All posts in “pests”

Does black-lighting or exclusion work to control pests?

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So what in my opinion really works the best to control pests from getting into homes, without a doubt home sealing or exclusion. Here are my Top 3 ways to control scorpions and those other bugs that may want to make your home theirs.

  1.    Home seal or exclusion.
  2.    Black-lighting to reduce the population.
  3.    Consistent monthly pest control.

You hear me talk about IPM all the time and I’m telling you it works. Rather than spraying pesticides all the time, you can reduce the risk by helping your Pest Management Professional by doing a few things to improve the situation at your home. By black lighting you reduce the numbers and by doing so you reduce the numbers that might make it to your home. By sealing your home you again reduce the numbers that make it to your home and reduce the numbers that could make it in. The next way is to reduce the numbers of the food (crickets, roaches) and ultimately the scorpions themselves.

Now with all that said, I do believe in pest control but as I stated above it needs to be done in a consistent manner. If you have scorpions I think especially in Arizona it needs to be done monthly. I also believe that outside service is the most efficient along with home sealing and black-lighting. There are some in my professional that still don’t get it, they are the ones that still treat inside each month or power spray each month. Now don’t get me wrong I still occasionally do the inside ie: German Cockroaches or ants and if you have ticks I may decide to power spray. There are always exceptions to the rules. But soon the lack of water or water quality issues are going to trump the constant overkill of those outdated and impractical pest control techniques. (my opinion)  PART_1437183843093_20150717_184143

What can you eat to repel the bugs, here’s some info for you.

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“11 Things you can eat to repel bugs” I got a kick out of reading this article, some of those things repel me or at least a few people. I figured out a few before reading the article, such things as garlic, onions and peppers. Interesting enough I have tried Vegemite and wasn’t a big fan, but hey I didn’t grow up eating this stuff. A lot of this stuff on the list is really great for you, boosting your immune system etc.

Photo by PPMA

Photo by PPMA

Pollinator Health Updates

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Pollinator Health – Bee Aware Be Safe.

 

Did you know that there are more pollinators than just honeybees? Check out this website to find out what they are. There are a number of factors that are affecting honeybees these days and the USDA, EPA and the National Pest Management Association and others are working towards a plan to continue to save the bees.

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Why do honeybees make our homes, theirs?

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DSC07157 Honeybees will take every opportunity to make any place a home.  These bees decided on this chimney fireplace. Seldom if ever used, they found a crack and decided it was big enough to start a colony.

This was actually a bigger issue than usual, this entry point led into an open ceiling area. If this had not be noticed and months or even years had gone by, the buildup of honey and wax could lead to significant melting later.

Always important to conduct monthly checks of your home or business and don’t forget to look up.

What are my 2 toughest pest complaints?

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I probably get more calls about these two things than anything else and to make matters more exasperating not much can be done.

 

#1 – Honeybees coming to your pool or other water feature to drink. This is tough, because in the big picture we probably don’t have a clue where they are coming from. Now the good news, generally speaking the bees are not in defensive mode. What do I mean by that statement? When bees swarm or are out looking for water or flowers they are not defending their hive and won’t be as aggressive as if they were defending their home. A lone bee out looking for food is just looking for food, while the bees at their home are on guard against possible intruders. They have bees that are just guard bees and just like we would defend our homes they are pre-wired to be on guard against intruders. With the extreme HEAT here in Arizona they need water just as much as we do. So please don’t panic, just try to avoid them if possible. Now it may be difficult especially if they are near your pool or water feature, one thing you might try is placing a dish in shaded area with a few rocks to keep them from drowning. Refresh the water frequently and maybe they might move.

 

#2 – Mosquitoes are almost impossible to control once they become adults. The prime time to get them is when they are wigglers or in their larval stage within the water. Some mosquitoes will fly over a mile to get to their food = you or your pet. Check your property for stagnant water, any amount can raise a family of mosquitoes. One area often overlooked is the catch basin for potted plants. I have a back door that opens in and I’m constantly getting flying insects that get sucked in when I open that door. I use the device below once a flying insect makes it into my home. I highly recommend it, after just a few days the glue board has a variety of flying insects. By the way this also fits into my IPM program. We do sell them at my office – ProBest Pest Management 602-249-7378.

FlyWeb

Lyme Disease – the debate

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Lyme Disease


Lyme Disease

Lyme Disease Great article on debate whether it is a chronic disease. Study may suggest some correlation to Global Warming – OK I said it. The disease also imitates other nefarious like chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and mulitple sclerosis.

When walking pets keep an eye out for ticks in high grass, when arriving home checks pets and yourself for parasites etc. Birds can introduce ticks into back yards and dog parks, so be careful even at your own home. Also be sure to check out NPMA or National Pest Management Association for updates on tick activity across the USA.

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/05/06/lyme-disease-debate-can-condition-be-chronic/?intcmp=ob_homepage_dont_miss&intcmp=obnetwork

Have you ever tried DIY for German Roaches?

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The biggest issue I have with DIY (Do It Yourself) pest control is that most people don’t understand bugs. If you have the knowledge then you can deal with the pest. Same reason I don’t replace my own brakes on my vehicle. I don’t have a clue and frankly I don’t want to know. But let me tell you, I know bugs.

You know those cockroach stations that you just throw into the kitchen or bathroom cabinet, they might work if you get them close enough. But most people just toss them into the cabinet and that isn’t very helpful. Yes some roaches will find the stuff but if you place them near the source, it will work better.

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So how would you control these roaches if the bait wasn’t close by, it’s far easier to just call a Pest Management Professional. 602-249-7378

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