This Month's Topic!   Rodents

Are you hearing scratching and clawing sounds in the attic or walls?  Yep, you probably have rats.  They like to come into your home when the weather turns cool or when the rains start to fall heavily.

Some people panic when they find out they have rats, and others just fool themselves into thinking they are just “hearing things” or that the noise will just go away.  I’m here to tell you - rodents won’t go away on their own, and your attic is a perfect breeding environment.  After the rats get comfortable in your attic, they will soon find your pantry.  Then the nuisance becomes a health issue for you and your family.


What can you do?

You can call a professional animal/critter control company and the problem will soon be gone, along with many hundreds of dollars from your wallet.  You can buy glue traps, poison boxes, snap traps, gloves, masks, and all the other things you will need to tackle the problem and go after it yourself.  If you take the latter approach, start doing your research now, because you will need to get educated on rat habits, their likes and dislikes, and all the other precautions you will need to do a safe and effective rodent control job.

The approach we take with our customers is that of a team.  First, we educate the customer on ways to make their home less desirable to the rodent – like removing food sources and cleaning up clutter areas that the rats like to hide in.  Then we find the points of entry and seal them.  After that, the nasty work begins – catching the rats. During the rat-catching process, we like to find out how much the customer is willing to do on their own – like emptying and resetting traps.  This can save the customer a lot of money, because we don’t have to make daily trips back out to check the traps.

Once we are confident that we have the entire infestation out of the home and have sealed up the last entry point, we then place a bait station outside.  This keeps the neighborhood population under control going forward.  These bait stations are designed to be safe for children, pets, and wildlife; they are sealed and are filled with an anticoagulant bait (a blood thinner, similar to what a doctor would give a heart patient).

This team approach can save the customer a lot of money and also gives the customer the satisfaction that they personally participated in the solution – even if that only consisted of calling us, and doing some much- needed spring cleaning.
 
Remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.  Do your part to keep pests out with caulking, weather stripping, and expanding foams. Don’t leave pet food out, put snug lids on trash cans, keep cooking areas clean, etc.  Always tackle developing problems before they get out of control, and use a pest control company that employs safer and more natural practices.
 

Visit us at  PestControlNaturally .com Visit us at PestControlNaturally.com Fun Facts!!!! Did you Know? A rat can squeeze through a hole the size of a quarter! And a mouse can fit through a hole the size of a dime!

Subterranean Termites   If you live in the Tampa Bay area and own a home, there are certain aspects of Mother Nature that are especially troubling. Lightning. Hurricanes. Subterranean Termites. The first two you really can’t do much about other than be aware of the weather and keep insurance premiums up-to-date. The last one – subterranean termites – causes more damage than the other two combined, and most insurance policies are not going to help pay for the damage if you get infested. What can be done  Prevention and maintenance are so vitally important in minimizing your risks as a homeowner. What can you do to protect your home? Subterranean Termites require moisture, unlike Drywood Termites (these are the ones you see houses tented for). So repair any leaks, make sure that water drains away from your foundation, install and maintain clean gutters, remove soil up against siding and stucco, and get an annual inspection and/or install a professional monitoring system. Above all, get an exterminator at first sign of mud tunnels or swarming. The swarming season is weather dependent, but is normally from late winter thru early spring. There are two main extermination approaches. Historically, a chemical vapor barrier was created around the house by pouring or injecting gaseous and toxic chemicals around the foundation. This necessitates the digging of a trench where possible and drilling holes in driveways, sidewalks, and pool decks. This chemical envelope around your home must not be disturbed, per the manufacturer. Planting new bushes or even sprinkling too close to the house can nullify many warranties. Then there is the Advantage way: Using environmentally safe bait stations, treated with growth hormones or agents that affect the digestion system of termites, to kill the entire colony. We then return frequently to monitor and refill or replace the stations. What's New at  Advantage Pest Control:    Our New Logo.This was chosen by you, our customers and Newsletter subscribers, thank you for taking our survey that we sent out. From: The Advantage Pest Control team.                            A Very Happy and Prosperous 2015 From Advantage Pest Control

The picture above is termite destruction, which dosn't take long once they start. This was from a job we were called out to last year 2014. Fun Facts! Did you know? The protein content of termites is higher than beef!!!!  Please visit our website at www.pestcontrolnaturally.com Share Tweet Forward Michael and Buddy (the famous termite-snffing and detecting hound) keeping you termite-free naturally.

Residential Pest Control

Florida provides an ideal breeding ground for ants, roaches, rats, fleas and many other nuisance pests.
ADVANTAGE PEST CONTROL With one goal of eliminating problematic pests before they appear, We offer a variety of service plans at fair prices to fit every homes needs.
We are people and pet friendly, a low toxicity solution to pest control.
we treat the outside of your home to build a protective barrier that keeps bugs in their natural habitat, and you in your bug free home.

ADVANTAGE PEST CONTROL FL. will tailor a pest control plan to meet the unique needs of your home. An application of pesticide is not always the answer. The safety of your family and pets is important to you and to us.

Each of our highly skilled technicians are professionally background checked and trained in the latest application methods, proper equipment use and maintenance, and will answer any questions you may have about the materials being used to treat the areas around and inside your home.

All plans come with our service warranty;
if you have a problem between scheduled service appointments, we will return at no additional cost to you.

Don't wait for them to get established in your home call
 your Clearwater - St.Petersburg pest Control today.

Ants will follow each other in a trail, using the scent of pheromones to accomplish this. You can follow the ant trail to find out where they are coming from and where they are going. These paths are what you will want to treat. The worker ants are the ones you will see most often. These workers will bring food back to the colony. They cannot actually eat the food themselves. Both the workers and the queen will eat a liquid by-product that the larvae produce when the food is fed to them. Baits are the most effective and safest way to kill ants but before you buy bait, you will want to see what the ants are eating. Most ants will eat sugar or protein based foods. Leave a little food out for the ants, sugar and protein based, so you can find out what they are eating. Once you know what your ants are eating, you can buy bait with the proper protein or sugar base. The worker ants will carry the bait back to the colony for the larvae. When the workers and the queen eat the by-product of the larvae, you will be reaching all stages of the ant at once. NiBan is bait that is mixed with Boric Acid. Boric Acid is about as safe as it gets. It has only half the toxicity of table salt. If you have very tiny ants you will want liquid bait. The liquid bait will consist of a simply syrup such as Taro with Boric Acid dissolved into it. You can use this the same way you would use granules.

How to Keep Bugs, Wasps, Bees and Mosquitos Away

How to Keep Bugs, Wasps, Bees and Mosquito's
Away From Your House and Yard

We deal with a lot of pests living here in Florida, but some are
considered more than a nuisance and possibly dangerous. People are often allergic to the sting of bees, wasps and hornets. Mosquitos can carry disease.


If anyone in your family is allergic to these types of bugs or if you
have children, you may be concerned about keeping them as far away as
possible.

How to Keep Bugs, Wasps, Bees and Mosquitos Away

ADVANTAGE PEST CONTROL FL

     Now Open (DIY STORE)     

You now can purchase online Baits, Dusts, Flea Control Kits,Roaches, Flies, Mosquitoes, Gnats, Crickets, Beetles, Ants Sprays and Safe for Pet Flea Repellents

We are continuing to grow and expand our services and products to meet the needs and desires of our customers, We Specializing in eco-friendly, safer, natural, and non-toxic pest control, termites, and lawns

Visit our Natural Pest Control Tips & Tricks Page

Essentria D         Price:$14.97

Item: 736211409980
Product Description: Safe and Effective Dust Insecticide - Replaces EcoSmart Exempt D

What it is:

The active ingredient in Essentria™ products is a proprietary combination of plant essential oils. Essential oils are present primarily in aromatic plants – those often used as herbs or for their scent. In these plants, essential oils serve many functions, including helping to regulate evaporation, attract specific insects for pollination, and, most importantly, defending the plant against insects and microorganisms.

When these essential oils are extracted from plants — a relatively straightforward process using steam — they can be used alone or in combination to formulate insect control products.

Essentria products use a combination of essential oils that match specific ‘markers’ in the target pest’s central nervous systems. The result: natural insecticide compounds that provide fast knockdown and outstanding control of a wide range of insects. With Essentria, there is no compromise between control and safety profile.

How it works

The essential oils that comprise the active ingredients in Essentria products work by disrupting neurotransmitter function in target insects. Neurotransmitters conduct nerve impulses between neurons (nerve cells) and other body parts, such as muscles. The neurotransmitter binds to a receptor site on the affected cell, and then is broken down and deactivated by enzymes.

Octopamine is an insect’s version of adrenaline.

In invertebrates, with their simpler nervous systems, a multi-functional chemical known as octopamine handles many of these functions.

By targeting octopamine receptors, essential oils provide insecticidal activity with a much wider margin of safety than other products. Because vertebrates like birds, fish, dogs and people don’t have octopamine receptors; they are not affected by the Essentria mode of action. And, by combining multiple essential oil compounds that have varied profiles, Essentria products provide highly effective control of a wide range of insect pests. The result is natural insect control with no compromises.
MSDS: Click Here
Product Label: Click Here

Drywood Termites And Carpenter Ants  Know the difference between Termites

And  Carpenter Ants 

Its very important!! to be able to know the difference between Drywood Termites and Carpenter Ants, as both swam about the same time each year - RIGHT NOW.  Here is a picture to show you the difference. Carpenter Ants  come in different sizes,shapes and colors, the smaller ones are sometimes mistaken for termites. But there are big differences between the two and how to handle them.

Physically the easiest way to tell the difference is that ants have clearly defined segments, so look for the pinched waste. Also, they normally don't drop their wings as quickly. So, if you find a bunch of dead bugs with wings on a window sill, it is likely to be ants, whereas with Drywood Termites there is more likely to be many wings and only a few dead bugs. Both will swarm to the light, so are often found flying towards windows because of the lights at night or a lamp or even a bright shinny tub or sink.

What they eat is quite different as well. Clearly, termites eat wood, but Carpenter Ants, contrary to popular belief, eat protein. They are called Carpenter Ants because in nature they normally make their homes in softer decaying wood. If you have water damaged wood, they are attracted to that and will often make a colony there, but have adapted well and find that insulation in our walls and attics are easy pickings for a nest.

The other signs to look for are their dropping. Drywood Termites will kickout pellets (frass) that are all exactly the same size and shape, although the color may be a dark brown or a light tan. Carpenter Ants frass will consist of dirt, pellets and bits and pieces of other dead bugs they have eaten. This frass is sometimes the only clue as to where the pests are living and can be most valuable information for your pest professional.

How to get rid of both

To get rid of Carpenter Ants, it is best to treat the exterior surface of the structure, so that the ants will cross over the product as they leave each evening to forage and again when returning home each morning. It they are living in an attic, it is good to power Eco-dust the attic and distribute protein based baits for them to take home to the family.

There are two common ways to treat for Drywood Termites. One is fumigation, often referred to as Tenting. The pros of this solution is that it is thorough. The cons are that it has no residual effects,  and is disruptive to the occupants, its also some what expensive and is toxic. The other common solution is to treat with sodium borates, an inorganic mineral that is sprayed onto and soaks into the wood and if eaten by a termite, it permanently disrupts their digestive protozoa - we kill them with constipation. The pros are that it is safe and Eco-friendly, very long lasting, there is no need to leave during the treatment and most often is cheaper than tenting. The cons are that it is only affective on wood can be reached, such as in an accessible attic, in garages and shed where the wood hasn't been painted, and misted into wall voids not filled with insulation. It can also be used for spot treatments directly into the "kickout holes" where they are pushing out their frass.

Don't fall for the "Orange Oil", snake oil come on. It is expensive and 90% of what they do is borates too. The process can do more damage than the termites.

Advantage specializes in using sodium borates as a tenting alternative. We will check out your situation at no charge and explore the best option for your situation. If tenting is the best solution, we will refer you to one of our partner companies that provides tenting at near wholesale prices for our customers.

Pest Control Tips & Tricks - Flea, Tick, Ants, Roaches

Natural Pest Control Tips & Tricks

A Natural Way to Get Rid of Fleas

Fleas are a major problem in Florida. If you live here in Florida and
own a cat or dog it is likely that you will have to contend with fleas
eventually.

If you want to get rid of fleas naturally it is important that you understand their life cycle
The adult flea only lives for 7-10 days. The adult will eat, mate,
lay eggs and die. That’s it. The eggs will hatch into a larvae. The
larvae crawl around for a bit then enter the pupa stage. In the pupa
stage the flea is in a cocoon. The fleas are next to impossible to kill
during this stage as they are protected by the cocoon.

The pupa will hatch into adults after about 10 days if there is
activity from humans or animals nearby. The pupa relies on vibrations
from humans and animals walking around to tell them when to hatch.

If you want to kill fleas naturally, you need to attack the stages that are easiest to kill which are the egg and larvae stages.

The best way to kill fleas naturally is with a dust. A boric acid and
botanically based pesticide mixture will do the trick. Botanically
based pesticides are very safe and contain essential oils that will plug
up the breathing tubes of the fleas. The boric acid will affect them
when they ingest it. Ingesting boric acid will adversely affect their
digestive systems.

Another option is to use a silica based dust. This will dissolve the
wax coating on the body of the flea after they walk around through it.
When this coating is dissolved, the fleas will dry out.


Be sure to dust very well in all the places where the fleas are
living. Dog and cat beds, furniture they sit on, beds and carpeting are
hot spots for fleas. Doing this will disrupt the life cycle of the flea
and the adults will die off.

A Natural Way to Get Rid of Fleas