McAllen Construction Pre-Treatment Services

Building It Right From the Ground Up—Termite Protection That Starts Before Day One

Most people don’t think about termites until they see damage. But here’s the reality in the Rio Grande Valley—termites start exploring your construction site the day you break ground. Fresh lumber on a work site? That’s a termite buffet. Wood framing going up? They’re already tunneling toward it. By the time you’re hanging drywall, colonies could be establishing themselves inside your brand new walls.

Colco Pest and Weed Control provides construction pre-treatment services that protect your new build before termites ever become a problem. We treat the soil before your slab gets poured and create protective barriers during construction—so you’re starting with protection built in, not waiting to see if you’ll need it later.

Building new? Call 956-777-6328 to schedule pre-treatment while you can still access the soil.

Why Pre-Treatment Matters in the Rio Grande Valley

The Valley isn’t just termite-friendly—it’s termite heaven:

No Winter Break: Up north, termites slow down or die off when temperatures drop. Here? Our “winter” barely hits 50°F. Termites stay active year-round, which means your construction site is vulnerable from groundbreaking through final inspection and beyond.

Disturbed Soil Creates Desperate Colonies: When you excavate for construction, you’re breaking up established termite colonies that were living in that soil. These displaced termites don’t just leave—they immediately start searching for new food sources. Your fresh lumber and wood framing become the closest meal available.

Soil Moisture Never Quits: Between our humidity, irrigation systems everywhere, and soil that holds moisture well, subterranean termites thrive in Valley soil. They don’t have to work hard to find the moisture they need—it’s always available.

Fresh Lumber Attracts Termites Fast: New construction lumber has moisture content and natural compounds that termites find irresistible. Untreated wood sitting on a work site for weeks becomes infested before your walls are even closed up.

Pre-Treatment Costs Less Than Fixing Later: Treating soil before you pour concrete costs a few hundred to maybe a thousand dollars depending on size. Treating an existing home with termite damage? You’re looking at thousands for treatment plus repairs. Prevention is always the cheaper option.

Your Warranty Probably Requires It: Most comprehensive termite warranties start with pre-treatment documentation. Without it, you either can’t get coverage or you’re limited to basic plans that don’t offer much protection.

Some Lenders Require It: If you’re using FHA or VA financing in a termite-prone area (which we absolutely are), pre-treatment documentation might be required. Even if it’s not mandatory for your loan, it’s smart protection for your investment.

How Construction Pre-Treatment Actually Works

Phase 1: Pre-Pour Soil Treatment

Before your concrete slab gets poured, we treat every inch of soil that’ll be covered by concrete. This creates a chemical barrier in the ground that termites can’t detect. When they tunnel through treated soil looking for food, they pick up the product and either die or—more importantly—they carry it back to their colony and eliminate the entire population.

What we treat:

• The entire footprint where your slab will sit
• Around every plumbing penetration and bath trap
• Foundation perimeter trenches
• Any area where soil meets concrete

This is your primary protection layer. Once that slab is poured, you can’t access this soil again without drilling through concrete later—which is expensive and gives you incomplete coverage.

Phase 2: Post-Pour Perimeter Treatment

After the slab cures and your foundation is set, we treat around the entire outside perimeter. This creates an exterior barrier that stops termites from accessing your structure through foundation edges, expansion joints, or anywhere concrete meets soil.

What we treat:

• Complete foundation perimeter
• Every pipe and utility entry point
• Expansion joints
• Foundation wall penetrations
• All areas where termites could bridge from soil to structure

Phase 3: Documentation and Final Inspection

We provide complete documentation of every treatment application:

• Exact treatment dates and timing
• Products used with application rates
• Every area treated with measurements
• Square footage covered
• Treatment zone diagrams

This documentation matters for building inspections, warranty activation, lender requirements, and future homeowner records. Keep it with your closing documents.

Timing Matters—When Treatment Happens

Getting the timing right is critical for effective protection:

Before Slab Pour: Soil treatment happens after your site is graded and utility rough-in is complete, but before concrete trucks show up. We coordinate directly with your contractor to hit the right window. Miss this window and you’re stuck with drilling through concrete later.

After Slab, Before Framing: Perimeter treatment typically happens after your slab cures but before framing starts. This is usually the cleanest time to work—the site is open, there’s no construction debris in the way, and we can access everything easily.

During Construction: If you’re building with a crawl space, basement (rare here but they exist), or pier-and-beam foundation, treatment happens at multiple phases during construction.

Final Treatment: We do a final perimeter treatment and inspection after construction is substantially complete but before landscaping goes in. This ensures complete protection and gives us a chance to catch any areas that need attention.

We stay flexible with your construction schedule. Give us 24-48 hours notice and we’ll coordinate timing to keep your project moving without delays.

Types of Construction We Treat

Residential Construction:

• Single-family homes
• Townhomes and duplexes
• Apartment and condo buildings
• Manufactured home installations
• Additions and room expansions

Commercial Construction:

• Office buildings
• Retail centers
• Warehouses and industrial facilities
• Schools and educational buildings
• Medical facilities
• Restaurants and food service buildings

Agricultural Structures:

• Packing houses
• Storage facilities
• Processing buildings

What Products We Use

We use professional-grade termiticides that are specifically labeled and approved for pre-construction treatment:

Non-Repellent Formulas: These products are completely undetectable to termites. They can’t smell it, taste it, or avoid it. Termites tunnel right through treated soil, pick up the product, and carry it back to their colony. This doesn’t just kill individual termites—it eliminates entire colonies.

Long-Term Protection: The products we apply provide 5-10 years of protection when properly applied to soil before concrete covers it. This isn’t a spray-and-pray situation—it’s long-lasting prevention.

Construction-Safe: All products are safe for construction workers and future occupants once applied and dried according to label instructions.

EPA Registered for Texas Use: We only use products that are registered with the EPA and approved for use in Texas. Everything is above board and properly documented.

Why Pre-Treatment Beats Retrofitting Every Time

You Get Complete Coverage: When we treat before construction, we can access 100% of the soil under your slab. Every square inch gets treated uniformly. Retrofitting an existing home means drilling holes through concrete every few feet and injecting treatment—you never get complete coverage because there are gaps between drill points where termites can potentially slip through.

It Costs Way Less: Pre-treatment for a typical home runs a few hundred to maybe a thousand dollars depending on size. Retrofitting an existing structure? You’re paying for drilling through concrete, moving furniture, potential interior disruption, and you still don’t get as good coverage. Pre-treatment costs a fraction of what treatment costs later.

Better Protection from Day One: Treating soil before it’s covered creates a uniform protective barrier with no gaps. Retrofit treatments have spacing between drill points—termites are good at finding gaps.

Peace of Mind Built In: You’re not waiting and wondering if termites will show up. You’re not hoping your home stays termite-free. The protection is already working from the day you move in.

Warranty Eligibility: Most comprehensive termite warranties require pre-treatment documentation as a starting point. Without it, your coverage options are limited or nonexistent. Start with pre-treatment and you can get full warranty protection.

What Builders and Contractors Need to Know

We Work with Your Schedule: Give us 24-48 hours notice and we’ll coordinate treatment timing to fit your construction schedule without causing delays. We understand you’re juggling subcontractors, inspections, and deadlines—we work around that.

Weather Matters: Soil treatment needs dry conditions. If rain hits within 24 hours of treatment, it can wash product away before it bonds with soil. We monitor weather forecasts and will reschedule if conditions aren’t right. Better to wait a day than compromise treatment effectiveness.

Site Needs to Be Ready: We need clear access to treatment areas. Excavation should be complete, forms in place for slab pours, and work areas ready for application. If the site’s not ready, we can’t treat effectively.

Inspector Coordination: If building inspectors need to verify pre-treatment, we provide all required documentation and can be present during inspection if needed. We’ve worked with every inspector in the Valley—we know what they’re looking for.

Multi-Unit Projects: Building apartments, townhomes, or multiple units? We can schedule treatment in phases as each building section reaches the appropriate stage. We’ve handled subdivision developments with dozens of homes—we know how to coordinate large-scale projects.

What Homeowners Gain from Pre-Treatment

You Save Thousands Long-Term: Pre-treatment adds maybe 0.1-0.3% to your total construction cost. That’s nothing compared to the tens of thousands you could spend repairing termite damage later. It’s cheap insurance on a major investment.

Warranty Protection from Day One: Pre-treatment documentation lets you activate comprehensive termite warranties that provide ongoing inspections, retreatment if needed, and sometimes even damage repair coverage. Without pre-treatment, you can’t get these warranties.

Higher Resale Value: When you sell, pre-treatment documentation with active warranty coverage is attractive to buyers and adds value during appraisal. It shows you protected the home from day one.

No Drilling Through Your New Floors Later: You won’t need someone drilling holes through your concrete slab for termite treatment five years down the road. The protection is already built in.

Actual Peace of Mind: You’re not lying awake wondering if termites are eating your brand new home. The protection is working 24/7 from the moment you move in.

Valley-Specific Construction Challenges We Handle

High Water Tables in Some Areas: Parts of the Valley have high water tables that affect how termiticide behaves in soil. We adjust application rates and methods based on your specific site conditions.

Sandy Loam Soil Characteristics: Our soil drains well, which is good for construction but means termiticide can move more than in clay soils. We use products specifically formulated for our soil types and adjust application accordingly.

Irrigation System Timing: If you’re installing irrigation post-construction, we coordinate timing so trenching and installation doesn’t disrupt the termite barrier we’ve created.

Slab-on-Grade Standard Construction: Almost every home in the Valley is built slab-on-grade. This makes pre-pour soil treatment absolutely critical—there’s zero access to soil after that concrete is poured. Miss the pre-treatment window and you’re stuck with expensive drilling later.

Former Agricultural Land: Many new construction sites in the Valley are converted farmland or citrus groves. These sites often have established termite colonies that were living in that soil before development. This requires more aggressive pre-treatment than treating virgin land.

Year-Round Construction Season: We build year-round here because weather allows it. That also means termites are active during construction in December just like they are in July. There’s no “safe” season—protection matters regardless of when you build.

Pre-Treatment Process Step-by-Step

Step 1: Site Evaluation
We visit the construction site to evaluate soil conditions, drainage, and treatment requirements based on building plans.

Step 2: Coordination with Builder
We coordinate with your contractor or builder to schedule treatment at the appropriate construction phase.

Step 3: Pre-Treatment Application
We apply termiticide to soil under slab footprint, around plumbing, and in all required areas per label instructions and building codes.

Step 4: Documentation
We provide detailed documentation of treatment including products used, application rates, areas covered, and treatment date.

Step 5: Post-Pour Perimeter Treatment
After concrete cures, we treat the exterior foundation perimeter to complete the protective barrier.

Step 6: Final Inspection
We conduct final inspection and provide complete treatment records for your files.

What Pre-Treatment Actually Costs

Cost depends on several factors:

• Square footage of your structure
• Foundation type (slab, pier-and-beam, crawl space)
• Site accessibility and soil conditions
• Product requirements based on soil type
• Any special conditions or challenges

Most residential pre-treatments run from a few hundred dollars for smaller homes up to around a thousand for larger structures. This typically works out to 0.1-0.3% of your total construction cost—basically nothing compared to your overall investment.

Commercial and multi-unit projects are quoted based on specific requirements.

Call us at 956-777-6328 for a quote based on your construction plans. We’ll need square footage and basic building plans to give you accurate pricing.

FHA and VA Loan Requirements

If you’re using FHA or VA financing, check with your lender about pre-treatment requirements. Some loans in termite-prone areas (which South Texas absolutely is) require termite inspections and may require pre-treatment documentation for new construction.

Even if your lender doesn’t require it, most buyers using these loans will want to see pre-treatment documentation because it protects their investment and makes the home easier to insure and resell later.

We provide all documentation needed for lender requirements, insurance applications, and closing records. Keep this documentation with your home records—you’ll need it for warranty activation and future resale.

Warranty Options After Pre-Treatment

Starting with pre-treatment makes you eligible for comprehensive termite warranties including:

• Annual inspections to monitor for any termite activity
• Retreatment coverage if termites appear during the warranty period
• Damage repair coverage on certain warranty levels
• Transferable protection that adds value when you sell

Without pre-treatment documentation, you’re limited to basic plans that don’t offer much. Start right and you can get full protection.

Ask us about warranty options when scheduling pre-treatment: 956-777-6328

Working with Developers and Production Builders

Building multiple homes or an entire subdivision? We handle large-scale projects regularly:

Multi-Unit Scheduling: We coordinate treatment across multiple units, buildings, or phases without holding up your construction timeline.

Phase-by-Phase Treatment: As each section of your development reaches the right construction stage, we’re ready to treat.

Volume Pricing: Multi-unit and subdivision projects get volume pricing that makes sense for your budget.

Documentation Management: We track and provide documentation for every unit—organized, complete, and ready for inspections and closing.

Inspector Coordination: We work with building inspectors across multiple properties and know exactly what documentation they need to see.

We’ve worked with production builders throughout the Valley on projects ranging from duplexes to 50+ home subdivisions. We know how to coordinate with your schedule and keep things moving.

Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late

The absolute best time to protect your new construction from termites is during construction—not after. Once that concrete slab is poured, your options are limited and expensive. Once those walls are closed up, treatment becomes complicated and invasive.

Pre-treatment is your chance to build protection in from the foundation up. It costs less, works better, and gives you peace of mind from day one.

Call Colco at 956-777-6328 to schedule construction pre-treatment service. We’ll coordinate with your builder, treat at the right construction phases, and provide complete documentation for your records.

Areas We Serve

• McAllen
• Mission
• Edinburg
• Pharr
• Palmview
• Alamo
• Alton
• And all surrounding Rio Grande Valley communities

Monday through Saturday, 8 AM to 8 PM. Let’s build your termite protection from the ground up—the right way, the first time.