Fire ants are not just annoying critters that can be found in any ordinary backyard, however, they can be a real threat. If you accidentally tripped over their mound, you will certainly call out to the highest heavens because the painful sting they inflicted on you can last for up to several excruciating weeks. And not only that, the stung area will also leave you a marker, a scar reminding you how brutal these ant species can be. Due to this reason, a pest control company offering serious fire ant extermination in Waterloo is needed.
If you will ask out any gardener in Canada, they will vouch for you that there really is no scarcity of control methods for fire ants. It is just that this ant species is so savage and yet there are only a few effective methods that you can employ to destroy them. If this should be the case, the looming question on the horizon now is, should we resort to the use of pesticides which may contain noxious components? My quick and sure answer is NO. There are a plenty of non-toxic methods that you can try on your own if you want to go the DIY approach first. Bucketing This strategy is among the simplest to do if you are just going to deal with 1 or 2 colonies of fire ants. In this method, you will just need to dig up the mound at about a foot or so and then dump everything into just one or maybe two buckets. But before you even start I suggest that you sprinkle a significant amount of baby powder or some cornstarch so as to prevent the ants from climbing off the shovel and the bucket. I also want to suggest that you tuck your pants into your socks, this way you will immediately see if there are any fire ants getting their way to you. For best results, try working this strategy out on a daytime when most of the fire ants are on the mound. If you caught this up in spring, the best time for you to do this is during mid - late morning. If you are planning to try this technique instead of on a summer, it would be best to do it early in the morning. The moment that you have shoveled a big part of the mound into a large bucket, you can start pouring water mixed with generous amounts of liquid detergent solution. This would help drown the fire ants that you have put into the bucket container from the mound. Try to achieve the consistency of a puddle mud to maximize the results. Normally, fire ants will get drowned from this solution overnight. The purpose of the soap or detergent solution here is to break the surface tension, hence, fire ants will drown as they will have no way of breathing through it. The summer heat will make the fire ants drown faster as compared to doing it on an early spring morning, which takes some time for them to drown. As much as possible try not to fill your bucket more than three-quarters of mound and ants, to allow an amount of space for water when you fill it in. Hot Water Some people will have a hard time with the bucketing method because not many people can shovel the mounds of earth into a bucket. But don’t worry because there is a better alternative to this. Instead of using detergent solution to inundate the collected mound and ants on your bucket, you can make use of hot water as a substitute. Nothing can be more effective in killing fire ants than the use of hot water, as a matter of fact, this method is also environment-friendly because it won’t have any harsh impact to the environment. However, have patience when using hot water treatment instead because you may have to have 3-4 to pourings in your bucket in order to completely scald the contained ants. This will lead to best results.The water you will be using for this strategy need not be necessarily boiling water but really hot enough to scald the fire ants. Be very careful though and take extra caution when trying this technique to avoid accidental water spills. Hot water spills may cause you to have severe skin burns, and you don’t want that to happen to you. Diatomaceous Earth With this type of ant extermination strategy, it will make use of silica which is supposed to scratch the ant’s cuticle so as to cause it to become dehydrated and it will die. You may take a colony of fire ants in a bag, shake them up in diatomaceous earth and certainly, you will find that half of them will die in no time. However, if you try to use this technique on fire ants outside the bag, they will try to avoid it and thus find a way to escape, too. Hence, there would be fewer numbers of exterminated fire ants eventually. Steam Injectors Not many people know that there exist today machinery that can be used as steam injectors. The steam being produced by these machines are lethal to insects including fire ants. As a matter of fact, they are being used today in most farms populated by fire ants. Church grounds and open spaces that are near residential communities are also taking advantage of this technology to help them address their pest infestation problems including fire ants. However, there is one drawback of this technique if you are not going to take caution when employing it. It may cause serious damage to your shrubbery and plants. Therefore, you need to have calculated action so that your grass and shrubbery will not get caught in the way of it. These are just some of the high impacting DIY techniques you can try in the absence of professional pest control firm. But you may also come across a number of strategies that I suggest you dare not try anymore because they are not going to yield any positive results. It will just lead to frustration because they will not meet your expectations. Here are some of them just so you know why. Mixing Colonies This type of DIY approach is ineffective. The idea behind this approach is that by mixing together at least two colonies, the worker ants from these two groups will engage in a deadly fight against each other. It is hoped that the battle will eventually lead to wiping out at least one of the colonies. However, you can’t expect it to be so. While the worker ants from two opposing ant groups will indeed fight each other, it is very seldom that it will lead to the annihilation of one colony. Straw Itch Mites There are a number of controlled studies that seem to indicate that there could be moderate benefits if you will release straw itch mites on a fire ant colony. But there are a few studies that show none at all. Household Cleaning Products I believe that most of the household cleaning products that we will attempt to use for this purpose will yield no positive results at all. Instead of exterminating fire ants, these regular cleaning products that we are under the impression of being exterminating them will just act as a repellant. Hence, it will cause these fire ants to dispel instead and scatter. Usually, this will lead them to build another nest instead. In a way, you are just causing the problem and their ant population to spread even more. Sonic Vibrators In all honesty, I have not come across one device of this nature that actually works. The last time that I tried out a product of this type, fire ants started to move in again after a month. The weather then was already cold, while I observed that the vibrating rod was actually warm, working and nice. Exhaust Fumes Some people may even suggest to you to at least try a more radical approach to eradicating fire ants in your property. One of which is to make use of exhaust fumes from your car engine or lawn mower, pumping them into the fire ant mounds. I tried this technique myself some time ago. At first, I was in awe that it did actually work, the ants that climbed out of the mound due to exhaust fumes being pumped into their mound were motionless as if dead. Anyone who would witness that would be under the impression that the fumes killed the fire ants, however, after about 30-45 minutes the motionless fire ants suddenly moved and thus in no time they were back to being active again. It is as if nothing happened. Therefore, I concluded that exhaust fumes will not cause any serious damage to fire ants except that it will just cause them to become inactive for a short period of time. I completely understand how difficult your situation is when you are faced with a fire ant infestation problem, where your kids and anyone in your household could be at risk of being stung by them at any given chance. It may require you to have a good amount of patience when trying to find a reputable pest control firm offering ant extermination in Waterloo. A good research skill is necessary for this purpose.
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If you are under the impression that residential properties are the only ones prone to pest infestation, you are dead wrong because there is no truth in that. Your workplace and many other commercial establishments are not in any way exempt from the sometimes vicious attacks of common household pests that we know. Although a big percentage of these infestations in commercial establishments are mostly due to the wrong practices that the occupants of the building are accustomed to; they are most of the time oblivious of the fact that what they’re doing can engender pest attack such as termites and rodents. After all, these critters won’t mind whether they are infesting a residential house or a commercial property instead. For as long as they are able to have good access to their food source, they are good to go.
The outset of the warmer days in Canada will also mark the commencing of activity for most of our dreaded pesky critters like termites, aphids, ants, and many more. Each and every year, as we witness the transition of the season from winter to welcome the anticipated spring season, we will also observe that there is a significant rise on the incidence of pest infestation not just in many households but in commercial establishments and office buildings, too. In the workplace, we usually hear that some of them are infested with ants, rats, cockroaches, raccoons, and many more. Such kind of infestations poses greater challenge to any pest control and management professionals. The great volume of traffic of people coming in and out of the establishment is one of the sticky points that they have to overcome. Basically, this is one aspect that makes addressing the issue of pest infestation in the workplace more challenging. Tell-tale Signs of Possible Pest Infestation in the Workplace One can only understand the dangers of having pest infestation in an office setting when they know the possible harm they can bring. As the old saying goes, “prevention is the best remedy than any cure”. Here are some of the common indicators to watch out for to ensure that your commercial establishment is clear of annoying critters:
Cleanliness Comes First - Nothing beats having a clean workstation all the time. This measure will not cost you anything yet it is one of the most effective ways in which you can keep cockroaches, mice or raccoons from invading your commercial establishments or office spaces. Inculcate good discipline to everyone in your office or business center, encouraging them to observe a spic and span computer table and work area all the time will get them into the habit in due time. These pesky critters are invading your office or commercial space simply because they have found something in there which they are in dire need of, food. If they are able to source food from your office, they are bound to stay there for as long as they could. Take out what they need and they will try to find somewhere else. Unattend nuggets, crumbs and pieces of food droppings like biscuits, leftover sandwiches, candies and sweets, chips and all will invite all sorts of pesky insects and animals to your workplace. Rodents and cockroaches can easily find their way to whatever leftover food you may have especially when they are left unattended or not stored in a securely tight food container. Get Rid of Unwanted Water Source If there is an unattended water source in a commercial establishment or office building, this can invite neighboring insects and pests to come near by, especially rodents and termites. Rodents and termites are the usual pests found not only in households but even in commercial establishments and office spaces. These pests are difficult to extinguish on your own efforts alone, not unless you enlist the services of a reputable pest control company. But in the absence of a pest management team that you can rely on, removing water source, from which they can thrive on should be your first step in addressing them. It may not completely drive them away but will somehow reduce their activity. This water source I am talking about could be just about anything, but usually it would be from a leaky faucet or leaking water pipes. Often these are hidden from sight, so you will have to make an effort of inspecting your vicinity for any possible leaky pipes. Air conditioning drain is also another common source of water. Make sure that it is creating puddle outside, otherwise you are creating one for rodents and mice. Inspect and Check Out Your Office Plants Office plants are not just good embellishment to a rather bland office space in a building but without anyone tending to them, they can harbor insects and pests without you being aware of it. It is never wrong to have an indoor plant in your commercial or office spaces, but see to it that there is somebody who looks after them not just to water them on a daily basis but to inspect on them if they are harboring small insects already. Mosquitoes are unlikely to be there if you seldom open your office doors and windows but what could possibly be in hiding underneath its foliage would be tiny, winged insects that are somewhat similar to fruit flies. Did you know that fungus gnats are a common sight in commercial and office spaces where indoor plants are kept? Their presence is attributed to incorrect watering of indoor plants. Therefore, it is important that there is a dedicated person charged to overseeing your indoor plants. And should there be this kind of infestation already, advise the assigned person regarding this problem. One remedy you can do on your own to prevent hatching of an egg to your soil on your plant box is to cover it with a layer of sand. Regularly Clean Out Your Perimeter It is a common tendency of everyone to focus their attention on the inside or the interior of their commercial or office space when it comes to addressing pest infestation and prevention. They are oblivious of the fact that they also need to check out their exterior areas if they seriously want to keep pests and nuisance animals at bay. The exterior spaces of your establishment is just as important as its interior, therefore you also need to pay attention to those also. Special mention here would be those commercial establishments that have a dedicated outdoor space where their staff and employees could go about and eat their snacks. Remember, nuggets, pieces and crumbs of food can be scavenged by these critters after you left off. However small these food particles are, a tiny insect can have his fill from that. Therefore, it is crucial that you not give them a chance to scavenge for food scraps. If there is nothing for them to eat, they won’t be around. Proper Disposal of Rubbish Items This is a given and very much self-explanatory. All rubbish items in the office and commercial establishments must be disposed off at the soonest possible time. Much like the practice that we have in our homes, as much as possible we don’t like to keep junk. While it is understandable that these items can’t be disposed off immediately due to variety of reasons, one must ensure that they are tightly sealed. This will help keep away scavenging animals and insects from getting hold of it. Store them for several days and it will begin to emit a foul smelling odor. What is disgusting to our nose is sweet-smelling to rodents, cockroaches, flies, and other crawling insects you can imagine. If you have a business establishment or commercial space under your care, you understand the weight of responsibility in keeping it clean all the time. Otherwise, rodents, mice, raccoons and all sorts of other pesky animals would be keeping themselves comfy in your workstations, computer tables, and file cabinets. You can’t afford to have pests lurking in your workplace. If you allow them on their natural course of foraging and reproductive activity, you are running the risk of exposing your staff and employees to illness of all sorts. One person in your staff who fell ill for whatever reason can cause serious delay in delivery and execution of work in your business. They may have to file a leave of absence until they recuperate. When that happens, it means decline in productivity and loss of opportunity for your company. Revenue is at stake also. As you see, your employees’ health and general well being are far too important if you want to keep your business up and running. It is important that you keep everything in check and ensure that nothing is on their way that will make them fall ill or anything similar to that. And keeping pests out of from your business is a serious concern, too. It is imperative that you know the first tell-tale signs of presence of insects and animals because for all you know it might be a pest infestation already. If that happens you need to enlist the services and help of a qualified commercial pest control company immediately. These professionals are the only group of people who can deliver your expected results if you want to extinguish them for good. There is no shortcut to it if you are looking for a term effect in getting rid of common pests. |
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