Oct 31, 2012 | Pest Control
As humans, we are often amazed at the ability of pests, specifically ants, to locate food. If there is food available, ants will find it. New research is now available to help us understand how ants have been so successful in our ecosystem.
A study led by Lawrence Zwiebel at Vanderbilt University found that ants have 4 to 5 times higher odor receptors than most insects. Odor receptors are unique proteins that distinguish between different odors. Ants showed more than 400 odor receptor genes (the largest of any insect species) compared to fruit flies at 61, mosquitoes at 74-158, and honeybees at 174.
New information is being released daily to help us understand the make-up of pests. The more we know and understand pests, the better we know how to control them. Call a professional ant exterminator in your area who is knowledgeable, efficient, and effective in treating ants. Call Northwest Exterminating.
Source: ANI News
Oct 29, 2012 | Pest Control
One of the questions that our representatives get asked the most is “How To Keep Pests Out of The Home“. We regularly offer tips to readers on how they can keep pests out but here is a list of the Top 10 Ways to keep pests out of your home.
Top Ten Ways to Keep Insects Out of Your Home
- Go around the exterior of your home and seal up any areas where insects could enter your home. Check around windows, doors, plumbing entrances, fan vents, and electrical entrances. If your home has window screens make sure they are intact and if areas are torn or damaged replace them.
- Make sure to trim all hedges, trees, and other landscaping back away from the home. Creating at least a one foot barrier will keep insects from using easy methods to enter or get close to your home.
- Always remember that insects are living creatures just like humans and they need food, water, and shelter. Inspect the perimeter of your home, as well as the interior, and pay close attention to areas that could potentially provide all three of these needed resources.
- All food and beverages should always remain covered or sealed in air tight containers. Following this simple step will eliminate the risk of insects being attracted to your home. If you have fruit out in your kitchen make sure you eat it before it over ripens or store it in your refrigerator. If food or drinks are dropped or spilled make sure that they are cleaned up immediately.
- Routinely empty all the trash and place it outside in garbage cans with tight fitting lids. All trash cans inside the home should also have lids.
- Make sure to keep all pet food sealed in air tight containers.
- Remove extra clutter from your home. Get rid of items that are old and damaged and find a great charity to donate the rest.
- Keep all doors and windows closed while not in use.
- Make sure to change all your exterior lighting to low sodium vapor light bulbs. Most insects are attracted to light but they are less attracted to low sodium vapor lighting. Also make sure to point your security lighting away from your home and not directly on it.
- Don’t Bring Them In! Be careful whenever you travel, move, or bring home the groceries that you check everything before bringing it into your home. Especially as it gets colder make sure to check and clean all your firewood before you bring it in your home.
So there you have it. Northwest Exterminating‘s Top 10 Tips for Keeping Pests Out of Your Home. For more information, visit our website at callnorthwest.com. If pests still find there way into your home, call one of our professional exterminators to help you identify the source of your issue and get rid of the problem.
Oct 26, 2012 | Pest Control
If you’re a lover of tasty treats and creative costumes, then your favorite celebration is right around the corner! Halloween is thought to have originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off roaming ghosts. This festival celebrated their new year on November 1 and marked the end of summer and harvest as the dark, cold winter began. Over time, Celtic areas became overtaken by the Romans and many Roman Catholic and Celtic traditions were intertwined. In the 8th century, Pope Gregory III designated October 31st as All Hallow’s Eve, the day before a Catholic holiday known as All Saint’s Day.
Though today’s celebration is more about dressing up and having a good time, many of the older traditions and superstitions about Halloween remain the same. One of the superstitions regarding Halloween is that anyone who has seen a spider on this evening has encountered the spirit of a loved one watching over them. In actuality, you probably will not see too many spiders around this time because most of them have already laid eggs and died. In fall and winter, spiders might be found in the dark corners of your home or basement as they prepare to begin laying eggs again. If the site of these creatures troubles you, Northwest Exterminating has experienced technicians who can scare these pests away from your home!
Northwest Exterminating can take care of pests in the home for you, but if you would like to embrace pests in a different way, maybe some of these costumes will do the trick!
Lady bug
Bug eyed bug
Giant Cockroach
Melissa Brown
[email protected]
Sources:
http://www.history.com/topics/halloween
http://suite101.com/article/halloween-nature-myths-a151873
http://www.read-legends-and-myths.com/halloween-myths.html
Oct 24, 2012 | Insulation
We’re all looking for ways to save money. We’re cutting back on unnecessary items, thinking twice before we spend our money, and looking for ways to save on necessities. One way to save is to install TAP Insulation in your attic.
Attic Before TAP
Tap Insulation saves in two ways: saving on your energy bills and energy savings (along with many other benefits). When your attic has the right r-value, resistance to heat, then your HVAC system runs more efficiently. Less work for your HVAC means less money each month on the bill. Our highly trained professional will evaluate your current r-value and bring your insulation to the Department of Energy recommended r-value of 49, with a minimum of 30.
Attic After TAP
It’s typical to see a 20-38% savings on your energy bills after you’ve had TAP Insulation installed. This will benefit your home in both the cold winter months and the warm summer months because it keeps your home at a consistent temperature throughout the season which gives your HVAC system a break. Lastly, TAP Insulation is a GREEN solution for your home. It’s another great way to save green while going green!
Other benefits of TAP Insulation:
- Insulation made of recycled newsprint.
- Permanent Pest Protection in your attic.
- Fire Safety
Oct 22, 2012 | Pest Control
The German cockroach is the most common species of cockroach and can be found all around the world. They are most often found in kitchens and bathrooms due to their preference for warm, humid places that are near food and water sources. But you won’t always see them out in the open because they like to live in the cracks and crevices around homes and commercial buildings. In fact, they spend 75% of their time in the cracks and crevices.
Environment of German cockroaches:
- Cosmopolitan in distribution and will live anywhere humans build heated structures
- Usually found in kitchens in secluded areas
- Behind and under appliances
- In cracks and crevices behind backsplashes
- At counter edges
- Behind and under cabinets
- In void areas around plumbing
- Backs of drawer wells
- Will infest warm areas around appliance motors such as refrigerators and dishwashers
Not only are German cockroaches a nuisance pest but they are also a health risk. Studies have shown that German cockroaches have been linked to illness and allergic reaction in humans, especially children. They can spread at least 33 kinds of bacteria, six parasitic worms, and at least seven other kinds of human pathogens. They pick up germs while crawling around and transfer them as they crawl on our food and surfaces. They spread allergens as they crawl, and deposit droppings, secretions, cast skins, and dead bodies.
Health threats of German cockroaches:
- Will invade your home and leave fecal matter and other debris in and around food and food preparation areas
- Can enter homes when boxes or products are shipped moved from one location to another
- Reproduces at a high rate, completing a life cycle in 30 to 45 days
- Produces 30-48 eggs at a time
- Can generate 3 to 4 egg cases in a lifetime
- Difficult to eradicate because they can infest so many areas and can be very difficult to contact with an insecticide
Contact a professional pest control company if you think German cockroaches have taken up residence in your home. Trained personnel know where to look for harborage sites and what products to apply to achieve fast and effective results. It is much easier to eliminate a German cockroach problem when it is newly established and small, rather than when the population has time to build.
