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Integrated Pest Management,
Some Things We Are Doing
Introduction
Unwanted insects, rodents, birds and animals that get into homes,
offices, restaurants and other structures are known as structural pests.
Our company, PES Professional Ecological Services Ltd., specializes in
the control of structural pests. Whenever possible, we use a
least-chemical or Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach to the pest
control services we offer.
Integrated Pest Management
is an approach that emphasizes prevention of pest problems and the use of
least-toxic controls. IPM programs follow a decision-making approach to
managing pests, starting with making sure pests are correctly identified.
In an IPM program, treatments are only applied according to need as shown
by a monitoring program. One or more types of treatment may be combined in
an IPM program to provide the desired level of control and to prevent
future pest problems.
The 5 components of an IPM program are:
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Identification
- it is important to correctly
identify the pest so the correct controls can be used.
Monitoring
-one or more inspections are done to
determine the extent of the infestation, and may require the use of
sampling tools such as sticky traps
Action Decisions
- then, after the information is
collected, treatments are made only when and where monitoring shows they
are needed
Treatments
- treatments can be preventive measures
and/or control measures. A number of different types of treatments may be
used
Evaluation
- this step is done to make sure the
treatments worked
There is a lot we can do with IPM in structures. We are
really only limited by people's expectations that all of the pests be
eliminated right now, and by their ability and willingness to pay
for IPM services. People are used to the cheap, fast results that
pesticide use can offer.
Our most successful IPM programs are for existing
carpenter ant, rodent, silverfish or cockroach problems. These IPM
programs are all cost competitive with traditional pesticide-only programs
and often provide even better control than pesticides alone.
Our IPM program for fleas is also very effective.
Unfortunately, flea IPM costs more than traditional spraying and it takes
longer to eliminate the fleas. Our customers, therefore, usually only
accept it in situations where minimal pesticide use is essential.
Following is a brief outline of our IPM programs for
carpenter ants, rats and mice, silverfish, cockroaches, and fleas.
Carpenter Ant Control Using Integrated Pest
Management
A. Search for carpenter ant attractions. There are many things that can attract carpenter ants to a
building. We identify these attractions and recommend ways to eliminate
them. Elimination of these attractions is very important for long-term
carpenter ant control.
B. Search for carpenter ants' nests. Carpenter ants usually have more than one nest site. We
spend a lot of time following ants in order to locate their nests.
Sometimes we must do this work at night when the ants are most active.
Unfortunately nests can be in tree roots, in dense woods, on neighbouring
properties or inside walls and can be impossible to find.
C. Eliminate carpenter ants' nests that we find.
When we can find and get at a nest, it is easy to
eliminate it. If we know that a nest is inside a wall, we will probably
recommend that we open the wall to get at the nest. Once accessible, most
of the ants in the nest can be vacuumed out and the remaining ants killed
with a low toxicity insecticide.
If we cannot find a nest, we try to eliminate it by
applying appropriate insecticides in the areas the ants walk.
D. Install a Teflon® barrier on the foundation of the
building. The Teflon barrier is too slippery for the ants to walk
across. It prevents the ants from getting into the house after looking for
food and prevents them from moving in from nearby nests.
E. Spray areas outside the house where the Teflon cannot
be installed. Most buildings have some areas where the Teflon barrier
cannot be installed. These areas must be protected with an insecticidal
barrier.
F. Maintain the outside of the house so that carpenter
ants find it unattractive and difficult to enter the house. After the initial carpenter ant control work is done, it
is very important that the house be maintained to prevent the ants from
reentering. At least once each month during the summer we check and clean
the Teflon barrier, reapply Teflon where it is needed, reapply the
insecticide barrier where it is needed, and check that vegetation growing
near the house does not bridge the barriers.
Rat and
Mouse Control
Using Integrated Pest Management
A. Inspect. We
look for things that attract rats and mice to the property and for ways
the rodents can get into the building. We then either correct these
problems, or make recommendations on how our customer can correct them.
B. Trap. We use
snap traps to catch the rats or mice. We use between 12 and 36 traps in a
typical house although we have used as many as 300 traps in a single
building. Using traps eliminates any chance of poisoning non-target
organisms. It also enables us to remove the dead bodies so that there are
no decay-odour problems or problems with insects that could feed on the
bodies. We usually make between 3 and 6 visits to a building over a 2 to 4
week period to maintain the traps.
When we are trapping rats, the traps are usually baited
but left unset for a few days so that the rats overcome their fear of the
traps. Once the rats begin accepting the bait in the traps, the traps are
set. In mouse control work, this "pre-baiting" is usually not
necessary.
C. Bait. In rare
situations where the rats or mice have become trap-shy, we will use
poisoned baits to kill the rodents that we cannot catch in traps. Poisoned
baits are used only as a last resort. Whenever they are used, great care
is taken to ensure that there is no chance of children or pets contacting
the bait. Poisoned baits are always removed once the rats and mice have
been eliminated.
D. Maintenance.
In high-risk situations we provide a follow-up preventive maintenance
service. We maintain the property so it is unattractive to rats and mice,
inspect areas likely to become infested, and maintain traps and/or bait
stations as required.
Cockroach Control Using Integrated
Pest Management
A. Identify.
There are many types of cockroaches, each with its own preferred habits
and habitat. It is very important to know the species of pest cockroach.
B. Inspect and Trap .
We use sticky traps and a good flashlight to help us locate areas where
cockroaches are living. We also look for things that attract cockroaches
and recommend ways to correct them. Once we know where the cockroaches
are, we can plan appropriate controls.
C. Treat. The
treatment we use depends on the type of cockroach, where it is, and how
many there are. Sometimes baits can be very effective. Other times
diatomaceous earth, amorphous silica gel or boric acid dusts can be used.
Only rarely are "traditional" pesticides used and then only in
tiny amounts.
D. Monitor.
Following the treatment traps are reinstalled to monitor for the presence
of cockroaches. The traps are checked regularly and further treatments
performed as appropriate.
Flea Control Using Integrated
Pest Management
A. Thorough vacuuming.
The first step is to remove many of the fleas and much of the food that
young fleas eat. We combine the use of a special high-suction vacuum and
our knowledge of flea habits to make this a very effective first step in a
flea control program.
B. Apply Precor®.
Precor®
is a flea growth regulator that stops the development of immature fleas.
It is sprayed onto floor areas where immature fleas are likely to be
living.
C. Install several flea traps.
Flea traps serve three purposes:
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to catch adult fleas before they bite
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to check on the effectiveness of the control work
-
to help us accurately locate areas fleas are living
D. Repeat the high-suction vacuuming
twice more at one-week intervals. Each time we vacuum we collect more
fleas and more of the dried blood the young feed on.
E. Check the flea traps
at the time of each vacuuming, replace the sticky pads if needed, and move
the traps if necessary. This ensures that the traps are always working
well.
F. Perform other control work needed.
If additional work is needed at the end of the first two weeks, we
continue with the vacuuming and trapping work and/or apply appropriate
insecticides in areas where our traps catch fleas. Insecticide use can
usually be restricted to very small areas.
G. Pet maintenance.
We discuss with our customers the importance of maintaining good flea
control on their pets.
Silverfish
and Firebrat Control Using Integrated
Pest Management
A. Inspect. We
look for conditions that contribute to the silverfish problem. We then
either correct these conditions, or make recommendations on how our
customer can correct them.
B. Trap. We use
sticky traps to catch silverfish. Trapping can be used alone as a control
measure or as a method of determining where silverfish are most common.
C. Treat. When
insecticides are needed, we select appropriate materials for the
particular situation. Often non-toxic diatomaceous earth can be used to
provide excellent control. Other times an odourless insecticide can be
used. The insecticide is applied into cracks and crevices where silverfish
hide so that people are not exposed to it.
D. Maintenance.
In high-risk situations we provide a follow-up service. Traps are used to
monitor for the pests and to help us determine when and where additional
control work is needed.
Thanks for visiting http://www.pestvictoria.com
PES Professional Ecological Services Ltd.
98-B Burnside Road West, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
V9A 1B5
Phone: (250) 383-2445
Fax: (250) 383-6775
e-mail: services@pestvictoria.com
We provide professional integrated pest
management (IPM) services, a high-tech form of pest control. We are called
professional pest managers, not exterminators or fumigators. We provide
pest management, not extermination or fumigation. Excluding pests before they
cause a pest offence is a good example of IPM at work.
If You Need Professional
Services from Your Pest Control and
Pest
Management Experts,
for pests in Greater Victoria, British Columbia (B.C. or BC), Canada
Contact Us Now!
© Copyright PES Professional Ecological Services Ltd.
May 2003
contact webmaster at: services@pestvictoria.com
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