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| Animal Control ( 2 ) | | | | Ant Control ( 1 ) | | Ants are one of a number of ground-dwelling insects. There are many different types of ants, and they come in a variety of colors and sizes. Different ants build different types of homes. Some of them build ant hills outside in the yard. Some of them build their nests on the inside of a house by utilizing wet wood to build the nest. Ants can be distinguished by physical characteristics like the number of nodes at the waist, and the even or uneven roundness of the upper surface of the thorax.
Ants can lift many times their own body weight. Ants live in colonies that range dramatically in size from a few dozen to millions of ants. Some colonies have a single queen ant, but many colonies are multi-queen colonies. Ant life starts as an egg, which becomes female if it is fertilized or is male if it is not fertilized. After developing, certain worker ants have certain jobs, depending on their age. Some of the young ones tend to the queen, and progress through other duties up until food foraging as one of the oldest ants.
You may have reason to treat ants inside or outside. They may be disturbing some of your plants in your garden, or there may be an infestation in your home. Sweet foods, including fruits, can be attractive to ants. Although ants can be a pain in your garden, they may actually be beneficial to you by taking care of other pests.
Carpenter ants range in size and color, but there are some distinguishing characteristics, namely a single waist node, and an even roundness to the upper surface of the thorax.
Fire ants are another type of ants that are a particular pest to humans. The bite burns like fire, which is how the fire ants got their names. An antihistamine taken after the bite can help prevent swelling and allergic reactions. Then there are multiple other treatment suggestions, anywhere from a thick paste of salt to tea tree oil, in order to reduce itching and pain.
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| | | Bee Hives ( 1 ) | |
What to do if you find a bee hive? Run! Ok, no really....presumably, since you're asking, this bee hive is somewhere where you'd at least like to be, if not have to be, so you need to figure out some way of dealing with it. Once you've started consideringwhat to do if you find a bee hive , you'll need to see if you can tell what kind of bees belong to the hive. If the hive is large or in a hard-to-reach spot, or if you're allergic to bee stings, you'll definitely want to consider calling in professionals to deal with the hive. If the hive is a honeybee hive, you might want to consider calling a bee handler to see about relocating the honeybees, as they are beneficial to humans. The person you call may charge a fee to move the bees, but the bee handler may do the honeybee relocating for free.
In some cases, before you can get to the step of deciding what to do if you find a bee hive, you have to first find the hive. Sometimes they may be tucked away a bit, somewhere more difficult to locate. In order to find it you may need to pay special attention to the bees, to see where they go when it's time to go home. Beehives can be in all sorts of crazy places, so you may even be looking at locating one in places you might not have considered. Sometimes bees will build their hives in a wall or ceiling, so you may need to think a bit outside the box, if you have to hunt down a hive.
Once you've found the hive, you're going to have to decide on the next course of action for what to do if you find a bee hive. You need to decide if you're going to be trying to save the bees, or eliminate them. Your choice will help determine your next step. If you want to save them to relocate them, and you've spoken to a professional, then they bee professional will be deciding on the next step, possibly collecting the bees and returning home with them to add to their bees. If you're going to kill the bees, make sure you can eliminate the hive with just a simple insecticide option, or you may be in for more trouble than you've expected. If they are in the house, you might want to consider being prepared to repair some damage to the ceilings or walls, if you need to cut part of either of those in order to access the hive.
You're going to want to poison the bees with the insecticide, while avoiding any that escape or fall, and once the bees are taken care of, you'll want to knock down the hive. Be sure your plans for what to do if you find a beehive include ridding the area of all trace of the hive and honey, so you don;t attract other bees to take their places.
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If you found a beehive, you have a few options for what you can do to take care of it. You may decide to do the job yourself, or you may decide to call in the professionals. You may decide to save the bees (which you should definitely take under consideration if they are honeybees), or you may decide to eliminate them. Sometimes finding the hive can cause some trouble to start with, before even being able to deal with the bees themselves. Sometimes hives are tucked into funny places, like walls or ceilings, and can be kind of trick to find and take care of. You may need to be prepared to cut into the walls and ceilings, so have the tools necessary for repair handy when you're planning this job. If the beehive is small enough and easy enough to deal with, you can spray the bees with an insecticide, try to avoid any that fall from the hive or escape, and then knock down the hive once the bees are dead. After you've knocked down the hive, be sure you clear and clean the area thoroughly, since you don't want other bees or other bugs to be attracted back to the area where the hive was. | |
| | | Carpenter Ants ( 0 ) | | | | Drywood Termites ( 0 ) | | | | Fire Ants ( 2 ) | | | | Flea Infestations ( 2 ) | | What to do for a flea infestation may depend, in part, on the way you want to go about treating the problem. If you're likely to choose more traditional treatment options you may choose a professional flea treatment company for what to do for a flea infestation. The professionals can treat your yard and home, and you'll want to make sure you treat both, as well as your pet, if you're hoping to get rid of the fleas. Be sure you don't let your pet back in the yard until it is safe to do so. If you don't have a comprehensive plan for what to do for a flea infestation, you're most likely not going to get rid of them, since the area that gets treated will likely be re-infested by the fleas still living in the untreated area. Treatment with a product that kills fleas at all stages of their life cycle is most beneficial for you, as that means less of a concern of only taking care of killing the adult fleas, but still having to deal with hatching eggs, or, conversely, only treating the eggs, without taking care of the adults.
If you're likely to want to try to use more natural methods for what to do for a flea infestation, you have several options to look into. There are non-toxic flea shampoos, and herbal flea powders. You can make your own herbal flea powder with different ingredients. Diatomaceous earth is another one of your options for treatment. If you're trying to banish the fleas from your pet, you have options such as regularly combing through the coat, with soapy water, in order to remove and kill the fleas. Sprinkling salt into carpets and then vacuuming can help, too. Vacuum everywhere that can be vacuumed, and vacuum there a lot. Be sure to dispose of the bags or empty the canister as soon as you're done vacuuming. You may also choose to try a saltwater dip, or an ocean swim. There are even some suggestions about putting some vinegar in your pet's water, but you'll want to talk to your vet before considering that.
If your neighbors are cooperative and are also treating their yard, it may give you the best case scenario, because, the larger square footage you can keep free from fleas, the more chance you have of keeping your pet flea free. If you have one or more of your surrounding neighbors treating their yards and homes at the same time, you may even be able to get a discount if you're using flea professionals for your flea infestation.
You can also always plan to start with the safest option, and work up from there for what to do for a flea infestation. If you don't have good results with the natural options, you can always move on to the harsher options, in order to rid yourself of the pests. Of course, you may just choose to start with the chemical options to begin with.
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Knowing how you want to treat your flea infestation will help you decide what to do for the fleas. You may choose a professional flea treatment company, if you're more likely to choose more traditional treatment options. You'll want to be sure, no matter what kind of treatment you choose, that the treatment is comprehensive, and treats your home's interior and exterior, as well as your pet. There are several methods to choose from if you'd rather first try natural methods for what to do for a flea infestation. You can sprinkle salt into your carpets, let it sit, and then vacuum it up. You can use an herbal flea powder or non-toxic flea shampoo. Be sure to vacuum your home a lot, as that can help rid your home of some of the flea eggs. However, you can't just let them sit in the vacuum or whatever is still alive may still hatch. Be sure to empty the canister or dispose of the bags into a sealed plastic bag as soon as you've vacuumed. You may choose to enlist your neighbors' help in treating their yards for fleas as well. You need to decide how you'd like to treat the fleas, and possibly use more than one option in order to eliminate the infestation. | |
| | | General Pest Control ( 3 ) | | | | Green Pest Control ( 1 ) | |  Green pest control is an option that a lot of people are looking for. They may have small children or pets in the home, and be trying to protect them from coming across any poisons being used in treating pests. It can help with solutions that are gentler on our environment than some of the harsh, toxic chemicals in commercial pest control options.
 First and foremost, remember what grandma used to say: cleanliness is next to godliness. If you don't make your house attractive to the pests, they might just pass you by in order to infest your neighbor's house. Clean up the crumbs, and the drips, and the spills. Don't leave things out inviting the bugs into your home.
 Be sure door and window screens work, and keep unscreened doors and windows closed. This is one of the easiest tips for keeping bugs out. The more work it is to get into your house, the more chance (hopefully!) the bugs won't want to bother!
Traps can be a green pest control option. A lot of pest traps are designed to kill the pest, but there are types of traps that are designed to capture the pests alive, so that you can release them somewhere else.
Some plants can help deter some pests, too. Garlic and marigolds can help protect tomatoes from certain tomato pests. Other pests can be deterred with other plants. Poppies, nasturtiums, and geraniums top the list of plants useful for deterring pests.
Flies can be treated with a make-your-own fly paper. Just cut up strips of paper, spread them with molasses, and then hang them up, to be able to enjoy a chemical-free way of clearing the air at your house! You can also make do with a good ol' fly swatter, as well.
Black pepper, cinnamon, and vinegar are all green pest control options for treating ants. Ants also tend not to like chalk, and will try to avoid it. Cayenne pepper, mint, and bay leaves are a few other options for ant treatment.
If you have cockroaches to deal with, bay leaves or diatomaceous earth may solve your problem.
If you're trying not to treat with chemicals and would prefer a green pest control for your buggies or other intruders, it's worth a couple of tries to see if you can beat the problem with these green options. They are better for the environment, and safer to use around babies and pets, who are notorious for getting into things they aren't supposed to. Be prepared to try some of these options for unwanted pets in your home, and you may be able to be green and bug-free soon!
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| | | Mosquito Control ( 5 ) | |  Mosquitoes are annoying insects that like to bite you and suck your blood. There are several thousand mosquito species. Eggs are laid in water by the female, which is why stagnant water just sitting in your yard is so attractive to mosquitoes. You need to be sure to empty out or dry up standing water on your property, and make sure the water in any water feature is changed regularly. Make sure your birdbath or wading pool doesn't sit with unchanged stagnant water in it. Mosquito eggs hatch and the mosquito develops through the larval and then the pupal stage before becoming an adult mosquito. Only the female mosquito feeds on humans, as human blood is needed for the development of the young mosquitoes. Male mosquitoes feed on plants. A female mosquito has an average lifespan of 3 to 100 days while a male mosquito's average lifespan is 10 to 20 days.
 Mosquitoes can be irritating and annoying as heck. In addition to being annoying, they can pass on some pretty unpleasant diseases, so there are good reasons to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes. Malaria, west nile virus, and dengue fever can all be transmitted by mosquito bite. In some climates, animals, rather than people, are the primary targets for the mosquitoes.
 Mosquitoes can locate people through several means, one of the primary ones being scent. Mosquitoes can smell the carbon dioxide that is given off by people. One of the leading mosquito treatments, DEET, helps mask the location of people by masking the scent of the carbon dioxide. DEET was developed for military use by the USDA more than 50 years ago. Other treatments include citronella candles, which come in different shapes and sizes. The mosquitoes are repelled by the smoke, and for best effect you should space the candles closely together. As mosquitoes come closer, approaching you due to your scent, they get to the point where they can continue to zero in on you by scent, but can also now see you.
 The three most useful things you can do to repel mosquitoes is 1) do away with sources of standing water; 2) wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants so that more body surface is left unexposed to the mosquitoes; and 3) use a repellent with DEET. Follow these suggestions and say goodbye to those bothersome mosquitoes.
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| | | Roaches ( 1 ) | | | | Rodent Control ( 1 ) | |
Tips, tricks and basic information on how to control common rodents. | |
| | | Spider Control ( 2 ) | | | | Stored Product Pests Control ( 2 ) | | | | Subterranean Termites ( 0 ) | | The most common type of termite is Subterranean termite. These termites live in colonies in the ground, which is where they get their name. In nature, termites are not harmful and are actually quite helpful in getting rid of dead trees and other material. When this material is cleared and structures are built on top of the soil where termites were already living, they will attack those buildings to find food for survival. They will feed on anything cellulose based but are particularly fond of decaying wood. Moisture is also essential for survival to termites. Without maintaining contact with a source of moisture, such as the ground, they will be susceptible to dehydration. If there is excessive moisture in a wall, they can form an aerial colony and not need access to the ground.
Knowing what the termites are looking for and what they need for survival gives us some clues to where to look for signs that they are present. One of the most well known and obvious signs are tubes made of mud and other debris on the exterior walls of your building. These tubes act as protection for termites that are foraging for food above ground. If the soil level around your building comes up to far then the termites can enter your home without using these mud tubes. For that reason it is very important to keep the soil around your building low enough to where you can see 3 – 4 inches of the foundation all the way around if and when possible.
Another indication that you possibly have a termite issue is damaged wood. Especially wood that has been exposed to moisture. This would be door or window frames, areas around a water leak or even privacy fences. Areas around the building that collect water after it rains will often have a higher concentration of termites in the soil also.
These are just a couple of things to look for on a regular basis as signs that you have a termite problem. It has always been my recommendation though, that you treat your home for termites even if you DO NOT have any signs of an infestation. Houston is an area of the country that has a very high concentration of termites in our soil; therefore, the odds of termites invading your building are definitely in their favor. Just to give you an idea of how destructive these little critters are; subterranean termites cause billions of dollars of damage every year in the United States alone. More damage in dollars than floods, fire, and earthquakes combined! Termite treatments can appear to be an awful lot of money for a tiny bug that you may or may not have. But take into consideration that termite treatments are recommended every five years and divide the cost out over that time. While working with a professional exterminator is recommended, you can do your own termite treatment. You will not have a warranty or the experience that the professionals offer, but it will certainly save you some money. Either way, the cost will certainly be worth saving you from the emotional and financial hardship that termites can impose upon your life. | |
| | | Sugar Ants ( 2 ) | | | | Termite Control ( 6 ) | | So you think you have termites, and you want to know how to get rid of them? There are different indications for the different types of termites. If you have a professional termite inspection done, and the inspection reveals evidence of termites, the inspector should be able to tell you what kind of termites you're likely dealing with. Prior to treatment, identification is the key since subterranean and drywood termites require different types of treatment.
Subterranean termites, which live underground, and tend to prefer decaying wood, are generally treated with termite barriers and baits. Termite barriers tend to rely on a physical or chemical barrier to separate the termites from the structure. Physical termite barriers include such things as metal shields, sand or crushed granite, or plastic sheeting enveloping a termiticide. Chemical barriers rely on a chemical that is toxic to termites. Chemical termite barriers can be applied around the perimeter of a home and underneath the home, as well, although it can sometimes prove difficult to get the full barrier protection for the property. Sometimes, homeowners won't want to choose this option. Perhaps there is a well on the property, and there are concerns about chemicals in the water, or perhaps they are concerned about obstacles in the perimeter that may make it more difficult to get full coverage. They might then choose to use termite baits for their termite extermination.
Termite baiting is a relatively new type of termite treatment. Treatment by baiting the termites can take quite some time, as it initially requires waiting for the termites to find the bait. The termites who find the bait will ingest it and return to spread it around the colony. The bait needs to be attractive enough to the termites that they'll choose to to eat that, instead of other options nearby. Termite baits tend to have the bait contained in a relatively quickly decomposing material such as cardboard. Baits may be placed underground or above-ground and there's less of a concern regarding the length of treatment with above-ground baits, as they are often placed in a known path of the termite infestation.
Drywood termites, which prefer non-decaying, dry wood, are generally treated with fumigation and heat. With fumigation, be prepared for your house to be tented and the fumigant pumped into the structure to kill the termites. This can take up to a few days, and you must be out of your house while it's being done. With heat treatment, the house may also be tented, or a particular room isolated for treatment, but instead of a chemical treatment, the house itself is heated to high temperatures to kill the pests.
If the other options, for whatever reasons, won't work for a homeowner, there are some other, if less common, treatments for drywood termites, and these include chilling, microwaving, and even electric shock.
Hopefully, you can get your termite infestation resolved quickly, and return to enjoying your home, pest-free.
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