Bora-Care - Questions & Answers

For furniture your options are limited for treatment. If the wood is in its all natural raw state without any stains or finishes on it you can use a product like Boracare. Boracare will absorb all the way into the wood and eliminate any infestation that is there and last for the life of the wood. It does not stain the wood or leave behind any visible residue, but becomes one with the wood and any insect that ingests it dies. If the furniture has a finish on it, you would either have to drill holes throughout it and inject something like the Boracare or a foam, or the option most go with, hire a company to fumigate it.

We recommend doing the treatment with the Fipronil or Altriset first, waiting 90 days and then following up with the Boracare. This will allow the termites to go back to the colony with the active ingredient on their body and pass it around the colony causing the entire colony to collapse. If you treat with Boracare first, you risk only killing the termites present and not getting rid of the entire colony.

Since all surfaces of the wood need to be treated, we would recommend you remove any item that is blocking the application from reaching the wood. You should drill through any layered beam to get the solution all the way to the next beam when necessary.

Subterranean termites and dry wood termites are two very different insects that require two very different treatments. We recommend that you get your termite infestation identified before you select a treatment method to be sure you are choosing the proper treatment method. Here two articles that can help you learn the differences between the two types of termites: Drywood Termites or Subterranean Termites. If you are still unsure after reading the articles you can always call in a professional company. Almost all termite companies will offer a free inspection and they will tell you what type of termites you are dealing with and how they recommend treating for the. At that point you can choose to hire them or do it your self. Termidor SC is the top termite product on the market. Termidor is completely undetectable by termites and once termites touch it they contact, ingest and spread the termiticide until it eliminates the entire colony. Termidor controls all types of termites including Subterranean, Formosan, and Drywood termites though the application method will be different for each type of termite. Both Termidor SC and Bora-Care are able to be shipped to California. We offer fast, free shipping. Please let us know if you need anything else. 866.581.7378

Bora-Care will only work on completely raw natural wood with no stains, paints or finishes on it. If the feet of the furniture are in the natural untreated state, then you can apply Bora-Care to them. You will want to take the furniture outside to treat or put on a surface that will prevent the Bora-Care from getting on other surfaces as the wet version is very thick. Once the application dries into the wood, it will not come out of the wood and get on the carpet and will leave no visible residue on the wood. Only the wet mixture could potentially cause damage to the carpet if sprayed.

If you are dealing with drywood termite the best product for treatment in an attic whether for eliminating a current colony or just as prevention, would be the Boracare. Boracare can be applied with a paint brush or sprayer directly to any raw natural wood surface to protect the surface for the life of the wood. The Boracare will soak in and penetrate the wood to treat it as a whole and will not be removed unless consumed by an insect or the wood itself is removed from the home.

Boracare needs to be mixed and diluted with water no matter how much or little you are using. So if you only need a few ounces, mix 1 or 2 ounces of Boracare with 1 or 2 ounces of hot water. As long as you keep the dilution at the correct rate you can mix up as little or as much as needed. 

No, you cannot save the diluted BORACARE solution. Once mixed, BORACARE should be used within 24 hours or discarded.

We would recommend using Boracare. Apply only to bare wood or to wood surfaces where an intact water repellent or finish is not present. For preventative measures, you will use 5 gallons of very hot water with 1 gallon of Boracare. You can either paint this on or spray it on. Once the product dries, you can do whatever you wanted to do with the fence. We would recommend not spraying when anyone is around. It normally dries within 2-3 hours. Please let us know if you have any additional questions.

Boracare lasts for the life of the wood if it is not exposed to rain, continuous water or ground contact. The amount of time Boracare lasts in the wood will depend upon those factors. There is no specific guarentee because some conditions are more or less favorable than others. In your case, we would recommend using a sealent of some kind after the application of Boracare. Do not expose treated exterior wood surfaces to rain or snow for at least 48 hours after treatment. For longer performance, exterior wood surfaces will require a topcoating with a water-resistant finish such as paint or exterior stain. Apply within 6 weeks of treatment. Boracare must dry completely (at least 48 hours) before applying any protective topcoat. If there is a current infestation, you will do a 1:1 application of Boracare. If this is just for preventative measure, you will do 5:1 application. Make sure the water is very hot when you are spraying it.

Yes, you should cut the wood to the final size before treating with Boracare. You do not want to waste the product on wood that will not be used. Yes, Boracare can be painted on the oak. Yes, you can treat both sides. You will use a 1:1 ratio of Boracare for an active infestation. Once the product is dry, you can do whatever you want with the wood, such as staining it. If you would like to treat the other wood, you can. If you have not seen activity though, it may not be necessary. Let me know if you have any additional questions.

The regular Bora Care will not prevent mold growth. However, the Bora Care with Mold Care will kill and prevent future mold growth on a variety of surfaces including wood, cellulosic drywall (sheetrock), and concrete. You may paint surfaces after you have treated with Bora Care with Mold Care and allowed it to fully dry whichshould take about 72 hours.

We are not very familiar with the process of tenting a home and how it affects the powder post beetles, their larvae thats in the wood, and if it prevents at all or just kills the ones within it. This would be a question you would definitely want to consult with the company that did the treatment on to find out how their treatment was supposed to work for your home. Typically if a customer was not tenting their home and had powder post beetles somewhere within it, you would only treat the wood that has them currently in it with a product like Boracare. Boracare is a wood treatment product that will absorb all the way into the wood and will kill any insects that are currently infesting it as well as last for the life of the wood to protect it from any future wood destroying insects like powder post beetles and termites. Boracare must be applied to raw wood only though so you cannot apply it to any beams or wood that has been painted, stained or finished in any way as it will not soak into the wood. If the wood you need to treat has paint or some finish on it, you would either need to remove it by stripping it or sanding it and apply the Boracare to the raw wood before refinishing it, or use a product like Jecta which is for sealed wood and is drilled and injected into the wood. Even after applying a product like Boracare to all sides of the infested raw wood (ideal situation) you can often still see signs of activity of the powder post beetles for a few years after treatment. This is because the product works through ingestion so as the larvae emerge from the wood (which is whenever they are good and ready) they eat the wood on their way out and ingest it and die. No new adults will be able to leave them in any holes in the wood as again, once they ingest it they will die. Normally tenting is used when the whole home is so infested with Powder Post Beetles that treating with products like Boracare and Jecta would be unreasonable. Please review over our article on treating for Powder Post Beetles and let us know if you have any questions.

Currently, Bora-Care is only offered in a gallon size concentrated container.

Boracare is specifically designed to be applied to plywood and any other raw wood surface that hasn't been stained or finished with anything like paint or a sealant. 

This could be numerous types of wood destroying insects. We would recommend to apply Boracare to the wood very directly with a paint brush.

Yes, BoraCare may be used on wood that is currently and/or previously infested by termites. Please read the product label for complete use instructions.

No, Boracare is not labeled for carpenter bees.

For carpenter bees, we would recommend using our Carpenter Bee Kit. It has everything inside of it to do a complete treatment for bees.

Please also check out our Carpenter Bee Guide for wonderful tips on how to treat and prevent them in the future.

Boracare will not be absorbed into wood that is stained or treated. If the wood is stripped down to the bare, exposed wood, then you could apply Boracare before re-painting or re-staining the wood. If this is not possible, then you may want to consider having a local pest control company fumigating the piece of furniture to kill any existing insects in it.

No Bora-Care,  like any other borate product, cannot be used on trees or plants.  It is for cut lumber only.  Borates will kill any living plant, shrub, grass or tree.  Termites do not attack live, healthy trees.  If you have termites in a tree you would need to treat the nest directly by drilling holes into the dead parts of the tree where the colony is infested.  This can be done with something like Dominion 2L.  Most people are primarily concerned with protecting the big investment, their home, and Dominion or or Termidor would be the best product to use for that.  Termidor is the top product and can last 10 years in the soil, whereas Dominion will only last 5-7 years.  It is only labeled to be used adjacent to the structure, though.

We sell the product Boracare and are happy to assist you with ordering and using that product. We are unable to offer advice on how to create or manufacture chemicals.