Nov 22, 2013 | Uncategorized
The Proper Steps to Getting Rodents Out of Your Home
If you’ve read this blog before then you know that prevention is key. Whether talking about ants, termites, mice, or other pests and rodents, prevention is always the first step. Taking the proper steps to prevent these creatures from entering your home is the key to eliminating pest and rodent problems.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, rodents, such as rats and mice, spread over 35 diseases. Their diseases are spread through contamination by urine, feces, saliva, or bites.
So what are the proper steps to getting rid of rodents in your home?
First, is a thorough inspection of your home by a licensed professional who is knowledgeable about wildlife removal. Northwest Exterminating’s wildlife team specializes in the exclusion, removal, and control of rodents and wildlife. The wildlife team will inspect your property for any current infestations and points of entry. After that, they will work with you to customize a plan to get rid of any current rodents and the necessary steps to prevent future rodent infestations.
Second, is trapping the rodent. After your rodent control specialist has inspected your property and identified the infestation they will place traps or bait in the areas where the rodents will most likely travel.
Third, after rodents have been trapped and controlled, the wildlife team will work with you to take the necessary steps to prevent future rats and mice from returning. Proper prevention can include but is not limited to sealing cracks, blocking off entry points, eliminating food sources, and cutting back tree limbs from the roofline.
Lastly, it is very important that after the rodents have been properly trapped and out of your home that the area is carefully cleaned to avoid the spread of disease. Droppings and urine should be cleaned immediately, any nests should be removed, damaged wires repaired, and contaminated insulation should be replaced.
For more questions on rodent or wildlife control please call 888-466-7849 or visit us at www.callnorthwest.com
Nov 20, 2013 | Wildlife
The Damage Squirrels Can Do and How To Keep Them Out of Your House
Squirrels are cute when they’re running around outside but are not so cute when they’ve entered your home. Squirrels are difficult to control because of their ability to enter small and high spaces. They are known to get into houses by using tree limbs and even power lines to squeeze their way into the smallest openings, chimneys, or vents. Once squirrels are inside they can cause significant damage and contaminate your home.
Squirrels can cause considerable damage to your property. Their gnawing can damage wires (leading to power outages and potential house fires), holes in the structure (allowing other pests/rodents entry into the home) and damage or contaminate insulation. They can invade and damage items that you may have stored away, including storage boxes and their content. Outside items like electrical boxes and phone cables can also become a victim of squirrel damage.
In addition to property damage, squirrels can contaminate your property. Contamination from their fur, urine, and droppings can damage insulation, items in storage, electrical wiring, among other things.
Although squirrels are a threat all year, the cooler months, when they seek warmth and shelter, are a main concern. Prevention is the key to squirrel control:
- Locate and seal off any entry points 1/4″ or larger to prevent squirrels and other rodents from entering the home.
- Caulk any openings or crevices that can be used as entry points.
- Provide an exclusive barrier on roofline.
- Set traps if you suspect you may have a squirrel, or other rodent, in your home.
- To keep squirrels from using utility wires as a way to your attic, slit a 2-foot section of 2-inch PVC pipe lengthwise and slip it over the wire. This makes squirrels unable to maintain their footing when the pipe rotates.
- Cut back tree limbs that are close to your structure.
- Squirrel removal is not recommended for amateurs. Call Northwest Exterminating for squirrel removal.
Sep 11, 2013 | Uncategorized
Conditions will soon be right for overwintering pests to seek comfort and shelter in homes and buildings. Overwintering pests are those pests that seek a warm place to live in the colder months. You want to avoid your home being that place!
As we’ve said many times before on this blog…prevention is key. It is much easier to prevent bugs from entering than to get rid of them once they are present.
Prevention Tips:
- Seal or caulk all cracks and crevices around foundation, siding, doors, windows, electrical, and plumbing.
- Use tight fitting insect screens on foundations and attic vents.
- Keep gutters cleaned out. Pests feed and make homes out of the built up debris.
- Keep a clean home. Vacuum, sweep, mop, and clean up spills that will attract pests to your home.
- Clean up yard by raking, keeping grass cut, and picking up debris in the yard.
- Get regularly scheduled pest control. Regular scheduled pest control will prevent bugs from coming in and will make it easier to control any pest problems that arise.
Common household pests that overwinter:
- Ladybugs
- Box elders
- Stink bugs
- Caterpillars
- Crickets
- Moths
- Flies
- Mosquitoes
- Rodents
Along with winterizing your home from pests, call Northwest Exterminating to help provide treatments that will reduce the number of pests this fall, winter, and even into spring.
Dec 26, 2012 | Uncategorized
Hort oil can be beneficial to your trees and shrubs to control pests. Many traditional pest control solutions can be harmful to plants. Advantages of using oil are safety, effectiveness, and limited effects on insects that are beneficial to plants.
Hort oil is often used in the winter months to control mites, aphids, caterpillars, and scale insects that tend to make a home on plants during this time of year. Although most commonly used in the winter, hort oil can also be used in the summer time to control a host of other insects and mites. Hort oil can also protect plants from diseases like powdery mildew and some aphid-transmitted viruses.
You should be aware that there is a small chance that it could harm certain plants, especially those in need of water. Oils can stain surfaces of dark colored house plants. As with any pest control solution, be sure to read instructions carefully and follow all directions.
Sensitive Plants:
- Black walnut
- Cryptomeria
- Douglas-fir
- Hickories
- Junipers and cedars
- Maples (particularly Japanese and red maple)
- Redbud
- Smoke tree
- Spruce (particularly dwarf Alberta spruce)
Source: http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05569.html
Nov 16, 2012 | Uncategorized
According to a recent article by the Wall Street Journal, wildlife damage to crops, landscaping and infrastructure now exceeds $28 billion a year. The article addresses the benefits to the increase in wildlife but also the damage they can cause and the effect it has on our local economies.
This year, Princeton, N.J., has hired sharpshooters to cull 250 deer from the town’s herd of 550 over the winter. The cost: $58,700. Columbia, S.C., is spending $1 million to rid its drainage systems of beavers and their dams. The 2009 “miracle on the Hudson,” when US Airways flight 1549 had to make an emergency landing after its engines ingested Canada geese, saved 155 passengers and crew, but the $60 million A320 Airbus was a complete loss. In the U.S., the total cost of wildlife damage to crops, landscaping and infrastructure now exceeds $28 billion a year ($1.5 billion from deer-vehicle crashes alone), according to Michael Conover of Utah State University, who monitors conflicts between people and wildlife.
Click here to read the whole article.
For wildlife removal or exclusion needs in your home or business, call Northwest. A Wildlife Control representative will inspect your property for evidence of wildlife and will determine the points of entry being used by these critters to get into your structure. A customized plan will be developed to get the immediate nuisance under control and to seal off any known points of entry.
Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204846304578090753716856728.html#
