All posts in “garage”

Garage Trim

Garage Trim

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Garage Trim

The garage trim is an important feature in your home, its supposed to keep out stuff. Mice, bugs etc come around a corner and quite possibly find an easy way in. We feature a wide variety of home-seal techniques to keep the bugs/rodents out. Storm Shield is just a easy way to keep rain and bugs out, it compresses against the garage trim to make a seal. Over the years of living in a home, things wear out and need replacing. Door seal, window seals and even weep screens need checking. We also install Garage Door Rodent Guards, they adhere to the bottom of the runner/plastic trim on garage seals. They deter mice/rodents from gnawing at the base and gaining entry.

Wildlife & birds

I had a customer call once with a skunk inside the garage, I really thought it would just mousey on but it didn’t. They had left the garage door open and it decided to take up home in a cabinet. We had to trap the skunk, it wouldn’t leave. But is wasn’t before it decided to squirt one day, then they had to leave the door open. It even permeated the house, yuuuuuck! Birds and wildlife can also build nests in the dryer vent exhaust, we clean them and install a device to stop them from building or getting inside.

Cricket Poo

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Cricket Poo can be mistaken for termite activity. Cricket mess under a hand lens appear to have sharp jagged edges. Often black in color while termites use soil and water which when mixed in their poo, used to build tunnels and tubes. I see this kind of activity inside garages on the foundation step up and along foundations outside homes. Termites construct their tunnels over surfaces such as slabs and drywall or 2x4s in homes.

People mistake lots of things as termites, I get calls on Mud dauber soil nest, They build these almost ball looking things which they then pack with incapacitated spiders and then lay their eggs inside. When the egg hatches the little baby larva eats the paralyzed spiders. Termites build little tunnels or tubes about the size of pencils and the little girls make their way throughout these tubes to contain moisture. The arch enemies of termites are ants and they fight if they interact. But you really don’t need either of these two on your property.

If you run into something and you don’t know what it is, call us 480-831-9328 or 623-414-0176 or send us a picture at [email protected]

Cricket poo

Cricket poo

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Cricket poo often is confused by a lay person as termite damage or frass. Cricket feces is black odd shaped star looking almost ripped edges. Termite feces is used with tunnel making or with Drywood termites hard shell ribbed edges. Subterranean termites mix the dirt and poo together in the building of the termite tubes and/or tunnels.

The Art of Pest Management is with the knowledge and what and how pest occur, that by the way is why you pay me. Because I KNOW. I continually run into people that say the previous person said this and that is wrong. They might say its bed bug and I go and its springtails or even ticks. That’s another treatment protocol and generally a lot less money.

Kitchen tubes

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Kitchen tubes termites

Kitchen tubes and termites, always a freaky thing to discover. This was of course unusual and of course there was a shower bathtub on the other side. This makes it difficult to treat, almost making it impossible to get to the bath-trap. Maybe the possibility of angle drilling, but whoa pipes in the way.

Checking your home monthly for signs of termite tubes is helpful in determining an active infestation. Check for signs outside at the foundation and check inside for any signs of soil/dirt tubes and stains. In Arizona termites become more active after monsoon and the rains. This year we have had a lot of rain, so keep an eye out for signs.

 

Play – anywhere, anytime

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Play – Anywhere, anytime

Anywhere you might play, eat, sleep etc. Have you hear the sentence – “You Are Within 3-6 Feet of a Spider Right Now”? A 1995 popular article by famous arachnologist Norman Platnick begins, “Wherever you sit as you read these lines, a spider is probably no more than a few yards away.” From a 1999 Sierra Club book on spiders: “Wherever you are, there is a spider within a meter of you.” From a 2001 book on nature in the city: “Even in Manhattan, you are never more than three feet from a spider.” These are just some of the myths surrounding the sentence because it really depends on where you are. So what about bugs then, you probably have them all around you and you don’t realize it.

Maybe a silverfish in your attic, a cockroach under a kitchen cabinet, maybe an earwig off the back patio or your children are at play. The reason is that they outnumber us and by big numbers, its just that they are so small and often not visible to our naked eye.

play

Anywhere you play

You can always call A Pro…

So pest control often plays a part in the management of these pests, here in Arizona we have Bark Scorpions and they can sting and cause pain and fear. They normally don’t kill anyone but the sting is painful and can cause more serious trouble to younger children and older adults. Black ad Brown Widow spiders can cause significant more damage and I recommend wearing gloves while doing work outside or in the garage or attic. Cockroaches, flies and rodents can spread diseases and can seriously damage your intestinal tract. That is why I call myself a Public Health Professional and I’m here to stop those bugs and pests from getting to your family and friends. As always if you have questions, have a picture a picture or just need some advice give us a call 480-831-9328

Spring Is here and the bugs may be at your door

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Spring is here

So Spring has finally arrived ohhhh and we finally see that April the Giraffe had her baby boy. It’s a Facebook thing and this Giraffe has been expecting for well over a month and I all think we wish it would arrive and that includes April. This season is a time of rebirth, the trees and bushes start the process of new leaves and the animals including  starting the process of new babies. As Spring goes into Summer the temperatures will push the bugs into cooler climates such as your home or business. So please keep an eye on eaves, roof-lines and sheds where we see more activity from honeybees etc.

I was sitting in my car on the overpass at the US 60 and Gilbert Road last week and a swarm flew right into and over us, glad my windows were rolled up. Watch the video on Honeybees . Take some time to smell the flowers life is to short to miss the fun stuff – relax take some time.

Spring blooming cactus

Spring blooming cactus

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQi9pZ8jE9M[/embedyt]

Seal to keep out the bugs?

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SEAL – You have to think like a bug

Seal – One of those things that can be done to prevent bugs from hiding on your property is to seal as many of those hiding places that you can. This includes those block walls around your property, I once found about 50 cockroaches living in a crack along side a home with a block wall. I used a little dust and they came running, it was a sight to see and of course I had to show the homeowner.

We often get into a debate over inside and/or outside, I try to think like this – where do the bugs generally come from? Outside most of the time, so let’s prevent them from getting in and cut down on the pesticide in the home. Now doesn’t this just make more sense? Now if they come in a bag of food, then you have to decide on the best option inside. Many times it might be ants and the use of a bait is right up the alley to get to the Queen ant and no harm no foul with having to spray the whole house.

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Seal

 

What can you do to prevent termite activity in your garage?

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Soapbox Alert  —–  Soapbox Alert

 

One of the hardest things that I run across when dealing with termites in the garage are built in shelves. The problem is their location in regards to the expansion joint. Now I agree where else would you build the shelves, certainly not the center of the garage – that would be impractical. Here is my suggestion – don’t secure the bottom shelf. This would allow us the option of removing that shelf and drilling our necessary holes to prevent termites.

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Twas the night before Christmas and not a creature was stirring

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Oh yes they are, and we all need to be aware they are always out there and wanting into our cozy warm homes. What can you do to keep them out?

  1. Seal all holes coming into your home.
  2. Repair screens.
  3. Install door sweeps.
  4. Install garage door seals.
  5. Close flue dampers or at least check them.
  6. Pay attention to wiring around homes, rodents need to keep their teeth from growing to long.
  7. Seal weep holes and check attic often.
  8. When brining stuff down from attic, open boxes outside – prevents anything from getting loose within the house.
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Photo by Univar

 

 

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