Rush Limbaugh or Queen?

Posted on February 11, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

Scientist are amazing, they figure out things like why a lightening bug lights up and how mosquito antenna work. They use million dollar tools in state of the art laboratories and they get to wear long white lab coats. (great chick magnet) They spend long laborious days ruling out the smallest of details and calculating the effects and results from even the most remote possibilities until finally, they’ve exhausted every possibility and viva la victory. A scientific fact is born!
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Posted in Pests in the news | Leave a comment

Crazy pest related laws

Posted on February 10, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

Did you know that a city ordinance states that a $500 fine will be given to anyone who detonates a nuclear device within city limits in California? Thank God for our wonderful bureaucrats and elected officials. I’m sure we’ll all sleep so much better tonight knowing that no evil doer would ever risk a $500 dollar fine and thus dismantle his warhead immediately and forever more blend in with society as a productive member. HA!

Well since this is a pest control blog I thought I’d put your mind at ease with pest related laws so that you can rest easy and perhaps save money since you won’t be needing to make that call to your professional bug man. If you listen real close, you can hear members of congress slapping themselves on the back as they vote yet another pay raise for each other, after all, protecting us from invasive pests is hard work.
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Posted in In my opinion | 1 Comment

When exaggeration is a good thing

Posted on February 9, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

You really can’t be in this business long before you hear your first exaggeration about a wayward rat that was the size of a dog or a roach infestation that would make even Stephen Kings skin crawl. My guess is that within the first week someone somewhere will hit you with just such a story and swear on a stack of glue boards that it is the truth. Over time I guess you learn how to separate the fictitious from the facts from the customers and maybe even some of your buddies back at the shop. (they tell em too– but not you & me though;)

There is however a great time to exaggerate and every boss or trainer should be encouraging you to do it with every service you perform in front of a customer. Now I’m certainly not the worlds foremost expert on training but I have done my share and teaching is a passion of mine and this is one talent I try to impart with anyone I’m working with.
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Posted in Tools of the trade | Leave a comment

Possible phosphine poisoning kills 4 year old girl

Posted on February 9, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

A four year old girl in Salt lake City Utah has died by what is believed to be phosphine gas entering the home after an exterminator may have put the pellets used to administer the gas in the yard for rodents or burrowing pests. Her fifteen year sister is now in intensive care suffering from the same symptoms and as of this writing it is not clear how she is doing.

In pest control we are charged with the safe application of potentially harmful chemicals and products and although this is thankfully NOT a repetitious problem for our industry I would hope that it is one HUGE wake up call for all of us. Nothing can bring back this little girl and it my prayer that her sister will recover and my condolences and thoughts are with the family. I have included the video news footage of this story and you can read more in this link (as long as the news site keeps it up) as a stark reminder to those of us who practice pest control as a living. At times I’m sure we can get complacent and think things like this won’t happen and even in my own writings I explain how rare this is. But again, that won’t bring this little girl back to her family and how safe or how much training we under go hardly matters now.
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Posted in Pests in the news | 6 Comments

Pesticide labels promote bad pest control

Posted on February 5, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

How many times have you gotten a chair or toy or just anything from the store that needed to be put together but instead of a 15 minute project you ended up spending 3 hours on the thing, had to take parts off and redo and then had extra parts left over when you were done? I can tell you that being the chief ‘put-er together’ in my house this is one of my most aggravating tasks and the kids and the dogs know to just leave me alone after just a few short minutes. Why is it so hard? The picture looks so grande and the way they put the happy family in the background admiring their new whatchamacallit and at this point I just want to scream!

I put full and total blame on the directions and their incessant need to tell me that part A needs to go to part D after you’ve slid part C into slot F but the little dashed line doesn’t line up with what I’m looking at or the bolt is either to long or to short. Besides most of the specialty hardware is something I’ve never seen before and sometimes if you lock it in where it shouldn’t go it’s to late once you figure out that it’s wrong- that thing is stuck and won’t come out. I’m sure some engineer somewhere with his big thick glasses that keep sliding down his nose and the over sized pencil protector in his pocket is just snickering and snorting at his little joke he’s played on millions of consumers.
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Posted in Safety | Leave a comment

On the ‘threshold’ of infestation

Posted on February 5, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

It’s been one of my duties for several years to train new employees some of the finer points of the job. I give the flashlight speech and make sure they know where the batteries are kept and how to safely crawl an attic and some take to it rather quickly while others need more time. There is however one sweet spot in every house that at the very least needs to be looked at each and every-time you go. My guess is that many of the insect pests that enter the home come in this way and the technician as well as the homeowner pass right over it every time they enter the home.
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Posted in Tech Tips | Leave a comment

Bees don’t need a ladder but Mel does

Posted on February 4, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

This article was submitted by a Mel Lopas, a pest control professional from the great north west. Mel has a lot of experience in the industry and you can find him on facebook hanging out at the pestcemetery.com group sharing his insights. I think he might say-“Don’t try this at home” and you’ll see why when you hear his story.
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Posted in Bees and wasps | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Tao of pest control; The tech’s perspective

Posted on February 3, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

Few jobs give you the diversity and challenges that pest control does. In the morning you could be servicing a meat packing plant and by the afternoon checking rodent stations in a hanger next to a million dollar jet. In between you’ve been fighting fleas for Mrs. Jones and crawling in an 120 degree attic for the local realtor who has just sold a house. No job is the same and never a carbon copy day even with the same accounts month after month.

There is one constant with pest control professionals and you will see it with every service they perform. It’s not the equipment or the thousands of facts they can spout about the subterranean termite. It is the attitude or mind set that drives them to uncover the root of any given pest problem and the great satisfaction they get from solving the dilemma. True professionals never stop learning and hardly slow down on this journey into the ever changing. Pest control is a challenge to any person but it is one the quintessential technician thrives on. With this in mind I put together a short video presentation that I believe captures this standard and sets it out for both the seasoned vet or the rookie new to the job.
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Posted in Tools of the trade | 2 Comments

Paranoid pest man?

Posted on February 2, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

I don’t believe that I’m paranoid and I feel like I am a mentally stable person but I must confess, I think my customers are watching me while I work. I can’t prove it and it’s hard to accuse someone as you walk around the corner and they’re standing there semi disguised by the book case. Or you pop your head out from under the sink and they ask you if you have enough light or the always popular shout out as you walk down the hall, “be careful in the kids room, I haven’t cleaned it.” I mean, it’s their home right but how did they know where I was going?

Trying to escape the home owners ever present glare I duck behind the couch with flashlight in hand and I try to look for any signs of bug activity but that doesn’t work to conceal myself. “watch out for dust bunnies.” she say’s in a veiled giggled tone. The laundry room offers no respite either as the lady of the house informs me from around the corner “I saw a roach in the garage, I’m afraid he got into the the laundry room.” Still trying to stay focused I see there is no great way to spray in the garage so I take out a duster and a bait gun and for a short while I enjoy the hunt and treat what seems impossible because of all the stuff. Back inside and off to the back screen porch the Mrs. asks with a big smile “what is that gun you have-did you shoot the roach out there for me?” At this point I’m beside myself, is she stalking me, how did she know when I couldn’t see her? I’m waiting for Alan Funk to come out and tell me I’m on the hidden camera show!
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Posted in Choosing a pest control company | 2 Comments

What can termite drill marks tell you?

Posted on February 1, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

Whenever I go to a home or business for the first time I always look for drill marks, I ask the homeowner “when was it treated?” and sometimes they are amazed that I knew it was. For some it was before they moved in and many people have no idea what those little round cement patches are on their front stoop and they give inquisitive looks when they find out. You see, with the surprise also comes a nagging question of why, how, where and when.

  • Why was it treated? Did I have termites?”
  • “How did they treat it, did they put a tent over my house and what are those marks for?”
  • “Where were the termites, do I have damage?”
  • “When was this done and are the termites gone?”

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    Posted in Termites | 3 Comments

    The lure of a side job

    Posted on January 30, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

    It doesn’t happen to me very much any more but there was a time when I would be asked to do pest control- you know– on the side. For a struggling young man this was a hard temptation to resist, the lure of cash for just a 20 minute quickie and no one would be the wiser was at least worth considering. I guess now that I’m older or perhaps people can tell I own the company somehow but I’m just not approached about it like I was 20 years ago.

    Now here is the part where I tell you I never stooped so low and my morals were beyond reproach and kept me from this nefarious act, right? Sorry to disappoint you but I cannot. I too was tempted like I’m sure every pest control technician, plumber, a/c guy and who knows what else. It may start innocently enough doing a favor for your mother in law or a friend across town and they may even give you a 10 spot for your time. Next, you’re approached on the street or even at a clients house and the person claims they don’t really want a contract, just a quick once over for some pesky roaches and they’ll pay you cash. It seems innocent enough and maybe the first few times you feel a bit guilty but that soon goes away as you stuff the $20 in your pocket and drive away to your next stop.
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    Posted in Choosing a pest control company | 29 Comments

    It’s time to start looking for the exit’s

    Posted on January 29, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

    Very soon panic will set in for millions of homeowners across this great land of ours. Our homes, the very safe and secure place in which we live is under attack from a stealthy, silent, subterranean intruder who neither cares about the pain he’ll cause you or the shock and horror that besets your beleaguered mind when he is found out. For months perhaps years they have quietly weakened the very foundation of your once mighty castle and now they choose to launch an all out assault sending 1000’s of assailants deep into enemy lines as if to indignantly proclaim what you’ve spent years to build as their own. Sadly, the damage at this point may have already been done and you wonder; “If I had only seen them coming, I could have done something to make a difference.”
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    Posted in Termites | 2 Comments

    Crazy bee work I’ve done

    Posted on January 27, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

    While most sane people approach bee or wasp extermination with protective suits, the right training and equipment or even go out at night to lessen the chance of getting stung that didn’t seem to dawn on anybody in several places I worked at early in my career. Armed with a puff duster and a can of Aeroterm I was sent to many a job and it’s a wonder that I survived at all. Here are a couple of quick stories of bad stinging pest work that could have turned out oh so wrong.
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    Posted in Bees and wasps | 2 Comments

    Do bugs hibernate?

    Posted on January 26, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

    This was a recent question from our “Ask The Bug Doctor” page and it’s actually a very good one. I’d say most people think of bears when they think of a creature hibernating for the winter. We picture the momma bear in a cave somewhere sleeping the cold winter months away all warm and cozy & her body living off of the fat stored up from a summer time of gorging herself on berries and honey she’s stolen from any unearthed bees nests. Oh how I wish I were a bear at times.
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    Posted in Occasional Pests | Leave a comment

    Cluster flies and Christmas lights

    Posted on January 25, 2010 by The Bug Doctor

    I have often been asked how does an exterminator stay busy in the winter time? Surely there are very few bugs to contend with and the mouse calls can only go so far, what do you do? Living here in Florida I’m not asked that quite as much even though we recently had a record snow fall of 0.006 inches of snow. Some companies affected by the freezing weather will do ad on services such as Christmas lights and even snow plowing to generate income but I can assure you that there is no shortage of work in the urban areas and when I did work in the white stuff my days were filled with roaches, carpet beetles and a host of other pests not to mention mice and rats. Actually there are some bugs that can really become a problem in the dead of winter and worried homeowners will rush to the phone just as quickly as they would for a swarm of termites in the spring.

    Cluster flies are one such pest that often makes its debut while there still may be 3 feet of snow on the ground and come out by the hundreds if not thousands.
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    Posted in Flies and Gnats | Leave a comment