Facebook,
or visit the website of thebest Ohio home inspection
(16:14):
company athomeinspectionsinohiocom or
jimtroffcom.
That's J-I-M-T-R-O-T-H andclick on podcast.
Until next time, learn and godo stuff.
Welcome to the Standing Out in Ohio podcast,
where we discuss topics,upcoming events, news and
predictions with real estateprofessionals and entrepreneurs.
Listen and learn what makestheir companies and themselves
stand out and gain advantagesover the competition and gain
market share.
Subscribe for the latest newsand discussion on what it takes
(00:23):
to stand out from the crowd.
Now here's your host, jim.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Hey everybody, welcome to the Standing Out and
how podcast.
This is Jim, and with me, ofcourse, is Laura, the office
goddess.
Speaker 3 (00:47):
Hello everyone.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
All right, we had a question the other day and
really nothing to do with thehome inspection.
We will have past clientscontact us.
Hey, do you know a painter whoyou recommend for plumbing?
What do you do about this thatthey look at it for a long-term
source?
(01:08):
Yeah, assistance with theirhome.
We had somebody ask about pestcontrol, so that is going to be
the topic today isdo-it-yourself pest control for
the homeowner or, if you're anagent, this is good information
for you to relay to your currenthomeowners or future homeowners
(01:28):
.
But first let's listen to this.
Speaker 4 (01:31):
Habitation investigation is the way to go
for a home inspection in Ohio.
Trusted licensed homeinspectors for your needs from
radon to mold to warranties, fora great home inspection, you
really can't go wrong.
(01:51):
Visit homeinspectionsinohiocom.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
All right, laura.
So pest.
When people think about pest,what kind of things are they
normally thinking about?
Do you think?
Speaker 3 (02:05):
Bugs, raccoons, squirrels.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
The whole gamut.
The whole gamut, from littletiny things to big things,
little tiny, itty bitty thingsto big things that need traps to
get out.
All right.
Well, if it's a big thing,we'll say, well, I don't know.
If it's a rodent, we'll say,like mouse or bigger.
Probably the best thing to dowould be contact an animal
control company to get that.
(02:31):
Yes, if it's just mice and thisis common Get cats.
Keep the cats a little hungry.
Even that doesn't work.
Some cats are lazy.
But anyway, you could take careof that yourself easily.
I don't like those glue traps.
I do not like those.
Speaker 3 (02:48):
No, I don't like them .
Speaker 2 (02:49):
If you're going to kill the mouse, kill it quickly,
don't make it suffer.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
And don't poison it, because if something else eats
it you're poisoning that animal.
So I don't like poison either.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
Correct.
So get the traps, get those,make it quick.
The best thing to get rid ofthose is don't leave food for
them to get.
That's the big issue for mice,so mouse size are bigger, unless
it's a really small issue.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Call an extermination company.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Call an extermination company to take care of that.
But here in Ohio there are.
You gotta be licensed to dopesticide application like a
termite treatment treating forcarpenter ants, carpenter bees.
You have to be licensed to dothat to somebody else's house.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
Right or for a real estate transaction.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
For a real estate transaction?
Well, yes, for a real estatetransaction.
Or for a real estatetransaction For a real estate
transaction?
Well, yes, for a real estatetransaction.
If you're the homeowner, youcan treat your home, your own
house yourself, withprofessional grade treatments.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
Now if it's involved in a real estate transaction, no
, the loan company is going towant verification from the
professional licensed companythat yes, this was, we'll say,
termites.
Plus, they also offerwarranties, usually for like six
months to a year.
After they treat that says, hey, we've treated, you, should be
good for this period of time.
That's important in a realestate transaction.
If just the homeowner does it,you're not going to have that.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
Correct, so you could get it.
We'll say termites.
You see one tube somewhere andyou want to get that treated.
You could do that yourself asthe homeowner.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
So how would I do that as a homeowner if I have no
clue and I've never done thatbefore?
Speaker 2 (04:37):
First, proper identification.
You need to be absolutelycertain what you're treating,
because there's fourwoody-stranded insects
recognized here in Ohio andthose are termites, carpenter
ants, carpenter bees and powderpost beetles.
Carpenter ants and termitesmake those tubes.
Speaker 4 (04:58):
Right.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
That's probably the easiest thing to find is the
termite tubes on the outside ofthe wood.
So you have that, but so nowyou gotta go get some pesticide
for it.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
There is a place in columbus I think it's columbus
pest control but they uh helphomeowners treat their own place
and they will help you identifywhat bug it is or what the what
situation is so take a clearjar, clear glass jar, whatever
(05:31):
the bug or critter is, take thatinto them and they will walk
you through the steps of what itis, what you need to get and
then how to actually treat yourown house correct or or they can
do it Correct, or they can doit for you.
Or they can do it for you.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
But their website.
They are really geared tohelping people identify the
issue and then help them takecare of it.
Speaker 3 (05:55):
Well, it's like if you give somebody fish, you feed
them for a day.
If you teach them how to fish,they've got food the rest of
their life, correct?
Or, in this case, they've gotthe ability to take care of
their house.
They've got food, the rest oftheir life Correct, or, in this
case, they've got the ability totake care of their house.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
They've got the skills and knowledge to treat
this forever.
So you being part hippie, youfor regular ants in your house,
regular bugs, little bugs, notthe wood-destroying insect type.
You have some ways to wherehomeowners can treat that and
(06:28):
does not involve harsh chemicalsat all no, because I don't like
the chemicals.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
And yeah, okay, so maybe I am part hippie you are
part hippie, yes, so what?
Speaker 2 (06:37):
what are some of those things?
Speaker 3 (06:40):
so one of the things that you can do is put out
cornmeal um.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
For what?
Speaker 3 (06:47):
for ants?
Okay, ants will take thecornmeal and ingest it, but
ultimately they end up starvingto death.
So they can't digest it andthey can't get any more food in
their stomach because they'vegot the cornmeal.
So they end up dying.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
Okay, that sounds painful, but it's ants, but it's
an ant Okay.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
Yeah, so that's one way.
Another way I've done is I'vetaken honey and I've mixed borax
in it and I put it in an areawhere I make sure other little
critters can't get to it and Ilet the little ants eat it, and
that is essentially killing thethe nest.
Then they take that back to thenest and they ingest the borax
(07:30):
and the borax kills them isthere a ratio for that?
Speaker 2 (07:33):
can you have too much borax?
I know termites.
If you.
This is why you do yourselfpest treatment.
If you're treating termites,you have to follow the
instructions, because if you puttoo much of the pesticide, the
termites are gonna go.
Nope, I ain't touching that.
There's something funky with it.
I'm leaving alone.
Is there a ratio with the borax?
Speaker 3 (07:52):
I just sprinkle a little bit in.
There probably is a recipesomewhere online.
Just look up honey, borax,treatment for ants, and that'll
probably get it to you.
I just put a little bit in.
I I mean I don't make a hugeamount, like it's barely enough
to heat up on the stove, and Iput the borax in and just just
enough to to melt it in thehoney, and then you put a little
(08:15):
bit of borax in and I make sureit's all right, I see, I think
I've seen it.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
It's like maybe a quarter cup of honey if that,
and maybe just like maybe half ateaspoon of borax if that.
So it's not much now there's.
There's nothing diatomaceousearth I love diatomaceous earth.
This is your favorite one thisis well, there's two.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
There's two that are my favorite and I've used them
in conjunction for years.
So the first one isdiatomaceous earth and basically
what that is is ground upseashells.
So it's very small, almost sandlike, but it has very jagged
edges because it's seashells andbasically what that does is the
bug will crawl across it and itputs a crack in their
(08:58):
exoskeleton and they basicallyjust dehydrate.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
So that's what was like a microscopic little
critter and that's theexoskeleton of like little, tiny
sea creature.
Speaker 3 (09:08):
Yep Right and it just puts a hole in their
exoskeleton.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Interesting Diatomaceous earth.
You don't want to breathe inthe powder because it will
irritate your lungs, but you cantouch it, you can eat.
They make it food grade.
You can eat it.
They're now supposed to behealthy for you to consume.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
I buy food grade and I sprinkle it on cat food and it
helps treat worms, because itdoes the same thing in the
intestines.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
It puts a cut in the critter's system yeah and they
end up dying and dehydrating soit'd be a good preventative as
well as well and then anotherthing I use is um nematodes.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
now I know you're all thinking spongebob and the
nematodes.
Now I know you're all thinkingSpongebob and the nematodes come
running through and eateverything I do remember the
Girls Are Little.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
There was a Spongebob episode where nematodes came
across Bikini Bottom and justsee like little.
They look like little wormsjust bouncing and just consuming
everything in their pathway.
Yes, so what really arenematodes?
Do they look like littleworm-like?
Speaker 3 (10:13):
I don't know.
They're like micro, so I get itin like a powder and I get
three different kinds ofnematodes, because each kind of
nematode but they're microscopic.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Yeah, they're microscopic.
There's no way we can see them.
They're microscopic.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
They're in like a powder, and then you mix the
powder with water and then youspray it over the area.
So what?
Each nematode?
Wait, wait, wait, directly onthe ground.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
But what?
Each nematode?
Wait, wait, wait.
Directly on the ground.
Yeah, directly on the groundYou're talking about soil, not
inside the house.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
No on the soil Okay.
So what you do is you've gotthree different types of
nematodes and you can go onAmazon and you can look this up
and I always get the one thathas all three in it.
We used to have a horribleproblem with Japanese beetles
(10:59):
and we also have cats outside sowe had problems with fleas.
So I have treated using thenematodes.
For years now.
I haven't seen a japanesebeetle.
What five years, maybe it'sbeen a long time since we've had
.
It's been a long time so thenematode?
Speaker 2 (11:12):
what do they do in the soil?
Speaker 3 (11:13):
they will attack the larva in the soil and basically
kill them as they're gestatingand growing and then that way
they don't become bugs and itbreaks the life cycle so
nematodes go against fleas ticks, japanese beetles, what pretty
(11:34):
much name it.
Speaker 2 (11:35):
What else but?
Speaker 3 (11:36):
each.
Each type of nematode goesafter specific types of bugs, so
that's why you need to look andsee what each type of nematode
does and what you want it for.
I get all three because we havea bunch of different bugs
around here and especially atour property.
I've been doing all threebecause we want to take care of
(11:57):
fleas, we want to take care ofticks, we want to take care of
you know, there's a bunch ofants.
There's been a bunch of otherthings that we've tried to get
rid of.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
It's the woods, it's the woods, but we don't want
those next to the house or thecampsites, but we don't want
them next to the house.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
We don't want them next to the campsites.
I've kind of been concentratingthem and there's been a
difference.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
Oh yeah, now my understanding is you can treat
with the nematodes and and theyspread each year.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
They don't die.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
But they last several years.
Speaker 3 (12:25):
Oh, they multiply.
Like once you put them in, theywill continue to multiply.
But what I do is each year I'llgo and I'll seed out farther
from where I did the year beforeand I kind of give them a
little boost and I let themexpand their territory and it's
worked great.
Speaker 2 (12:43):
Now the nematodes.
Do they harm any beneficialbugs?
Speaker 3 (12:48):
I would imagine that they would not be able to
distinguish between the two.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Okay, so you may want to be careful.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
So that's why I said you need to make sure that when
you read, you read what theyattack and what they're going to
eat.
And do you want that particularbug gone or do you want to keep
that?
And if that's the case, thendon't get that kind of nematode,
get the other ones.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
Yeah, I know you got the ones that target the fleas
and ticks and.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
I get the ones that target the fleas and the ticks.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
And it's made a huge difference.
I don't know any benefit to theworld for fleas and ticks.
Ticks just all need to die.
I hate them.
They are nasty.
But anyway, it is legal forhomeowners to treat their own
house for, you know, any kind ofwood-distorted insect, rare
(13:41):
insects, pests you can treatyourself.
You don't need to getprofessional if you want to save
the money, but if you have abig job it could be worth hiring
somebody to do it.
Go to that.
I think it's Columbus PestControl.
They're out there in West Broad, 1015 or 1510 West Broad For
some of you that don't rememberthat.
They're out there in West Broad, 10-15 or 15-10 West Broad For
some of you that don't rememberthat.
Speaker 3 (14:00):
Well, and here's another idea.
Speaker 2 (14:02):
They can tell you you might want to do this yourself.
It's small enough.
Or they can help you also, orthey can sell you the equipment.
But if it's your house and sayyou're going to need to put the
pesticide into the ground on theof the house, that equipment is
probably not super cheap andthey may go hey, we'll do it for
you and here's the feed.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
you don't have to buy this stuff well, and another
thought I have is at least havethem come out, maybe the first
time, and show you how to treatand then, from there on out, you
know what they did and how theydid it.
Maybe you could rent equipment,maybe you could you know,
whatever, but they would be ableto help you work that out.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah, there probably are other places you can get
your pesticides or treatmentequipment from, I'm sure of it,
but they're just the one thatI'm aware of here in Columbus,
my Columbus area, ohio.
So so I think that's about iton this one.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Yeah, all right.
Nematodes and diatomaceousearth are the best two.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Yeah, and I am Before our new house, before they put
the drywall up, I'm going totake the diatomaceous earth and
I'm going to put that all alongwithin the framing of the walls
Right on the outside.
I'm going to frame all that in.
So if you ever get ants, startfinding little cracks, start
coming underneath they got to goacross that.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
Barrier that barrier.
Speaker 2 (15:20):
And they're not going to like that and they'll
hopefully just back up and go adifferent direction and it won't
work out for them.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
Yeah, I have some left down there now.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
But I am going to be doing that down there as a
preventative.
That's just one of the thingslike a builder's not going to do
that for you.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
No, and I wouldn't expect him to no.
No, but we are going to do thatand we're going to tell our
builder we are dead, that wewere going to be treating for
stuff beforehand, but we'regoing to remind him.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
He's learned all kinds of things.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Yeah, I'm sure he's having a blast.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Oh yeah, so all right , that's it, everybody.
Thank you, have a great week,bye-bye, bye.
Speaker 1 (15:53):
You've been listening to the Standing Out in Ohio
podcast.
Be sure to subscribe on Spotifyor Google Podcasts to get new,
fresh episodes.
For more, please follow us onInstagram, twitter and Facebook,
or visit the website of thebest Ohio home inspection
(16:14):
company athomeinspectionsinohiocom or
jimtroffcom.
That's J-I-M-T-R-O-T-H andclick on podcast.
Until next time, learn and godo stuff.
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