General Pest Control
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General Pest Control
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If you're concerned about pests and are looking to find a way of controlling them in your home, you do have the option of trying to manage the pest control yourself. However, unless you want to take the time to train yourself about the various pests and their breeding cycles, feeding habits, environmental preferences, etc., and the most effective treatment for each and how to safely handle some of the products used, it probably makes sense to hire a professional pest control company.
This short guide was created to help you understand the basics of pest control and how to find the best pest control service for your needs. We do not sell any pest control services ourselves, so you can be assured that all of the information in this guide is independent and unbiased.
Background on pest control Regardless of how clean or new your home is, your home is not immune to pest infestation. Pests such as termites, roaches, ants, beetles, spiders, earwigs, bees, ticks, rodents and other pests can be drawn to your home by the prospect of food, warmth and shelter. Some pests are merely annoying, but some can carry disease (rats), while others are poisonous (certain types of spiders), and termites can eat through your very home and cause thousands of dollars and more in damage.
With the exception of Alaska, every state in the US has termites. Termites infest about one million homes and cause over one billion dollars in damage annually. In addition, most homeowner's insurance policies do not cover repairs due to termite damage. The problem with termites is that you can't always see termites because they feed undetected. Termites attack the wood in your home from the inside out, and infestations can go undiscovered until the wood is almost completely destroyed.
Important features of pest control services Pest control services are specially trained based on your geographic area, and will have a good understanding of the local pest threats and how to treat them. Most pest control services are designed around a three-tiered pest control strategy- outside the home, entryways, and inside the home.
Outside Home Pest control companies will control pests outside your home by a combination of liquid treatment, dusting, baiting and monitoring. These methods are designed to detect pest activity; once activity is detected, poisoned bait is placed in the monitoring stations where it is ingested by the pests and carried back to the pest colony to be 'shared' with other pests.
Entryways Entryway barriers are created and reinforced around your home from pests with a combination of sealants, such as foam and borate treatments, as well as liquid treatments. These physical and chemical barriers are placed in voids and cracks in exterior walls, under slabs and settlement cracks, around pipes and other potential entry points to prevent pests from entering the home.
Inside Home Inside the home, pests are controlled with a combination of liquid and powder treatment. The pest control company will apply a targeted treatment inside the cracks, crevices and voids inside the home. Depending on the area of the home, baits may be used in lieu of chemicals.
The best pest control services will do a thorough inspection of your home and lawn to determine the right treatment plan for your situation. The pest control technician should then explain this plan to you clearly so that you understand the current and potential pest threats. Once treatment is agreed upon, the technician will start by targeting the pests that are currently living inside your home, and then will apply the appropriate pest control methods outside your home to prevent further infestation. The technician may also recommend a maintenance plan that will keep the pest control methods up-to-date and effective.
How to find the best pest control service for you Shopping for a pest control service online is a great way to research and compare several pest control companies to make sure you find one that will work for you. However, finding the best pest control service for you might take some effort and focus on your part. Unlike the majority of web sites and industries, most pest control services do not describe their fee structures on their web sites, and instead require that you fill in a form or contact them for an initial consultation. It therefore requires more of a 'buyer beware' attitude when comparing and choosing the best pest control service for you. Our best suggestion is to do as much research as you can online, identify two to four pest control services that appeal to you, and then go ahead and go through the initial consultation with all of them. Here are some questions to find answers to, either while doing your research online or during your consultation:
To go a step further in finding the right pest control service for you, it might pay to ask your friends, family and colleagues if they have had any experience- either good or bad- with specific pest control services.
In conclusion, we hope you have found the information we have put together for you useful. We recognize that this guide was in no way exhaustive, and that there is much more to pest control than what is included here. We suggest that you use the information in this guide as a starting point in your search for the right pest control service for you.
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