Pest Control Vancouver BC involves managing pests to protect crops, property, and people. This is done through monitoring, inspection, identification, and control methods.
Remove sources of food, water, and shelter. Store foods in sealed containers and keep garbage cans tightly closed.
Check and seal cracks that pests might use to enter the house—Caulk and patch where necessary.
Prevention
The best way to deal with pests is to prevent them from entering your home or business in the first place. While this isn’t always easy, there are several things you can do to minimize the risk of an infestation.
Keep Storage Areas Clean
Keeping closets, basements, and other storage areas neat and tidy can help prevent pests from gaining access to your belongings. Remove trash regularly from these areas and make sure to have a tight-fitting lid on your garbage can at all times. It’s also a good idea to vacuum out closets and other storage spaces occasionally to eliminate dust, dirt, and other potential breeding grounds for pests.
Seal Cracks and Holes
A common cause of pests like termites, ants, and rodents getting inside homes is that they use cracks, holes, or crevices as entry points. These openings can be caused by weather and wear, but you should do your best to patch them up as soon as you notice them. This includes filling in gaps around windows and doors, sealing the crawl space under your house, and repairing damaged siding or roofing.
Remove Sources of Food, Water and Shelter
Ants, cockroaches, fleas, mice and other pests are all attracted to food, water and shelter sources. One of the easiest ways to deter them is to reduce these sources by storing food in containers with tight-fitting lids, removing trash regularly and fixing leaky pipes or guttering. It is also a good idea to regularly check your property for signs of pests, such as droppings and cracks in the walls, roof or foundation.
Pests carry diseases and can contaminate food, so they are not only nuisances, but they can pose health risks as well. In addition, they can damage your property and create an unsafe environment for you and your family or employees.
It’s important to remember that even when you follow all of these tips, pest problems can still occur. That’s why it’s a good idea to hire a pest control company. They will be able to help you find the right prevention strategies and get rid of your pest problem once and for all.
Control
Some pests are difficult to control, particularly those that fly, sting, carry disease, or destroy food or other plants. Biological controls such as parasites, predators, and pathogens help manage pests. These natural enemies can be introduced to a pest population, though there is often a lag between the increase in enemy numbers and the decrease in pest populations. Altering the environment by changing soil conditions, for example through mulching or steam sterilization, can also control some pests.
Physical methods of pest control kill or block the pests, and include traps, screens, barriers, and fences. Devices that change the environment, for example through radiation or electricity, can also be used to control some pests.
Pest proofing a home or building can be a cost effective way to deal with an existing problem. This includes sealing cracks and crevices, caulking or plastering where needed, installing weather stripping on doors and windows, putting in drain screens for sinks and tubs, and repairing torn window screens. It also includes removing food and water sources by clearing garbage regularly and storing it in sealed containers.
Using baits to kill pests is a common form of chemical pest control. They are designed to minimize the risk of people ingesting poison and can be very effective for some pests. They can be especially helpful in situations where pests are hiding in hard-to-reach places, like behind the fridge or under the kitchen sink.
Chemical pesticides can also be used to kill or block a pest, but should only be applied in accordance with the pesticide’s label instructions and safety warnings. These chemicals should be kept out of the reach of children and pets.
It’s a good idea to consult a professional pest control service to shoulder the responsibilities of figuring out what kind of treatment is best, what products and equipment are required, and when and where to apply them. This will save you time and money, and lessen the chance of harming the environment or your customers’ plants, animals or health by misapplying a product. The fewer pesticides that are used, the better.
Detection
A pest problem can cause food contamination, property damage, and discomfort to people and pets. It can also be costly if you have to dispose of contaminated goods or lose money because you are not able to sell your produce.
The earlier pests are detected, the more effective preventive and control measures will be. In some cases, pests can be difficult to identify and may be hard to distinguish from non-infesting animals. For example, the young of some species of insects look different from mature adults and can be very similar to weed seedlings. Incorrect identification of pests can lead to the wrong type of management tactic being used.
Detecting pest problems can be done through regular scouting, identifying, and assessing pest populations and their damage. This can help you decide whether or not pest control is necessary. It can also provide valuable information about the pest, such as its life cycle and population dynamics.
Non-living evidence that you may have a pest infestation can include droppings, urine stains, nesting materials, chew marks, and damage. For example, gnaw marks on furniture or electrical wires can indicate a rodent or termite problem. Finding shredded paper or fabric in odd places can also be an indication that rodents are around, while uneven grass lengths and circular brown patches on the lawn may signal a mole problem.
Depending on the pest, early detection of pests may be assisted by monitoring for pheromones or other signs in or near the pest habitat. The use of electronic sensors that monitor temperature, movement, moisture and sound may also improve detection.
In addition to scouting, the use of insect traps is an important tool in pest detection. The state’s statewide network of traps helps protect home gardens, local agricultural crops, and parks from unwanted pests such as exotic fruit flies (particularly species of Bactrocera, Dacus, Ceratitis and Anastrepha), Japanese beetle, light brown apple moth, khapra beetle, spongy moth, and flighted spongy moth. Identifying these pests as early as possible reduces the need for chemical pest controls.
Treatment
Pests can cause serious damage to homes and businesses. They can also pose health risks. For example, rodents can carry diseases like hantavirus, leptospirosis and salmonella. They can also gnaw wires and destroy property. Pest control can help protect people, pets and property from the harm caused by pests.
Preventing pest problems is best, but when prevention fails, there are a variety of treatment options. Often the first step in pest control is to remove their food, water and shelter. Sealing cracks and crevices can prevent pests from entering the home or business. Regularly removing trash cans and cleaning up food scraps can also prevent pests from finding these things. Fixing leaky pipes and repairing damaged structures can also prevent pests from living or breeding inside buildings.
Occasionally, pests must be controlled with chemical products. However, the goal of pest control should be to cause as little harm as possible to the environment and people. This can be done by using only the minimum amount of chemicals necessary, selecting and applying pesticides that are designed for the intended pest and following all label instructions. In addition, by carefully choosing and placing traps or baits where the pests are found (rather than spraying surfaces), and by limiting exposure to pesticides (by closing doors and windows when treating rooms and by not using surface sprays around entry points), it is possible to minimize the use of toxic chemicals.
Integrated pest management, or IPM, is an ecosystem-based strategy that uses non-toxic methods to keep pests away from homes and business and avoids the need for chemical controls. In IPM, long-term prevention is achieved through a combination of techniques such as habitat manipulation, modification of cultural practices, and biological control. Pesticides may be used only after monitoring indicates they are needed, and only when the target pest is present and at a level that will result in unacceptable harm. IPM includes a pest identification service (Museums Victoria). The service can be requested by calling or using the online form. This is especially helpful if you think the pest you have is not listed or the description doesn’t match the problem you are experiencing.