Disinfectant & Pest Control Professionals

Bed Bugs are blood-suckers commonly found in motels, hostels or boarding houses where itinerant travelers stay overnight. They are often found in buildings used to store second-hand furniture or clothing.

How do Bed Bugs get into bed? They are transported with luggage, clothing and other articles, but not on the person. It is not possible to know if someone is a ‘carrier’.

Bed Bugs do bite … at night. Next morning you may see dots of blood in a line on bed linen. The blood has a sickly sweet odor. Also look for dried blood deposits around cracks in the bed, bed-head, flooring, bedside furniture and mattress.

Bed bugs life cycle: From the egg, the bed bug has five nymphal stages before becoming an adult. The adults and nymphs leave their harborage area to feed every 2 to 3 days. They feed for 3 to 5 minutes at night, in the early morning hours, before returning to their harborage area, usually located within a few meters from their feeding area. They can survive for long periods without a blood meal.

Adverse skin reactions: Some people have an adverse skin reaction to the bite of bed bugs. They inject an anti-coagulant chemical into the bloodstream of it\’s host which prevents the blood from clotting. This allows the bed bug to suck out the blood until it is fully engorged.

Several beetles are common pest of stored food products and often occur in houses, bakeries, grain stores and warehouses – anywhere that food is stored, especially dried food stuffs such as grain, cereals, flour, nuts, etc.

It is always advisable to keep such foods in well sealed plastic or glass containers – this not only keeps vagrant beetles out, but also prevents the spread of insects which might be introduced accidentally (often as eggs and/or larvae) with newly purchased goods.

Some of the stored food pests, and a variety of other beetles that frequently invade human habitations, can also damage clothing, carpets and other household furnishings, attacking almost anything made from natural fabrics and furs. Most of these beetles will not attack man-made fibres (nylon, polyester, acrylic, etc.), so that clothing and furnishings made from these materials are relatively safe from beetle-damage.

The Most Common Beetles we Face:
Powder Post Beetle, Flower Beetle, Drug Store Beetle, Spider Beetle, Lesser Grain Beetle, Saw Tooth Beetle, Meal Worm Beetle

Crickets are common turf grass pests.

Adult mole crickets are light brown to black insects depending on the species and about 1 to 1½ inches in length. Their front legs are short and stout and well adapted for tunneling in the soil. Mole crickets can be identified by the number and spacing of the tibial dactyls (digging claws) on the front legs and by the color and pattern on the pronotum (back area behind the head). The native northern mole cricket has four distinct claws/toes (dactyls) on each front leg.

The Mole Cricket damages plants mainly by its feeding on the roots and aboveground portions of plants. To a lesser extent, its tunneling activity disturbs roots and can result in plant death due to drying of the roots.

Successful mole cricket management requires patience and regular monitoring of the situation. It is not a one-time, one-insecticide application. Control is dependent upon an annual, well-timed plan. Timing of controls and cultural practices are as important as the choice of insecticides

Mole Crickets are a breed of cricket commonly found east of the Rocky Mountains with a broad range reaching from southern Canada into Mexico. They tend to operate during nighttime hours and spend most of their time burrowing into soil.

Carpenter ants can and will establish a nest inside and outside of any type of structure

In 2 to 5 years, a colony with a good supply of food may form a reproductive or dispersal generation. This generation consists of winged males and females. Males, known as drones, are about 5/8 long; winged females from 5/8 to 7/8 inch long. Most drones, whose only purpose is to fertilize the females eggs, die shortly thereafter. The females shed their wings immediately after mating and become full-fledged queens. In Maine, a 3/4 inch long, wingless ant is probably a queen carpenter ant. They look for wet, rotten wood in which to start new colonies or join an existing one. The queen that starts a new colony lays about 30 eggs and cares for the larvae until they are adult workers. This new generation of workers takes over the various chores in the colony and the queen’s full-time job becomes egg laying.

The forest is the carpenter ant’s natural habitat. Any wet, rotten wood attracts a new queen. Carpenter ants infest live, dead or fallen trees wherever there is some rot and moisture. In nature, they play an important role in recycling wood, but when they attack buildings they are destructive. The closer a forest with rotten logs is to homes or buildings, the more likely is a carpenter ant infestation.

The closer an abundant water and food supply is to the nest, the faster an ant population increases, and the greater the need to enlarge the galleries to accommodate the colony. It is the ants’ excavating that damages or weakens wooden structures. Tunneling can take place inside any piece of wood without outwardly visible signs.

In a house, mobile home or other building, infestations may begin because of a water leak around the chimney, roof valley, gutter, window, door frame, or space under wooden floors when there is no basement. Sill areas invite ants, especially if soil touches the wood. Wood covered with backfill from new construction provides an excellent nesting place. Kitchen and bathrooms are also suspect, as a leak in a water pipe or water heating system provides the moisture the ants love. Always check firewood for ants before taking it indoors.

Because carpenter ants are nocturnal, you probably will not see them unless they are under stress because of lack of water, food or nesting space, or because they are in a reproductive generation.

The ants do not eat wood, but rather tunnel only to increase nesting space. In the forest, carpenter ants feed on sap, pollen, nectar, fruits, and both living and dead insects. Water is an important part of their diet. Honeydew, the sweet excretion of aphids and certain other insects, is also a favorite food.

Though often confused with the bumblebee, carpenter bees can be readily identified by their black abdomen—a slick, shiny, black abdomen. The thorax of the carpenter bee (directly behind the head) is usually covered with yellow, orange, or white hairs.

Carpenter bees rank among the largest of bees native to the United States. There are numerous species of carpenter bees (Xylocopa) that inhabit a diverse range of habitats from tropical to subtropical to temperate. In the United States, carpenter bees occur across the southern United States from Florida to Arizona and in the eastern United States, north to New York.

As pollinators, carpenter bees are generalists in our gardens and landscapes—they may be found foraging on a number of different species. Like their close cousins, the bumblebees, carpenter bees are early morning foragers. Carpenter bees are excellent pollinators of eggplant, tomato and other vegetables and many types of flowers.

Carpenter bees have very powerful thoracic muscles—when carpenter bees land on flower blossoms they become living tuning forks and can “sonicate” the dry pollen grains out of the flowers’ anthers. This type of pollen collection in known as “buzz pollination.” Carpenter bees are reported as being excellent pollinators of many vegetables and flowers. Carpenter bees are even mass produced in the Philippines for farm-pollination services.

On occasion, carpenter bees can be quite ingenious in their foraging for nectar. Because of their large size, carpenter bees are not capable of entering long, tubular flowers such as those produced by salvias and penstemons. Instead they become nectar robbers. Using their mouthparts they cut a slit at the base of corolla and steal away with the nectar without having pollinated the flower. We have also noticed this to the case for flowers of yellowbells (Tecoma stans, also known as yellow elder and trumpetbush).

Unlike the bumble bee that typically builds colonies in the ground, the carpenter bee is a solitary bee preferring to live and nest alone in wood tunnels. Carpenter bees do not consume wood, but their tunneling can be destructive to softwoods and hardwoods alike. Under normal conditions they are not very destructive; however, if several generations of carpenter bees have been tunneling in the same area, extensive damage is possible.

Weathered woods are a common target of carpenter bees; thus, they are often found tunneling into fence posts, lawn furniture, the roof and eaves of buildings, decks, window shutters, wood shingles and siding.

To deter this behavior, keep exposed wood surfaces, including nail holes and saw cuts, coated with polyurethane or oil-base paint. Consider using non-wood building materials, such as vinyl siding, to avoid possible damage by carpenter bees. If tunnel entrances are found in buildings, seal tunnel entrances immediately with caulk.

Carpenter bees are fairly large, 12.5 to 25 mm in length. They resemble bumblebees, except that their abdomen is smooth and mostly hairless.

The most visible physical difference (at a glance) between this species and a bumblebee is the abdomen. Eastern carpenter bees have a shiny black abdomen, with the only yellow hair present being at the base next to the thorax, while bumblebees have a very fuzzy abdomen.

Fleas are wingless, with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood.

Fleas are pests of dogs, cats, and livestock. With their piercing, sucking mouth parts, they will bite humans too. The large hind legs are good for hopping on and off their animal meal. Their legs which can jump relatively long distances, are good for changing hosts, and the comblike appendages help the insects resist being brushed out of hair. Because their bodies are flattened, they can move easily between the animal’s hairs.

Adult fleas lay all of their eggs (up to 50 per day) on pets or other animals.

The immatures or larvae are very tiny wormlike creatures, and can be present on fabric, carpet, or outdoors. Fleas generally do not prefer humans, however they may try to feed on humans if they have been starved for a long period of time. Fleas have also been known to carry diseases such as black plague (from fleas that usually infest rats), although there is not a lot of risk of those diseases in the United States at this time.

Adult fleas are no larger than 1/8 inch long, so it is difficult to see a number of the characteristics used to describe them. These reddish-brown, wingless insects are laterally compressed, so they look as if they are walking on edge.

The best way to prevent fly problems in a home is to exclude them by screening.

Flying insects, especially flies, carry disease – producing organisms known as pathogens. Flies especially are filthy creatures. They tend to feed on excrement, decaying food, dead bodies and other disgusting substances. Whenever they land or feed on these potentially disease-ridden areas, pathogens are transferred onto their numerous body hairs or are ingested into the gut.

Flies cannot eat solid food, so to soften it up they regurgitate digestive juices and their stomach contents onto the food substance. They then stamp the vomit in to form a liquid, usually stamping in a few germs for good measure. This “liquid” is then drawn up by the suctorial mouthparts and in so doing the insects pick up pathogenic organisms, which may collect on their bodies to be transferred on contact with other surfaces or survive passage through the gut to be deposited as fly spots

The Indian meal moth is a common species that occurs in kitchens worldwide.

Description: Moths are 3/8 to 1/2-inch long with wings folded over the back. Wings are two-toned, with the bases a pale gray and the ends reddish brown or copper. Caterpillars are dirty white with brown heads. They grow to about 1/2-inch long and may become yellowish, pinkish, brownish or greenish.

Indian meal moths are often mistaken for clothes moths (Lepidoptera: Tineidae) when they are detected flying around in the home. The clothes moth does not have two-toned wings. Their wings are uniformly gray. Another stored grain infesting caterpillar species, the Angoumois grain moth,Sitotroga cerealella (Oliver) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), infests seeds of corn, wheat, oats, sorghum, barley and other crops. Adult moths are small, all yellow moths with a 3/5 inch wingspan. Egg-laying females infested seeds either while crops are in the field or in storage. Larvae tunnel into seeds, feeding on the germ and endosperm, and form silk tubes in which they pupate. Their life cycle is completed in about 5 weeks and up to six generations can occur annually. Other major stored grain pests are rice weevils, Sitophilus oryzae (Linnaeus) and granary weevils, S. granarius(Linnaeus) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae).

Life Cycle: Night-active female moths lay eggs, singly or in clusters, on suitable larval food. Caterpillars hatch from eggs and produce silken tunnels for protection while feeding. Larval development varies in length with temperature and type of food material. Just before pupating, larvae leave the food source. Caterpillars can be found crawling on walls and ceilings searching for a place to spin a cocoon. Development from egg to adult takes from 27 to 305 days, and 7 or 8 generations can occur in a year.

Habitat and Food Source: Caterpillars have chewing mouthparts. Adults have siphoning mouths. Caterpillars feed in flour (including whole wheat and cornmeal or Indian meal)., shelled corn and other broken stored grains, dried fruit, seeds, crackers, biscuits, nuts, powdered milk, chocolate, candy, red peppers, and dog food. Caterpillars produce a loose silken mat on top surface of infested food material.

Pest Status: Moths are often found flying in kitchens and other rooms of the house, being a nuisance to occupants; appearance of moths is an indication of a breeding population of caterpillars in some type of stored food.

There are now pheromone lures and traps available to help detect an infestation of meal moths

Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattaria or Blattodea, of which about 30 species out of 4,500 total are associated with human habitats. About four species are well known as pests.

Cockroaches can enter your home in many different ways, from the outside through cracks and crevices, vents, sewer and drain pipes. We even bring them in on products like grocery bags, boxes, purses and on our person!

Because cockroaches typically are nocturnal, if you’ve seen one, you probably haven’t seen them all. The few cockroaches you see by day could mean they were likely forced out by overcrowding; a possible sign of severe infestation. American cockroaches are reddish brown and have a yellowish margin on the body region behind the head. They are usually around 1 and 1/2 inches long. When disturbed, may run rapidly and adults may fly. Immature cockroaches resemble adults except that they are wingless. American cockroaches generally live in moist areas, but can survive in dry areas if they have access to water. They prefer warm temperatures around 84 degrees Fahrenheit and do not tolerate cold temperatures.

In residential areas, these cockroaches live in basements and sewers, and may move outdoors into yards during warm weather. These cockroaches are common in basements, crawl spaces, cracks and crevices of porches, foundations, and walkways adjacent to buildings. They feed on a wide variety of plant and animal material. Adult German cockroaches are light brown except for the shield behind the head marked with two dark stripes, which run lengthwise on the body, and about 5/8 inch long.

Egg capsules are light tan. German cockroaches, are the most common roaches found in houses and restaurants. They eat food of all kinds and may hitchhike into the house on egg cartons, soft drink cartons, sacks of potatoes or onions, used furniture, beer cases, etc.

They can develop into large populations and live throughout the house, especially in the kitchen and bathroom.When seen during the day in clusters, the population is large.Roaches can foul food, damage wallpaper and books, eat glue from furniture, and produce an unpleasant odor. Some homeowners are allergic to roaches. The pests can contaminate food with certain bacterial diseases that result in food poisoning, dysentery, or diarrhea. The Oriental cockroach known as the “water bug,” is more closely associated with damp areas than the other common roaches.Adult Oriental cockroaches are shiny, dark brown or black, about 1 to 1-1/4-inch long and have nonfunctional wings incapable of flight.

These insects feed on garbage and decaying organic matter and are often considered the filthiest of the house-infesting roaches. They are found in damp basements, cellars, crawl spaces, near drains, leaky water pipes and beneath refrigerators, sinks and washing machines, under floors, and inside walls. They forage mostly on first floors of buildings. Outdoors, they are found beneath decomposing leaves or stones in mulching materials, in trash and at municipal sewer plants. During the autumn, there can be a mass movement into buildings, but because of their preference for cooler temperatures, can be found outdoors and in unheated buildings during the winter.

The adults are rather small cockroaches about 5/8 inch long. The adult male is slender in appearance with its wings extending beyond the tip of the abdomen. Adult females have shorter wings that expose a considerable portion of their broad abdomens. They have two light yellow or cream-colored bands across their backs. These bands tend to be hidden by the wings in the adults. The markings of the brown-banded cockroach are roughly crosswise while those of the German cockroach are lengthwise. Brown-banded cockroaches are generally found on ceilings, high on walls, behind picture frames, and near motors of refrigerators and other appliances. They are also found in light switches, closets and furniture. They do not require as much moisture as the German cockroach which explains why they normally are found in rooms other than the kitchen or bathroom. These cockroaches dislike light and are not normally seen during the day.

The house mouse is remarkably well-adapted for living year-round in homes, food establishments and other structures. Homeowners are especially likely to notice mice during winter, following their fall migration indoors in search of warmth, food and shelter. Once mice become established inside a home, they can be extremely difficult to control.

Although most people consider mice less objectionable than rats, mice are more common and cause significantly more damage. Mice are prolific breeders, producing 6-10 litters continuously throughout the year. The greatest economic loss from mice is not due to how much they eat, but what must be thrown out because of damage or contamination. Food, clothing, furniture, books and many other household items are contaminated by their droppings and urine, or damaged by their gnawing. House mice gnaw through electrical wiring, causing fires and failure of freezers, clothes dryers and other appliances. Mice also can transmit diseases, most notably salmonellosis (bacterial food poisoning) when food is contaminated with infected rodent feces.

Mice are nocturnal creatures, and, therefore, are rarely seen by the homeowner. The most obvious indicators of their presence are droppings (1/8 – 1/2-inches long, dark and pointed at both ends), sounds of them running, gnawing or squeaking, or damage to stored food or materials used for nesting.

Compared to rats, mice forage only short distances from their nest — usually not more than 10-25 feet. When food and shelter are adequate, their foraging range may be only a few feet. For this reason, traps and other control devices must be placed in areas where mouse activity is most apparent. Mice prefer to travel adjacent to walls and other edges– another critical point to remember when positioning control devices. Mice are very inquisitive and will investigate each new object placed in their foraging territory. If control devices are not initially successful, move them around to a different location.

Mice feed on a wide variety of foods but prefer seeds and cereal grains. They also are fond of foods high in fat and protein such as nuts, bacon, butter and sweets (an important point to remember when choosing a bait for snap traps). Mice are “nibblers” and may make 20-30 visits to different food sites each night.

The term mouse has been applied to a number of rodents belonging to various families. The name was probably first given to the Old World house mouse, which originated in Asia and has spread to all inhabited parts of the worl

Silverfish completely lack wings. They have long antennae, and move in a wiggling motion that resembles the movement of a fish

Silver to gray (or black even when you take into account a related insect called a firebrat) insect that usually shows up on the walls and ceilings of your upstairs bath and bedrooms and occasionally in sinks/tubs. They live in the attic and under roof shingles eating the glues that hold the insulation to paper, the drywall seams together and any paper or clothing stored in attic. They cause very little significant damage to any of the above mentioned items but, nevertheless their presence in bathrooms and intimate living space is usually disconcerting to residents.

Occasionally they may infest natural material clothing such as wool or angora. There are many conducive conditions that can make control difficult such as full, leaky gutters, leaky roof, and cedar shake roof shingles.

Control consists of regular treatment of the attic space and exterior (we recommend a quarterly basis) and occasional special measures on second floor in heavy infestations.

Using the proper material to treat is crucial and we know the proper materials. It is essential that the attic be treated on each service.

They are especially attracted to paper and damp clothing. Commonly found in stored boxes in garages and sheds

Regardless of the individual species, all spiders consist of eight legs and feature two-piece bodies

The normal “house spiders” are gray, pale yellow or tan and are small, no more than ¼ inch in circumference. If you notice a spider that is larger, ½ inch or more with distinct patterns or brightly colored, and can move quickly and jump, then these are the outdoor species.

Debris around and in your home and yard needs to be cleared. It is a good idea any time, to maintain conscientious cleaning practice. Prime areas for spiders are woodpiles, compost, and dead leaves that have accumulated, and trash. Moist areas such as basements, cellars, garage, crawl spaces need be free of debris and kept as dry as possible.

Caulking small cracks and crevices will discourage “outside” spiders from entering your home. Well-fitted doors and windows will stop the invading army of spiders from entering your abode. Inside the residence vacuum and dust under furniture, and in and around corners and closets as often as possible. Items left undisturbed for too long will send an invitation to our friend the spider to move in, remember they like to be isolated.

Termite damage is more common than damage caused by storms, fires and earthquakes.Termites often avoid detection until damages are so severe that they are clearly visible. They accomplish this by traveling in tunnels from their underground colony through the soil to any source of cellulose (which could be your home). They devour material from the inside out so what looks like sound, intact wood could actually be hollowed out from destructive termites. Fortunately, termites do leave behind clues of their presence, including: Wood shavings or grass near their excavation sites, Mud tubes or tunnels that extend to the foundation, Swollen or sagging floors, Warped doors, Wood that sounds hollow when tapped. KING TERMITE
There is only one king – the male termite that mates with the queen to help found the colony. He plays an important role in the beginning of the colony, helping to raise the younger termites as the queen lays eggs. When the founding king dies, in some species a reproductive will grow into a replacement king. QUEEN TERMITE
Unlike many kinds of ants, termites often have more than one queen. There is a primary queen, which is usually the first termite that founded the colony, along with several other secondary queens will take over if the primary queen is killed. WORKERS
These termites stay inside the nest, building it, tending to eggs and larva, and gathering food. They are white and often die easily outside the tunnels they have built from exposure to sunlight REPRODUCTIVE
Reproductives fly around in swarms attempting to start new nests. They can also become a queens if needed. They will fly for short periods, shedding their wings when they have found a new home.

Our full service termite control department provides traditional and alternative treatments subterranean termites

Traditional treatments:
Baiting Systems ( Advanced, First Line or system of choice)
Soil treatment for subterranean termites (Localized or Perimeter Treatment)
Alternative treatments (zero to minimal pesticide use)
Borates (Timbor, Bora-Care) Ant
Antennae bent, kinked, elbowed.
Wings forewings longer than hind wings
Body Shape
Ants have a pinched waist and tend to curl (bend over) when they die.

Termite
Antennae straight
4 wings same size
Body is thick, no waist, and tend to stay straight.

Ticks satisfy all of their nutritional requirements on a diet of blood, a practice known as hematophagy

Knowing this adversary is important. Understanding the disease potentials they threaten us with and having the capability to identify the basic tick group can help you help your doctor diagnose illness that may be tick initiated.

Although the number of tick species is in the hundreds, there are relatively few ticks that interact with mankind and domestic animals causing harm. While most ticks limit their host selection, others are opportunistic feeders and will feed on almost any accessible host. A tick, which feeds on a select host group, will move infective agents within that group. However, when a tick is a nonselective feeder, it can transmit disease agents from one host group to another. These nonselective ticks pose the largest threat of infection in man.

Ticks generally are not born with disease agents but rather acquire them during various feedings. They then pass the disease on to other animals and mankind during subsequent feedings. When an infection moves from an animal host to a human it is called zoonosise. Lyme disease, babiosisos, erlichiosious and tularemia are examples of such diseases.

Ticks are arachnids, relatives of spiders. Ticks live in wooded areas, brushy fields, and around your home. Ticks survive by eating blood from their hosts. Ticks can pass infections from one host to the next, including humans.

The brown marmorated stink bug is more likely to invade homes in the fall than others in the family. The bug survives the winter as an adult by entering houses and structures when autumn evenings become colder, often in the thousands. In one home, more than 26,000 stinkbugs were found overwintering.[57] Adults can live from several months to a year.

They enter under siding, into soffits, around window and door frames, chimneys, or any space which has openings big enough to fit through. Once inside the house, they go into a state of hibernation. They wait for winter to pass, but often the warmth inside the house causes them to become active, and they may fly clumsily around light fixtures. Two important vectors of this pest are the landscape ornamentals tree of heaven and princess tree.