Termite barriers for existing homes and new builds

A termite barrier is a treated or physical zone around and under a building that termites cannot cross without being seen or killed. Older Byron Bay houses usually get a chemical soil barrier dug or injected around the walls; new homes and extensions have a system designed in at the building stage. Any barrier installed after an enquiry here is quoted and installed by an independent local pest or building business, not by this website.

This page is about prevention. If termites are already eating the house, the colony has to be dealt with first, which is covered on the termite treatment page. The yearly check that keeps a barrier working is on termite inspections.

What kinds of termite barrier are there?

Barrier	How it is put in	Usual use	What to know
Chemical soil barrier, trenched	A trench is dug against the foundations, the soil treated and put back	Existing homes with garden beds or bare soil around them	Lasts a set number of years and then needs renewing
Chemical soil barrier, injected or reticulated	Treatment is pushed under paths and slabs through drilled holes, or through a pipe network laid under the paving for later top-ups	Existing homes with concrete paths and paving close to the walls	Reticulation lets the barrier be refilled without drilling again
Physical barrier	hipages mentions stainless steel mesh or crushed rock installed during new construction or major renovation	New homes and extensions	Designed in by the builder; has to be kept visible and undisturbed
Dual-purpose moisture and termite membrane	A sheet under or around the slab that also contains a termiticide	New slabs	Installer may be licensed under the Home Building Act 1989 rather than by the EPA

Bait stations are the other main option for long-term protection. Comparing them with a soil barrier is done on the baiting versus chemical barrier page, so this page sticks to barriers.

How long does a chemical barrier last, and what does it cost?

hipages says chemical treatment barriers typically last 5 to 8 years and puts the cost for an average home at $2,000 to $3,500 per home as a national average in its 2026 termite cost guide. That range is not a quote for your house. Paths, decks and the length of wall that has to be treated change the price, and the Byron Bay pest control cost guide explains what else moves a quote.

Byron Shire Council’s sample Termite Risk Management Notice has a line for life expectancy and marks it as applying to chemical barriers only. When a provider installs one, ask them to fill in the expected life on the notice so the renewal date is written down.

What is the Termite Risk Management Notice for?

The council’s sample notice is headed as made under Part 3.1.3.2 of the Building Code of Australia. It records the termite management method, the installation date, the chemical barrier’s life expectancy and the installer or builder. The council asks owners to protect it with plastic or lamination and put it where people will find it, giving the meter box and a kitchen cupboard as examples.

The notice also carries a warning that matters to every owner: disturbing or covering the treated soil in contact with the building, or its attachments, may leave it open to termite attack.

How is a chemical barrier put in around an existing house?

The steps vary with the house and the product, but a typical job runs like this:

1. Inspection first. The provider checks for live termites, because a barrier is not a treatment for a colony already inside.
2. Measure and plan. They work out the length of wall to treat and where paths, steps and tanks sit against it.
3. Trench the soil areas. Garden edges against the house are dug out to the depth the product label requires.
4. Drill the hard areas. Concrete and paving next to the walls is drilled so treatment can reach the soil underneath.
5. Apply the treatment to the soil at the label rate, then backfill the trenches and patch the drill holes.
6. Paperwork. The provider records the product, the date and the expected life, and updates the notice.

Ask how long the treated soil must stay undisturbed afterwards, and keep the pets and children away from open trenches while the work is under way.

What breaks a termite barrier?

The council notice’s warning about disturbed or covered soil usually comes true through ordinary home projects carried out after the barrier goes in:

• A new path or patio laid over treated soil against the wall, which covers the barrier and gives termites a hidden route
• Garden beds and mulch built up against the house above the treated zone; hipages suggests keeping them at least 15 cm from the foundation
• A new deck or carport fixed to the house with posts in untreated soil
• Plumbing or drainage trenches dug through the treated zone and backfilled with fresh soil
• Timber fences, sleepers or stored timber leaning on the walls
• Rendering or cladding that hides the slab edge or the line a physical barrier relies on being able to see

If you are planning landscaping or an extension, talk to the provider before the work starts. Our termite prevention checklist covers the garden and moisture jobs an owner can handle without a technician.

Who sets the termite system for a new home or extension?

For new building work, the Building Code of Australia sets termite management requirements, and AS 3660.1, Termite management, Part 1: New building work, covers the design and construction of those systems. The builder and the certifier decide what is installed and check it at the right stage of construction. A pest controller can install a chemical or physical system as part of that, but the choice is not made by the pest controller alone.

For houses already standing, the relevant standard is AS 3660.2, Termite management, Part 2: In and around existing buildings and structures. A provider quoting a barrier around an existing home should be able to tell you how their method follows it.

Who needs a licence to install a barrier?

The NSW EPA sets out three cases on its pest management licence page:

1. Installing a termite barrier that does not contain pesticides needs no EPA licence.
2. A dual-purpose moisture and termite barrier that contains pesticides needs no EPA licence if the installer is already licensed for it under the Home Building Act 1989.
3. A chemical soil barrier uses pesticide to control timber pests, so the technician needs the EPA timber pest management licence.

For case 3, search the technician on the EPA public register before you sign. The about page shows how.

What will the provider check before quoting?

Expect questions or a site visit covering:

• slab on ground or a raised floor with a subfloor
• the length of wall with concrete paths or paving right against it
• whether there is an existing reticulation system, and where its filling points are
• whether a previous barrier exists and when it was installed
• garden beds, water tanks and decks attached to the house
• any planned extension or landscaping in the next year or two

A clear quote lists the method, the product, the areas treated, how the paving will be drilled and patched if needed, and the expected life of the barrier. If you already know the answers to the list above, put them in a barrier enquiry for your house so the provider can price the job with fewer questions.

Is Lennox Head handled any differently?

Lennox Head sits in Ballina Shire, not Byron Shire, so the sample notice on this page is Byron Shire Council’s form and a Lennox Head house may have different paperwork. Ask the builder, certifier or provider which notice applies to your property. The Lennox Head area page covers that town in more detail.

Next step: get a barrier quote

Ask for a termite barrier quote and tell the provider whether the house is slab or raised floor, how much concrete paving runs against the walls, and whether a reticulation system or older barrier is already there. Mention any landscaping or extension you have planned, and attach a photo of the Termite Risk Management Notice if you have one.

Send a job enquiry