Termite treatment begins with finding the tubes. Desert subterranean termites build mud tubes up the stem wall, through the garage expansion joint, around plumbing penetrations under sinks and tubs, and up the inside of block walls behind drywall. The technician probes the stem wall, checks the garage slab joint, taps baseboards, looks behind the water heater and under bath traps, and checks the exterior where soil or stucco meets the slab. Live workers in a tube confirm activity. Old dry tubes with no workers mean a past problem and the question becomes whether it was treated and whether a TARF is on file with the state.
Arizona is one of the highest termite pressure regions in the country. Desert subterranean termites are everywhere in the low desert from Yuma to the Phoenix metro to Tucson, foraging under slabs where the soil stays damp from irrigation and pool overflow. Nearly every house is slab on grade with stucco over foam or block, so the entry point is the gap between slab and stucco, the expansion joint in the garage, and any plumbing penetration. Flood irrigated lots in central Phoenix and older Mesa and Tempe neighborhoods keep the soil wet and the colonies large. New construction in Buckeye, Goodyear, Queen Creek and San Tan Valley raises pretreatment and builder warranty questions. Flagstaff and the high country see far less subterranean pressure and more drywood termites in older wood framed homes.
Termite work in Arizona is regulated. The company holds an Arizona Department of Agriculture Pest Management Division license, the applicator is licensed, and every termite treatment is reported to the state on a Termite Action Report Form, the TARF, within the required window. The TARF records the address, product, method, linear feet treated and date, and becomes the record a future inspector or buyer looks up. Liquid treatments use a non repellent termiticide such as fipronil applied in a trench along the foundation at the label rate, with holes drilled through garage slabs, patios and walkways at set spacing and rodded to reach the soil under the concrete. Bait stations go in where trenching is not practical, on a monitoring schedule. Nothing is applied inside living spaces beyond foam into wall voids where tubes were found.
The edge cases matter. A house with a slab that was poured over a previous slab, a stem wall with a brick ledge, a room addition on a separate footing, or an attached patio cover on its own pad each creates a gap the trench does not reach without drilling. Drip irrigation running against the foundation, a hose bib that leaks, or a pool deck that slopes toward the house keeps soil wet and shortens the life of any treatment. A treatment done by a previous company with no TARF on file cannot be verified and usually has no warranty behind it. Spot treating one tube and leaving the rest of the foundation untreated sends the colony around the corner. Pretreatment on a new slab has to happen before the vapor barrier and pour, so it is scheduled with the builder, not after.
Technician insight
The most common thing that undoes a termite job in Arizona is drip irrigation running along the foundation. The emitters keep a 2 foot strip of soil wet all summer, the termiticide breaks down faster in wet soil, and the colony is drawn right to the treated zone. Moving the drip line 18 inches off the stem wall is the cheapest thing a homeowner can do to make a treatment last.
Mud Tubes Found Behind a Garage Water Heater
A 1990s stucco home with mud tubes coming up the garage expansion joint behind the water heater and a second tube inside the wall under the kitchen sink. The full perimeter was trenched, the garage slab and back patio were drilled and rodded, foam went into the kitchen wall void, and the drip line along the back wall was flagged for the homeowner to move. The TARF was filed the same week. At the follow up the tubes were dry and empty.
Termite Treatment Services We Offer
✓Liquid Termiticide Trench and Treat
A full perimeter trench along the foundation filled with a non repellent termiticide at label rate, the standard treatment for an active subterranean infestation on a slab home.
✓Foundation Drilling and Rodding
Drilling through garage slabs, patios, walkways and stem walls at set spacing and rodding termiticide into the soil beneath, where a trench cannot reach.
✓Termite Bait Station System
In ground bait stations placed and monitored around the property, used where trenching is impractical or the owner prefers a bait program.
✓Slab Pretreatment for New Construction
Soil treatment under a new slab before the pour, coordinated with the builder and documented for the warranty and the TARF.
✓Spot and Foam Treatment of Active Tubes
Foam into wall voids and around plumbing penetrations where live tubes were found, done alongside the perimeter treatment, not instead of it.
✓Termite Warranty and Retreatment
Annual reinspection under a written warranty, with retreatment of any new activity covered by the terms set out before the first job.
✓Drywood Termite Treatment
Localized treatment of drywood galleries in older wood framed homes, common in Flagstaff, Prescott and older Tucson houses, where subterranean methods do not apply.
How it works
- 1
Inspection and Tube Mapping
The technician locates every tube, confirms live activity, measures the linear feet of foundation, and notes slabs, patios and additions that will need drilling. Existing TARF records are checked.
- 2
Written Treatment Plan
You get the method, product, linear feet, drill locations, the warranty terms, and the price in writing before any work starts.
- 3
Treatment Day
Trenching, drilling and rodding are done in one visit on most homes, usually 3 to 6 hours. Drill holes are patched. Foam is applied where tubes were found inside. Tubes are left in place until the follow up so activity can be checked.
- 4
TARF Filing and Follow Up
The TARF is filed with the Arizona Department of Agriculture and you get a copy with the warranty. A follow up visit confirms the tubes are dead and the treatment is holding.
Pricing
Termite treatment is priced by the linear feet of foundation, how much concrete has to be drilled, whether there are additions or patios on separate footings, the product used, and whether a bait system is chosen instead of liquid. A 1,400 square foot slab home with no patio is a very different job from a 3,200 square foot home with a wraparound patio and a pool deck against the house. The number is written down before work starts, and there is no charge for the inspection that produces it.