Your B&G Termite Rods - 5 Tips to Reduce Problems & Extend Termite Rod Life

B&G termite rods are the industry standard termite injection tools. These tools are not cheap.  Our termite equipment repair shop sees lots of problems with termite tools, many of them are avoidable.

Here are 5 tips to ensure you continue getting your money’s worth.

1. Clean threads on tip and rod to remove grit and extend tool life.

    Periodically remove the tip and clean the threads with a soft cloth to remove grit.  Over time this grit will damage threads and eventually either the tip won't go in or it won't come out. Try to get the corner of the cloth into the end of the termite rod to clean it out as well.

2. Hand tighten tip before putting tip in the ground. 

This will ensure you don’t leave the tip stuck in the ground.  We sell lots of replacement termite rod tips to customers who lose tips that are stuck a foot in the ground. Make sure to tighten your termite rod tips so you don't waste money on a new tip.  Conversely, it is worth keeping an extra tip on hand in case you do have a problem.  An extra termite tip is much cheaper than a missed appointment or a drive to the shop.

3. Periodically tighten sprayer valve nuts and screws to prevent loss

Most B&G Termite Rod valves have a number of parts including screws and nuts.  This is another way to waste money.  We sell lots of termite rod nuts and bolts because these parts come loose and get lost.  Perioidcally check them to make sure they are tight.  Another thought is to standardize around one particular termite rod and stock the replacement parts, or an extra rod so that if you do have a problem, you are down for an hour, not a week.

4. Flush tools with clean water to help reduce residue buildup in tools.

This applies all pest & termite spray equipment.  Run clean water through your system to clean it out and prevent chemical build up.  Periodically empty your spray tank and check if for debris.  A little debris in your spray equipment or spray tip will cause downtime.

5. Periodically take valve apart and clean seat and other key parts.

Noone likes doing Preventative Maintenance (PM) but it is necessary.  Eventually your termite equipment will need service.  If you do PM, you get to pick when the equipment is down.  If you don't do PM, your equipment will decide when to fail and I promise it will be on your busiest day when you can least afford it.

Note to Landscape Professionals doing deep root fertilization - these 5 tips also apply to your deep root injection tools.

I hope this helps.

Please check out all of Qspray's huge inventory of  termite equipment.

We not only stock the equipment but also the hard to find termite parts & repair kits.

Note: This is an update of a blog post from 2011.