Hamlet, I would not spray for roaches. I would use a bait in a gel formulation. It looks like peanut butter and comes in a syringe-type applicator so it can be injected into the cracks and crevices where roaches hide.
One of the dastardly habits of roaches is to drop an egg case (if they’re carrying one) when they are sprayed. Egg cases will hatch in about 30 days, with the end result being that for every one roach you kill with a spray, several dozen will take its place in a month. Baits, however, use their natural instincts against them. They are eating machines, and injecting bait right where they’ll come across it first is so insidious, it gives me great joy. Plus, roaches are cannibalistic. So they’ll eat a dead roach when they come across it, and if that roach died of poisoning…heh heh heh.
You might ask the exterminator to spray Gentrol, which is an insect growth regulator for roaches. It has no effect on any other organisms, but it affects their ability to mate. That, coupled with baiting, should help a lot. But give it time. A roach infestation can take several months and several applications to solve.
Spavined Gelding, I’m unfamiliar with Asian Soya Bean Aphid Beetles. Frankly, they sound like a species of the garden-variety lady bug, albeit with a few nastier habits. Lady bugs are beetles, and they prey on aphids. Same difference, no? I’d call your local cooperative extension and ask them about it, if I were you.
As far as Box Elder Beetles go, there’s not much you can do there, either, short of locating the tree they call home and chopping it down. Spraying the outside of the house (especially the side where the sun hits the most) might maybe create an aversion factor, and also kill some of the ones that land there. It would pretty definitely keep them from getting inside the house. But there are some things for which there are no easy solutions.
Eliphalet, sealing the obvious access points is always a good idea. You could also keep traps in the crawlspace in the event they find another way in. Provided the cats don’t traffic in there, the traps won’t hurt anything by their presence, and it may save you some grief. The only other alternative is placing locked bait stations along the outside wall. I would recommend that you have a professional do this, since liability could be an issue, and there may be specific methods of anchoring the stations dictated by law, which a pro would know and you wouldn’t. An ounce of prevention, don’t you know.
This raises the question, though, of whether the restaurant has a regular pest control service. Laws differe from state to state (and even county to county), but in my neck of the woods, any food service establishment is required to have pest control, or they’ll be shut down by the Board of Health. Since the restaurant’s dumpster is contributing to the rat problem, the onus may fall on them. It’s worth checking out.
As far as pigeons go, I don’t really do bird control. But I know that bird spikes are available online. Since they’re non-toxic and non-chemical, they should be available to unlicensed folk such as yourself. Whether such a treatment is appropriate for an awning is for you to decide.
Interesting name, Eliphalet. I had a forefather named David Eliphalet Scott. Fortunately, my folks decided to name me David.
WomanofScorn, you’ve gone and given away the industry’s best-kept secret! Yeah, most of the stuff we use is pretty much available over the counter. Frankly, it’s training and experience that makes a pest tech more effective.
The wasps may be nesting inside a wall. Or behind siding, or wherever there is a gap on the ouside of the house. Not to scandalize anyone, but pretty much every house is chock full of tiny holes and cracks and openings that don’t compromise their integrity as houses, but which do provide the window of opportunity that insects seek. Wasps and other flying social insects try to build their nests in protected areas. Constructing a nest under a deck, or behind a window shutter allows them easy access, but keeps them fairly safe from birds and other predators. I often find them nesting inside walls and behind siding.
Observe them as they swarm outside the house. They probably have a single focal point, and if you watch long enough, you’ll probably see where they’re entering and exiting. Once you’ve found that place, wait until sunset. That’s when most of them have returned to the nest for the night. Then take a dust formulation labelled for wasps and poof it into the hole, or whatever access point you found. Be careful, because you may stir a few and they may fly out, so take care not to get stung, and if you’re on a ladder, watch your step. But if you were successful in hitting the nest, the problem should be solved within 24 hours.
HoldOnThere, if the silverfish are in the upstairs rooms, they’re probably coming from the attic. If possible, I would recommend buying a couple of cans of fogger and setting them off in the attic. Read the label to make sure you’re using enough for the square footage you’re treating. Such over the counter foggers have effective insecticides, but are not residual sprays, and when used in a closed space, will not contaminate areas outside the treated space. Read and follow label directions, especially if you store things in the attic. More than one application will probably be necessary. Every three weeks for about nine weeks should do it.
nyctea scandiaca, the ants aren’t coming from the drain. They going to the drain. They’re attracted to the water remaining there. I would spray or dust in the wall voids under and around the sink and tub. As far as the crickets go, it’s easy for little insects like that to find a suitable crack to crawl through. Some glueboards will catch a few of them, and if you have access to the basement or crawlspace, I’d recommend a granular bait set out in little plastic trays here and there.
Velma, the termite problem in west Michigan isn’t as dire as in, say, Georgia or Louisiana, but there are termites out there.
Getting an inspection every five years or so isn’t a bad idea. You could get an inspection every couple of years if it makes you sleep better. Just remember, termite “inspectors” are really salespeople, and they offer free inspections to get their foot in the door. If they find something, they can point it out to you and hopefully get a sale. If they don’t find something, they’ll tell you that termites are in your neighborhood (which they probably are), and that a preventive treatment is a good idea.
Meh.
Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. Termites can show up any time in any house, but I don’t know if that justifies shelling out the money for the treatment and then paying the annual contract renewal. Again, if it makes you sleep better knowing you’ve had it done, you might as well. But if you have the house inspected every two or three years, if termites get in, they won’t cause too much damage before you catch it.
) in reference to my latest info and queries, cheers again.
. And these “morning ants” are possibly the ones i left alone last night (although there were only 2 when i left for bed).