Skilled Milton Pest Control Services

The most common ants are Argentine Ants, Carpenter Ants, Crazy Ants, Fire Ants, Ghost Ants, Leafcutter Ants, Odorous House Ants, Pavement Ants and Pharaoh Ants. Understanding any patterns will help you achieve the best ant control .

How to positively identify if you are dealing with Termites or Ants ?

It is hard to distinguish, identify even for trained people in the pest control industry. The two biggest determining factors are: 1) When comparing bodies – ants have segmented waists and termites’ bodies are about the same width, without pinched waists. 2) Ant antennas are bent whereas Termite antennae are straight.

Inspection
To get your ant problem under control it is important that our first step is to perform a thorough inspection. In order for us to locate the nest, we must follow their trails. Ants leave a chemical pheromone trail along their established routes from and to a food location so other ants can easily find the food. Outside the house, we inspect the perimeter like the foundation , areas of vegetation, and mulch. Any vegetation found near porches and walls may hide some Ant nests or their trails.

Ant Control Strategies and Tips

There are two main types of problems that are commonly encountered with ants.  Ants that live outside and forage indoors .  Ants that already have a nest built inside.  Our pest control measures combine habitat modification & barriers with the proper baits or pesticides to control the problem. Our strategy always depends on the type of infestation and the type of ant that we are targeting.

1. Ants that live outside but come inside the home. Ants that live outside will come inside your home to search for food. Some species ultimately live and nest inside houses . Follow these steps to help reduce occurrences any type of infestation:

• •  Caulk and seal cracks and crevices to eliminate passages into the home. Since Ants are extremely resourceful in finding entry points , you may not be able to seal them all.
  •  Clean around entrances with a cleanser to remove their chemical trail left behind , then spray a non-repellent residual insecticide.

2. Ants that live (nest) inside your home . Some ants don’t just enter your home searching for food. Some ants will establish a colony inside. Indoor colonization occurs year-round, especially in warmer climates. Ant species that live in homes include Argentine Ants, Crazy Ants, Odorous House Ants, Pavement Ants, Pharaoh Ants, Thief Ants, and Carpenter Ants. All of these ants may infest food products.  We can strategically place ant bait to attract the ants to the poison.

3. Carpenter Ants
Carpenter Ants are more active in the evening when foraging for food, both inside the home and outside. Carpenter ants do not eat the wood for food, but they will tunnel into the wood to make nests.

Many beetles are beneficial insects such as the lady beetle (a.k.a; ladybug) feeds on undesirable pests. But the ones that feed on plants, animal fibers, woods or food products are considered pests because they end up doing harm to the food source they target .

Sometimes beetles, their mere numbers , can become nuisances. In the late summer and fall, homeowners can find hundreds of beetles (especially Lady Bugs) clustered all around the home. The beetles are trying to find somewhere to invade homes for shelter to escape winter conditions. When beetles become a problem, your pest control technician will provide a thorough inspection to accurately identify the type of beetle and based on the inspection findings they will develop an effective treatment plan to resolve the problem .

Proper identification of the target species is critical since there are so many varied species of beetles and the specific details required for treatment for different beetles.

OUR BEETLE CONTROL APPROACH:

We inspect your home in Milton — inside and outside. There are several steps that the technician can do during the inspection which include locating areas of beetle activity, identify the cause of the beetle problem, locate the entryways that beetles are using to get into your home .

Our   goal is to devise and implement a customized solution. Our licensed Pest Control Technician will customize the treatment specific to your unique situation. We can select from a variety of tools and techniques to help keep any beetles out of your home: beetle exclusion, habitat modifications, Insect Growth Regulators, residual insecticides.

Beetle Control Measures

We follow an “Integrated Pest Management (IPM)” principle & philosophy which simply means we use a common-sense measures to pesticide applications. We take advantage of existing mechanical & environmental controls: Examples are such as habitat modifications, removing attractants, using barriers, traps, etc. Combine those with the responsible application of pesticides to eliminate the problem pest . Our goal is to remove the nuisance pest while protecting human health, non-target beneficial species, and the environment.

Some of the types of Beetles: American Spider Beetles , Asian Long-horned Beetles , Carpet Beetles , Cigarette Beetles , Common Furniture Beetles , Drugstore Beetles , Emerald Ash Borer , Foreign Grain Beetles , Ground Beetles , Larder Beetles , Pine Bark Beetles , Saw-tooth Grain Beetles , Stink Beetles .

Most people encounter carpenter bees during April and May when they’ve just emerged to mate. During this time , male carpenter bees tend to hover around nest openings, looking for receptive females . It can be rather unnerving being around them, as the males will also hover aggressively around people who approach the nests. They may even fly right into you. Despite the smoke & mirrors , male carpenter bees cannot sting. Female carpenter bees can sting, but never do.

Unpainted or exposed wood is especially attractive to carpenter bees. A helpful deterrent to carpenter bee activities is a painted (oil-base or polyurethane) surface. Paint & stains provide little repelling action. exposed saw cuts should be filled in with wood putty or dowels and painted. If possible , remove severely damaged wood and replace with pressure-treated wood to deter nest construction . To further discourage carpenter bees looking for potential nesting sites, a homeowner should secure all doors, windows, and other building openings during the spring. Non-wood surfaces such as vinyl siding are not damaged by carpenter bees.

We have a Carpenter Bee Prevention Program that we can implement which traps the bees .  While we are setting up the traps we take measures to draw the bees to our traps. Once Inside the traps, they die. That combined with ( our residual pesticide application it is the most effective means of controlling the carpenter bee invasion. Call us , let’s discuss your specific situation and we will come up with a plan that is best suited for your situation. Let us bring peace to this situation. 

The house centipede is the only species capable of reproducing indoors and is often seen in and around homes where dampness occurs. The house centipede is more active at nighttime , moving about in search of food .  Although Centipedes are beneficial since they eliminate other insects (like Mother Nature’s pest control) most homeowners have an aversion to their presence inside their homes.

Fun Fact … Millipedes feed on leaf matter and decaying vegetation while centipedes feed on other pests ?

Centipede & Millipede Pest Control

Centipedes often enter homes in the fall or winter months or during times of cooler temperatures. They are typically found in basements and garages, both of which exhibit desirable environments for this creature. An increased population within the home may be attributed to one of two things: a readily available insect food source or, more commonly, increasingly humid conditions.

To eliminate centipede populations , the initial step is to reduce humidity. Running dehumidifiers will pull the water out of the air, eliminating dampness and mold within the home. This will also help alleviate structural damage which may encourage other pests.

You may more commonly find centipedes in sheds and outside structures. Insecticides may be used where significant numbers are found and usually provide sufficient pest control. They are available in both organic & chemical solutions. We follow an Integrated Pest Management methodology when applying pesticides in or around your home. We use pesticides responsibly and use only what is necessary to eliminate the target species .

• • Find the location: Look behind plant posts or other gardening equipment regularly to ensure there are no signs of life.
  • Sanitize the area and remove the pests: These should be removed and the area thoroughly cleaned.
  • Prevent further infestations: Consider using a pesticide and monitoring the area regularly for signs of recurrence.
  • Some of these measures are to make sure doors and windows fit tightly and caulk cracks and crevices that permit their entry to the inside. Additional measures could be removing or eliminating trash piles, rocks, stacks of wood, leaf piles, compost piles around the outside of the home.

Call us we can help!

There three most common types of crickets that invade our homes in Georgia are the: Camel, House & Field , Crickets. Crickets can be extremely ( aggravating | annoying | bothersome | nerve-racking | unsettling }, but unless there are large numbers, they do ( very little | little | hardly any } damage. They love to chew on anything , especially clothing.

House Crickets live outside but may come indoors in considerable numbers. House crickets are nocturnal, they stay hidden during the day . They have a distinctive chirping sound. They can drive you mad trying to find them.  As soon as you hone in on their location they stop chirping.

Field crickets are another common nuisance. This species is slightly longer & darker than the House Cricket.  Field crickets prefer to live outside in lawns, flower beds & overgrown grasses . However, they do make their way inside often. Since Field crickets are attracted to lights at night, sometimes turning off these lights helps.

Camel crickets (humpback crickets) are not true crickets since they do not have wings. Camel Crickets are most often are found in crawl spaces, basements & closets , but also like any ( damp & cool | damp and cool | cool & damp | cool and damp } areas like under   logs or stones most outdoor areas, and while some people enjoy their songs of the evening, these tunes can drive others to complete distraction. These choirs of crickets can be avoided by making the outdoor yard or landscaping less desirable for the insects. They are naturally attracted to bright lights, so reducing any outdoor lighting will make the area less desirable to these serenading creatures. As an alternative, low-level “bug lights” can be purchased at home and garden stores. Keeping any grasses around residences trimmed and tended will also reduce the environmental appeal.

Crickets in the home are easily eliminated . We can seal any of the entryways into the home that allows crickets to invade.

Fly control is always a popular request since a house fly can transfer more than 100 different diseases , including salmonella, typhoid, and tuberculosis . House flies contaminate food surfaces by spreading disease organisms picked up on their legs and mouth-parts when feeding on trash, feces and other decaying substances .

With all of that said , an occasional house fly is not necessarily a problem requiring our intervention.  Every home, every human , will have to deal with an occasional fly or two . When we get called out for flies, it is a large population that cannot be eliminated .

Like many other bugs , the house fly experiences a four-phase life cycle. If the conditions are favorable , the developmental time of a house fly from egg to adult could occur in as little as ( 6 | six } days.  The female will reproduce approx. 5-6 times, laying batches of approx. 100 eggs during each round . Female house flies usually only mate once but is capable of producing close to 350-900 eggs in their lifetime . Adult house flies typically live between two weeks to a month .

House flies feed on liquids since they do not have any teeth . However, they use their sponging mouth-parts to liquefy many solid foods through ( regurgitation and spitting | spitting or regurgitation }. Their tongues are like straws to suck the food. House flies feed on a wide variety of foods such as animal carcasses, human food, feces and garbage . They are drawn to human waste because of its strong odor.

HOUSE FLY PEST  CONTROL

With our Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices, we combine multiple control measures to eliminate the problem. Each situation is different ; however, it may call for pesticide application, habitat modification, and mechanical controls .  Since our company originated with wildlife expertise , instinctively we would suspect an animal has died in a wall, crawl space or attic if there is a large fly population . Regardless, we will discuss options with you and come up with a strategy that exceeds your goals & expectations .

Most people who’ve never had a ladybug infestation view ( them | ladybugs } in a favorable way. Who doesn’t get a warm feeling after watching the movie “A Bugs Life”. Ladybugs sometimes referred to as lady beetles, are actually considered a beneficial insect. They feed heartily on many plant-eating insects such as aphids.

Fun Fact! In our area, there are the friendly & beneficial ladybugs and then there are an invasive species called the Asian Ladybug beetle. The Asian Ladybugs tend to gather together in large numbers inside our homes and this is typically when homeowners hire us to resolve the problem . Oftentimes, it can be difficult to resolve without professional help. Get this the invasive species that is now overwhelming and killing off our native species was introduced by the USDA.

LADYBUG INFESTATIONS in Milton

Ladybugs in the house. Multiple things can attract ladybugs to your inside your home . If your landscaping includes flowers , they will likely attract aphids, one of the favorite food sources of ladybugs. Certain species of ladybugs also eat on pollen. The pollen  is an energy source to help them through their winter hibernation . Ladybugs must find a warm, comfortable place to hide out during the colder months of the year . If they decide your home is suitable , they can easily find their way inside through doors, plumbing, utility lines, openings around windows, cracks, etc. .

LADYBUG CONTROL MEASURES

If you’ve seen a few and they are not really bothering you, simply leave them alone . They get out as soon as the the cold weather is over . However, you can simply vacuum them up and discard the bag. If you have a ladybug infestation in your home, other measures will need to be taken. There are a couple things we can implement . First off , we can winterize your home. We can go around the outside perimeter of your home and make some suggestions of habitat modifications . These are things that could be attracting ladybugs to your yard and seeking refuge inside your home . We can also responsibly spray residual pesticides along the perimeter of your home to prevent them from establishing a gathering .

There are some all-natural alternatives that you can try at home. Possibly consider spraying around the cracks and crevices with a natural repellent such as citrus, clove or citronella oil . Also, Mums are known to repel ladybugs. The more mums you have by doors and windows the fewer ladybugs you will have to deal with.

If you want to leave it to professionals, simply reach out and we will take measures to get rid of them and prevent them from returning .

Are pesky mosquitoes ruining your outdoor activities ? Are you concerned about your family’s potential health risks ? We provide professional mosquito control services that will help you reduce the risks in your yard . Our friendly & knowledgeable staff can discuss the details of our Mosquito Control services during the entire mosquito season.

Not all Mosquito Control Companies are created equal.

Our method is taken right out of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) & the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) collaborative playbook on how to best control mosquitoes . The protocol that encourages targeting of every life stage of a mosquito to successfully impact is referred to as integrated pest management (IPM).
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Our Mosquito Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program

IPM is a common-sense, science-based approach for controlling pests . Our Mosquito Control service uses a combination of measures that focus on pest prevention. It is our job to identify the conditions that lead to infestations. The most effective means of controlling adult mosquitoes is through the use of pesticides. A successful integrated mosquito control strategy includes several tactics to control mosquitoes. Four critical steps include:

1. Removing mosquito habitats
2. Advise on the use of structural barriers
3. Restrict the growth of Mosquitoes at the Larval Stage
4. Control Adult Mosquitoes

Use Structural Barriers

One way to prevent mosquitoes from getting inside is by using structural barriers. Some examples of these barriers include:

• Installing window and door screens if needed.

• Cover all gaps in walls, doors, and windows to block mosquitoes from gaining entry .

• Make sure door and window screens are  ” bug tight .”

Control Mosquito Larva

By using a pesticide which targets larva in their breeding habitat , will provide desired results the fastest .  Larva & egg interventions are the least costly & most effective way to knock the number of mosquitoes down .  We can devise a program that uses all of the measures combined to provide the quickest results.

Control Adult Mosquitoes
Fogging pesticides for mosquito control is one of the most common means to control an outbreak of mosquito-borne disease. Mosquito adulticides (pesticide labelled for the adult stage) are applied as ultra-low volume (ULV) sprays which dispense extremely small droplets. These smaller size droplets stay suspended longer making the pesticide more effective. The more effective the pesticide, the less we have to apply. We want the healthiest & safest environment for humans, non-targeted species and pets.

Everything about your specific situation, your specific yard needs to be a consideration to determine the best way to tackle the mosquito problem. Some considerations might include the type of mosquito, resistance, targeted stage of life, upcoming weather, etc. This is our approach!

An established moth infestation usually requires professional intervention to completely eliminate the problem. Although many homeowners attempt the “do it yourself” measures for moth control – the results are often not what they anticipated .

The single most popular moth that causes a problem are Pantry Moths.  Have you ever noticed strange stringy particles in an old bag of flour, webbing along the corners or edges of boxed foods , or rice that appears to have cobwebs? If the answer is yes, then you’ve seen pantry moths. The term ‘pantry moth’ usually refers to the Indianmeal moth.

While there are many different types of moths, the Indianmeal moth is the most often seen household pantry pest in our homes . It is different from other   moths because it is attracted to boxed food , unlike the clothes moth which is attracted to clothing.

Moths can make their way inside your home through open ( doors & windows | windows & doors | windows and doors | doors and windows }. They may also enter through crevices & cracks around dryer vents, utility chases, or cables that pass-through walls . It is off-putting when you open a sealed box of oatmeal only to find evidence of pantry moths inside . You may not even notice them until they have already passed through the different phases of a pantry moth life cycle and you see an adult moth flying inside your home .

MOTH CONTROL MEASURES
Prior to implementing a moth control solution, your Licensed Pest Control Tech will properly identify the moth species affecting your property .  Various moth pest species require different treatment methods to effectively control them.

All factors need to be considered when trying to devise a strategy to eliminate the moths. These factors can include; species, stored products, type of structure, etc.

Control measures for stored products moths (Indian Meal Moths, Mediterranean flour moth, etc.) include going through all of the pantry items and throwing away all open grain-type products, better storage containers, freezing existing packages to kill eggs, and spraying the closet to eliminate the problem. However, for the fabric moth pests; vacuuming the entire closet including the walls, throwing away any paper items that could be harboring eggs, proper storage, and application of pesticides. Monitoring using various traps including pheromone traps where applicable is done thereafter to ensure moth problems do not continue.

All our State certified technicians are highly-skilled and are required to participate in regular continuing education programs to keep them up-to-date with industry standards.

A scorpion is best noted , unfortunately, for its sting. In some parts of the World , there are dangerous scorpions that do result in human fatalities from their stings. These creatures frequently get a lot of media attention and thus most people believe that all or most scorpions are deadly creatures. Not true! Most species which enter houses are not very poisonous, their stings being comparable to those of bees or wasps. The little uniformly colored Southern devil is so abundant all over Northern Georgia . The Striped Bark Scorpion is found in the coastal plains and other areas of Southern Georgia.

CONTROLLING SCORPIONS

Finding a scorpion in sink or bathtub is common because once they fall in they have difficulty in getting out. Our native scorpions are small up to 1 inch in length.
To successfully control indoor scorpions, it’s essential to manage the scorpions outside the home. As a part of our inspection, we point out the habitat modifications that need your attention, reducing the number of outdoor hiding places for scorpions is important. This might include the removal of debris such as loose rocks, wood, trash and other unnecessary things from the backyard and around the home. It’s also beneficial to keep the grass mowed short and all shrubbery nicely pruned. In addition to those measures, we inspect the outside of your home to determine what needs to be sealed on the outside of your home to help prevent pests from entering. All of our pest control solutions involve the integrated pest management approach where we combine the ethical application of pesticide with a common sense stance on prevention and habitat controls.

Our approach with Silverfish Control is identical to every bug that we manage .
• We perform a thorough inspection.
• Determine what is the target species
• Devise a game plan .

With our Pest Control Division, We adhere to an “Integrated Pest Management (IPM)” principle & philosophy which simply means we use a common-sense approach.

SILVERFISH CONTROL MEASURES

To prevent a silverfish infestation, eliminate sources of excessive dampness in places that have possibly loose-fitting pipes or faulty plumbing, bathrooms and other areas of high condensation & moisture . Silverfish love the humidity. Silverfish cannot survive inside buildings in low relative humidity, so take measures to reduce it by using a dehumidifier. The goal should be a relative humidity below 50% year-round.

Reduce food sources & clutter .   Regularly vacuum the crevices & cracks . Remove easily accessible food sources such as flour, cereals, and pet foods by storing pantry food in   tight containers.

It is common to find Silverfish in the basement areas & attics . They eat the glue on the boxes and book bindings. They may feed on surface molds found on cardboard boxes found in damp basements or attics. Silverfish naturally live outside under stones, rocks, and leaf debris . They prefer warm temperatures. Remove any possible harborage areas such as wood piles or mounds of leaves or debris near your home . Keep gutters debris-free .

We can also take steps to provide a quote for standard exclusion techniques such as caulking cracks and crevices. But there are also steps the homeowner can take to prevent entry… such as making sure screens are tight fitting and the use of weather stripping around windows and doors.

Our approach with Spider Control is identical to every pest that we handle.
• We perform a thorough inspection.
• Determine / Confirm the target pest.
• Devise a strategy.

Most of our Quarterly or Bi-Monthly visits for our standard pest control applications include measures (dusting) to keep spiders off & out of your home.  Spiders are considered a beneficial pest because of their prey on other insects Because spiders have eight legs, they are easy to separate from insects, which have only six legs. Another distinction between spiders and other pests is that spiders do not have wings or antennae. Spiders are arachnids.

Spider Habitat

They can be found in upper corners of attics and rooms , nooks & crannies as well as sub-floor air-vents. Spiders prefer to hide in dark areas and in cracks as a retreat in order to construct material for their webs. Keep this in mind … every “cobweb” was made by a spider.

Rather than pasting a picture of every spider we have in our area, we decided to let you google the images. Please check out a website of spiders seen in Georgia: Spider ID

Black Widow Spider
• Size: Around 1 ½ inches
• Color: Glossy jet-black.
• IDENTIFICATION: Black Widow spiders have a distinct bright-red, hourglass shape on the underside of its abdomen. Black widows create the largest webs of all the web-spinning spiders. However, we have seen some impressive webs from Golden Orbs.

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Brown Recluse Spider
• Size: Less than the size of a quarter.
• Color: This poisonous spider varies in color from a beige color to a brownish – dark brown.
• IDENTIFICATION: You can identify a Brown Recluse spider by the violin-shaped pattern on its neck. It looks like many other species of non-threatening spiders, so the indicative sign of a Brown Recluse spider is that only has 6 eyes. Their eyes are set part in three pairs along the face.