Keep Squirrel Pest Under Control

Squirrels can cause quite a bit of damage or become a simple nuisance to the homeowner when the squirrel decides to use the facility or house for their nest. Squirrels commonly will gnaw their way into attics and floor joists for food storage or to take up residence, moving into spaces in between walls and floors. They can gain access through vents, broken windows, knotholes, and construction gaps under eaves and gables. On occasion they may gain entry through the chimney and fireplace.
Squirrels have an incredible ability to gnaw and destroy wood and can cause large amounts of damage at times, especially in season homes, when they may be left for months on end unnoticed to do their bidding. In an occupied home, a squirrel usually does not go unnoticed for very large. Homeowners usually will hear their activities during the day time. A flying squirrel on the other hand is nocturnal and may go undetected.

In yards and landscaped areas squirrels can cause damage by digging up vegetables and flowers primarily looking for sees and bulbs.

Tree squirrels can be difficult to control, but there are a few options that will add in your success. Pruning tree branches at least 6 feet from buildings and homes, anything under 6 feet is considered and easy jump for the squirrel.

Do not feed the squirrels! By feeding and coaxing them to approach a home you are almost inviting them to come and stay.

Applying exclusion techniques (rodent Proofing) your house is really the best and most permanent method of preventing squirrels from entering your structure. When you are closing all entry routes, remember not to trap them inside.

If you need to reduce the population of squirrels live trapping is almost always the best method of choice. Using a sturdy Havahart Squirrel trap will make this job easier. Live catch traps should be 24”x8”x7”. If the squirrel is entering from trees and power lines, then putting the trap on the roof is idle. For squirrels that may seem trap shy, pre bait and make sure the door will not snap for a few days, this will help coax them inside. Baits that work well are peanuts, walnuts, pecans, acorns, sunflower seeds, and raisins. Check your traps once a day as a caged squirrel will not survive long.

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D-fense SC is a powerful suspended concentrate (SC) deltamethrin that provides excellent control of a wide variety of insect pests including bed bugs, ants, fleas, flies, silverfish, spiders and cockroaches. D-fense SC can be utilized http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.giffor crack and crevice and spot applications in homes, hotels, schools, businesses and more. The broad label also allows for spraying on mattresses and for doing broadcast applications for bed bugs and lice. D-fense SC is odorless and safe around kids and pets when used as directed. Provides a 2-3 month residual for long-term insect control.

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Will Warmer Weather Mean More Pests?

How to Control Fleas Using Precor Flea Spray

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Drywood Termites Article from UC Davis!

Read this thorough and well written article about Drywood Termites for UC Davis. Click HERE.

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How to Keep Bed Bugs from Coming Back!

Bed bugs can be a difficult pest to kill. The fact that they can live for up to a year without a meal makes them hard to completely rid yourself of. In this article, we discuss methods to kill bed bugs and to keep them from coming back.

Common signs that can indicate that you have a bed bug problem are:
• Finding blood stains on your mattresses or furniture.
• If you see “bed bugs” or their skin casts.
• Unexplained bites on you or your family

Any of these signs can signal a bed bug problem. There are now inexpensive “traps” that will lure bed bugs through temperature and CO2 so that you can monitor for bed bug activity if you are still uncertain after review the common signs.

What do you do after you are sure that you have bed bugs?

Well initially, treating all carpet, furniture, baseboards and bedding with high temperature steamer will kill any that it comes in contact with. Then vacuum those same areas and empty the canister into a sealable bag to be sent to the garbage bin.
There are bed bug kits that can be purchased from an online pest control supplier that have been specially formulated to address specific bed bug issues. Following this initial treatment protocol listed on the chemical agents should kill any bed bugs that are currently in your home.

But, being that bed bugs are able to live for up to a year without a meal, how can you protect your family from a reemergence of bed bugs?

Once you treat your living areas, bed bugs may retreat to walls or crevices where they can avoid becoming a pest statistic. One good way to address this bed bug problem is to access your inner walls and treat that area with a dust that specifically treats bed bugs. Dusts are extremely effective at holding their killing power. If you are able to, drill small holes behind baseboards or in areas that will not be visible due to furniture placement. If you have gaps in your ceilings, you may also wish to apply dusts in those areas as well.

Be sure to inspect your home at fourteen days for signs of any activity. Keep your bedbug monitors up to date, so that if there is ANY bed bug activity, you have immediate knowledge and can keep the bed bugs from becoming an infestation, and only an annoyance.

How to Use Advance Termite Bait Stations

 

 

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D-Fense SC Insecticide with Deltamethrin has the same active ingredient as the popular Suspend SC Insecticide, but is much less expensive.

D-fense SC is a powerful suspended concentrate (SC) deltamethrin that provides excellent control of a wide variety of insect pests including bed bugs, anhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifts, fleas, flies, silverfish, spiders and cockroaches. D-fense SC can be utilized for crack and crevice and spot applications in homes, hotels, schools, businesses and more. The broad label also allows for spraying on mattresses and for doing broadcast applications for bed bugs and lice. D-fense SC is odorless and safe around kids and pets when used as directed.

Provides a 2-3 month residual for long-term insect control.

Target pests: Ants, Carpet Beetles, Firebrats, Fleas, Gnats, Midges, Centipedes, Millipedes, Pantry Pests, Silverfish, Ticks (indoors), Bees, Bed Bugs, Boxelder Bugs, Fleas (outdoors), Ticks (outdoors), Cecid Flies, Cockroaches, Crickets, Flies (including such flies as Stable, House, Cluster and Horseflies), Elm Leaf Beetles, Ground Beetles, Moths, Midges, Hornets, Killer Bees, Lice, Mosquitoes, Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle, Pillbugs, Scorpions, Sowbugs, Spiders, Yellowjackets, Wasps, Carpenter Ants.

The label also covers ornamental pests including Adelgids, Aphids, Azalea Lace Bugs, Bagworms, Boxelder Bugs, Cankerworms, Cardamom Thrips, Crickets, Elm Leaf Beetles, Elm Spanworms, European Pine Sawflies, Fall Webworms, Flea Beetles, Flies, Fungus Gnats, Grasshoppers, Greenstriped Mapleworm, Gypsy Moth (larvae), Imported Willow Leaf Beetles and more.

What You Need to Know About Mice

DIY Pest Control is becoming more and more accessible due to internet web sites with professional strength products at low price points. To be an effective DIY Pest Controller, you should also arm yourself with the facts about your particular pest to ensure success. In this article, we discuss facts about mice that you need to know to be a successful DIY pest controller.

Did you know that mice are very territorial and do not like to stray over than 30 feet from their nesting site?

Mice will also stay within 10 feet of their main food supply. Since they are good climbers, it is easy for them to make residence in ceilings, attics, or pipe runs. Also possible are areas below their food source, such as basements, floor voids and crawlspaces.

To use this mouse fact for effective DIY control, imagine a 10 foot sphere surrounding the entire area radiating from their food source. If you cannot locate the mice that way, expand the area to 30 feet, to search for the rodent nesting area. If your house has several floors and you are a finding mice throughout, using this information will let you know that there are several mice colonies in your home.

Did you know that mice like to travel on runways where their whiskers can touch a surface?

They prefer to utilize dark, protected areas, and have preference for corners.
You can use this mouse fact to help you in your DIY Pest Control regime by looking for rub marks along base boards. It is possible to leave a trail of talc along the suspected runway and check back in the morning for signs of foot prints. If you locate the rodent runway, place baits, glue traps and snap traps along these paths. The suggested distance for the traps is ten feet, or closer for heavier infestations.

Mice are very curious rodents and will investigate if their surroundings are altered.

You can use this to your advantage by rearranging furniture, etc. in areas that you suspect mouse activity. This can help you if you place traps out that evening, forcing the mice to venture out of their comfort zone.

Lastly, mice like to eat often, but just a little. They like dark and protected areas, and may prefer these sites within their feeding territory. If you have located one of their favored feeding areas, utilize this area for a concentration of baiting. But also, use your baiting and traps and numerous areas through out their territory. This will help you bait as many mice as possible, in a shorter amount of time.

Reference: www.pctonline.com August 2009 issue

DIY Rat Control

Of all of the rodent pest control problems that one can encounter, rats are definitely not one to take lightly. Rats can cause serious health problems for families if left untreated. In this article, we review what rats can do and treatment methods that the DIY Pest Controller might miss.

According to Baltimore County Public Health Department:

Rats can destroy or contaminate food supplies. Rodent feces and urine are a source of gastrointestinal diseases such as Salmonellosis or E-coli infections, and respiratory diseases such as Hantavirus. The rat flea has been an important agent of transmission for Plague and Murine typhus.

It is therefore important that the infestation of rats be taken vary seriously by the homeowner and DIY pest controller.

When attempting to battle rats, the DIY pest controller will more than likely contemplate baits and poisons. Both are necessary weapons in the DIY pest controllers arsenal against rats, but, a long term plan to kill the rats and keep them from returning may also be in order.

The DIY pest controller needs to assess the source of the rat infestation. Is your home in a rural or urban area? If you are in an urban area, do you have open garbage bins near your residence? If so, these are like buffet style rat feeders, which allow populations to flourish in the urban environment. If this is the source of your infestation, you may need to contact your regional governing body to alert them to this dangerous situation that they are allowing to fester by their lack of action. There are options that the city can adopt, including using baiting stations within the dumpster area or purchasing bins with secure lids that rats are unable to chew through.

If you are in a more isolated area, what does your trash area look like? Old fashioned metal garbage cans with the lids are the best for keeping rats out. Also, keep them as far away from your home as possible so that rats are less likely to migrate inside of your home.

Does the roof of your home have contact with limbs from trees, telephone/cable wires? If so, consider using a tamper proof weather resistant baiting station directly ON your roof. If you do so, you will minimize the rat population in your area, thus reducing the possibility that they will enter your home. While you are one the roof, be sure to check for signs of rodent entry into your home. All vents should be properly screened to disallow entry.

Use these handy tips to keep rats out and maintain control of your DIY pest control regimen.

The Great Mouse Detective

Mice are tiny, quick, and quiet. It is easy to ignore tell tales signs of mice activity until the mouse has become many mice. In this article, we review ways to quickly identify mouse activity and “find them, before they find you!”

In reporting there are the five W’s, Who, What, Where, When and Why. In mouse locating, they are a little different. One must be trained on how to look for mice. You have to think; Underneath, around, behind, and on top of. Mice like to keep out of your way, they are programmed to avoid places that they will be noticed. So think like a mouse, and go look where you normally wouldn’t.

Often times when I have had trouble with mice in the past, I would ignore seeing flashes out of the corner of my eyes. Thinking that I was just finally giving in to madness or losing my eyesight, seemed easier than facing the fact that I might have mice. So, we would recommend to you, pay attention with all of your senses (excluding taste).

Become a mouse detective and respect what each sense can tell you; sight, hearing, touch, and smell. Are you smelling an unusual odor in your home that you just can’t place? Do you hear noises in the evening after your home quiets? Be aware of WHERE those noises are originating? Do you see droppings? Finding any gnaw marks? All of these items can give you clues if your house has an unwanted rodent guest.
These items are important, because when treating your home for mice, the closer to the source of the mice that you get, the better chance you have of eradicating them.

By the source, I mean, are they nesting somewhere in your home? Are they creating a little mouse colony that will be repopulating your home frequently? If you know the main source of your problem, the better you will be able to choose the best treatment option for ridding your home of rodents, as well as place the treatments where they can do the most benefit.

One other item that you should check for is entry ways. Do you have easy access entry points for mice? Have you reviewed the outside of your home for cracks/crevices, utility/cable lines, or gaps around your doors and windows?

If these areas are adequately sealed and a treatment regimen conducted to remove the mouse pests from your home, mice should be a problem no more. But, never forget your mouse detective skills, and utilize them regularly to reduce the incidence of reoccurrence.

Invade Bio Drain Cleaner

InVade Bio Drain -





Microbial gel with proprietary citrus oil.

Packaging: 32 oz bottle - IBDC032, 1 gallon jug - IBDC128

thickened gel formula for direct application to drain lines. InVade Bio Drain



Thickened Microbial Formula for Direct Application to Drains to Eat Away Scum Where Flies Breed, and for “Sugar Snake” in Soda Drain Lines

InVade™ Bio Drain Cleaner is a premium blend of microbes and citrus oil in a thickened formula that coats the sides of drains.


InVade Bio Drain will eat through the scum in drains to help prevent breeding of fruit flies, drain flies, and phorid flies.

The citrus oil provides extra power and a wonderful smell. For start up, this Drain Treatment product should be applied daily for the first week. Thereafter, one weekly dose should be sufficient.

InVade Bio Drain can also be applied in soda fountain drip tray drain lines to eat away “sugar snake” that clogs the lines.

Drain odors will quickly be eliminated when InVade Bio Drain is in use.

All About Drain Flies

Drain flies, sometimes called moth flies are non-biting gnats with dark wings. Drain flies can be a nuisance for home owners. In this article we discuss how to identify and treat a drain fly problem.

They can often be found resting on ceilings or walls, and take sort of “hopping” like flights if disturbed. Often drain flies are a temporary problem, since they develop in standing water. For instance, if you are gone for vacation, you may return to find drain flies, but once your household normal activity is renewed, the drain flies usually go away. If you notice that they are a problem over several weeks, you more than likely have a breeding site somewhere that should be located and cleaned to eliminate the drain fly.

Sources of Drain Flies

If you have flies in your home or workplace, identifying the breeding ground and its treatment is the key to controlling small flies.
The larval drain flies need moisture to survive and they can bread anywhere that water is standing for a week or so. Infrequently used toilet bowls and tanks, sink or floor drains in basements or garages, or drain pans under refrigerators.

Drains can present one of the most overlooked sources for breeding of small drain flies. Drains can look clean on the surface but pose an enormous breeding ground underneath. Floor drains can create an organically rich environment that will attract and breed insect growth.

Drains that have failed, have cracked or damaged pipes can be a major culprit in you insect problem. You may even be able to see the gray wriggling larvae swimming in the water.

All of these areas need to be cleaned thoroughly and be sure to remove surface film in order to kill drain flies and keep them out.

Drain fly larvae can remain submerged for a day or more because they are able to trap air bubbles, so they are very difficult to drown. The drain fly life cycle takes from about 10 to 15 days at about 70° F. If drain flies disappear and reemerge after 10-15 days, you know you will need to retreat your drains.

Here are a few recommendations for keeping your drains insect free:

•Pouring hot water down the drain may provide short-term control.
•Clean your drains regularly-drains should be opened and cleaned on a regular basis, using a wire bristle brush will help remove any excess organic matter.
•Check drain traps and remove any debris that may end up clogging your line.
•After cleaning drains use of a drain cleaner or biological agent into the drain is advised. As with all products follow label recommendations for use.

Although they are non- biting, drain flies and their larvae are just unsightly and annoying. Follow the prescribed measures and drain flies should be a thing of the past!

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