If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

How important is pest control? Lots of home owners know to contact a pest control company when termite damage is uncovered. It certainly is important to get termites under control, but pest control prevents problems associated with a lot of different pests.

Pest control is often divided into two categories: general pest control and control of wood destroying insects. Most people think wood destroying insects refers only to termites. But there are a number of pests that can destroy wood, including Powder Post Beetles, Carpenter Ants, and Wood Bores. All of these insects can cause hidden damage to a home and are dangerous to the structure of a home.

General pest control refers to managing a variety of pests, including rats and mice, spiders, cockroaches, spiders, moths, beetles and more. While these pests don’t cause structural damage to your home, they still track in bacteria and disease, as well as damaging fibers such as furniture and clothing. General pests are annoying and left untreated, multiple and further infest your home.

An inspection of your home will uncover any pest problem – wood boring insects or general pests. Some home owners are surprised to find out that their home is being shared with a variety of insects and pests. IPM (Integrated Pest Management) is a method of finding your pest problems and developing a treatment plan to deal with all pests – general and wood boring.  As a result, your home will be safe form annoying and damaging pests.

For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Lots of people are concerned about pest control and possible exposure to toxic chemicals. Sometimes the best solution for a pest problem is spraying or fogging a home with insecticide. If this is the recommendation for your home, should you be concerned about toxicity?

When it comes to pest control, using a professional service will expose you to less dangerous chemicals than most do-it-yourself pest solutions. Sound hard to believe? When we put together a pest solution, we use a pest solution approach that’s called IPM (Integrated Pest Management).  With IPM, we use a combination of treatment methods – baits, traps, and sprays –  so that you, your family and any pets are exposed to limited amount of chemicals.

But more than just using a variety of pest control solutions, we pay careful attention to the chemicals we use. Many of our treatments are use technologies like micro-encapsulation, a technology that keeps the active insecticide enclosed within a silicon bubble.

In addition, our use of chemicals is closely monitored by governmental agencies, such as the EPA. These agencies determine which chemicals are used in pest control and provide directives of concentrations of pest formulas.

Preventing exposure to pests such as rats, mice and cockroaches is a healthy solution for you, your family and pets. These pests track in disease and bacteria. The use of chemicals, when applied by experts will eliminate these dangerous exposures.

The first step is to have your home inspected for potential pest problems. We’ll put together a plan that of a series of safe pest control solutions. For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Spring and summer is the time to get busy with household projects. As you start moving furniture around or pulling up rugs or carpets for cleaning, you may uncover an unpleasant surprise – bugs.

The most common types of pest you’ll find in furniture and carpets are Carpet Beetles and House Moths. Both of these pests feed on wool and fibers found in rugs and garments. Carpet Beetles are fairly small, ranging in size from about 4 mm to 5 mm. When you first spot them, you make mistakenly think you’ve uncovered some spilled grains of rice. These noxious little critters can damage wool, leather, silk, and other animal skins.

House moths are winged creatures, like butterflies. But unlike butterflies, moth have very plain coloring, ranging from white to a golden brown, with dark brown spots. Just like beetles, moths can cause considerable damage to any type of fiber. Check outside for possible nesting grounds, moths may recycle bird’s nests and use them for their home. If you find an old bird’s nest, get rid of it immediately.

Other common summer pest problems include garden ants and house flies. Garden ants usually nest outside of the home, but come inside to forage for food. House flies are also attracted to spoiling food, especially fruit or vegetables. In both cases, the best solution is to clean carefully to get rid of any crumbs, store food in air-tight containers, and throw garbage away in sealed containers.

Summer is too much fun to put up with any kind of pest or bugs. If you spot the signs of potential problems, give us a call and we’ll be happy to inspect your property. For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

If you are having your home inspected for pest, bugs and insects, you are being proactive about your pest control problem. But is it enough to have your home inspected once?

No – unfortunately, pests are seasonal creatures. In Southern California we have a long pest season, but with our warm weather, there are certain times of the year that you can expect to see a variety of pests. An inspection will uncover any problem pests that are invading your home.

Follow up inspections are necessary to make sure that pest control actions are working. Some pests may require multiple treatments to completely eliminate the pest problem in your home. It’s a good idea to have an inspection within a month of treatment.

Once your home has been treated, you want to schedule repeat inspections on a regular basis. In part, this depends on the type of pest problem you are dealing with. If you have a problem with cockroaches, you may want monthly inspections. However, if you have a problem with termites or mice, bi-monthly or quarterly inspections may be sufficient.

As trained professionals, we know what signs to look for when it comes to pest infestation. We can help you uncover the access points to your home, and seal them so you won’t have future problems.  A regular inspection can save you time, money and make your home more comfortable.

For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Do you suspect that you have fleas in your home? It may be difficult to spots these creatures. Fleas are very small, and usually a grayish color. As the flea feeds of blood, it becomes darker in color. If you see tiny grayish or black specks, there’s a good chance you are seeing fleas.

Fleas can live up to 12 months without feeding. So, if you’ve recently moved to a new home you may have fleas that are left over from the last owners or tenants. One sign of flea activity is the raised, red bumps that appear on arms or legs. These bumps are indicators of flea bites.

How do you get rid of fleas? There are a couple of important steps:

• If you own a pet, have the pet treated for fleas. Your vet will offer the most effective flea treatments.
• Vacuum your carpets, floors, and furniture to get rid of any fleas and flea larvae. When you are finished, throw the vacuum bag away. It’s easy for the fleas to come back out of the bag and infest the home again.
• Make sure any bet bedding has been cleaned. Do not use any kind of pesticide on the bedding.
• Call for an inspection. Fleas can be persistent. They may not die off with the first treatment and you may need additional treatments, or a combination of treatments, to rid yourself of these annoying pests.

 For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Are you trying to be more ecologically minded? Perhaps you’ve started to try composting? While this can be great for your garden, there’s one negative aspect – you may be attracting rats.

Rats are experts at at searching for foods sources. A compost bin with food scraps, peelings, coffee grounds, etc. is just one big rat buffet. What’s good for the environment may be causing a different type of problem around your home.

You can still have a compost, you just have to take action to “rat proof” it. Get a compost bin that has a secure lid or top and prevents rats from getting inside. Consider the materials – rats can gnaw their way throw a lot of materials like plastic, but metal will be a definite obstacle.

Even if you aren’t composting, you want to take the same steps to keep rats out of your home. Keep food items in sealed containers. Bag all garbage carefully and put in garbage cans with a lid that seals. Look for areas around your home that may invite rats and mice in to the home – cracks or holes in the foundation and seal them up.

You don’t need to put up with rats or mice. With a few easy steps, such as keeping garbage secure, you can keep rats out of your home. A home inspection will also help diagnose any problem areas that allow rats access to your home. For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Wasps are annoying creatures. Their constant “dive-bomb” attacks outdoors causes frustration, and the stings can be quite painful. Unfortunately, when you see a few wasps it’s a sign that hundreds, or perhaps thousands of wasps are in the area.

Wasps are very social insects, much like bees. They form colonies and have a fertilized queen that lays eggs in a nesting site. What starts as a small wasp’s nest will quickly expand, along with the wasp population. The best way to treat wasps is to treat the wasp nest.

There are several methods for treating the wasp nest. One option is to spray the nest with chemicals. This will kill off the wasps, but can take up to 24 hours. In the meantime, people have to stay away from the nest. This can be difficult to manage.

Another method is getting rid of the nest completely. This is hard for an individual to do – if you try to knock the wasp nest down, you are likely to get some painful stings. A pest control company has special equipment to trap the nest and dispose of it safely. Sometimes, it’s hard to see exactly where the nest is located. Wasps often create nests up in building rafters, in the eaves of homes, or in ventilation openings.

If you’ve seen wasps around your home, consider having an inspection to determine the location of the wasp nest. We’ll safely remove the wasp’s nest and return your backyard into a place you can enjoy.

For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Every home has pests of some kind – insects, bugs and rodents. But not every pest rates the same when it comes to evaluating damage, health risk, or annoyance. Some pests simply require more aggressive and immediate control.

Which pests can you take a pass on and which pests require immediate intervention? Here are some suggestions of pests that need immediate treatment:

Cockroaches – Cockroaches carry a great deal of bacteria and virus into your home. They can cause serious health problems. If you see or suspect that you have cockroaches, take immediate action.

Termites or Carpenter Ants – Termites and carpenter ants can do a lot of damage to your home. Both tunnel into the wood around your home and destroy the structure of the wood. It’s difficult to see termites – they are best found through a home inspection by a professional. Carpenter ants are easier to see – you’ll see a trail of these large, black ants.

Hornets and Wasps – Hornets and wasps can be especially annoying and painful. In Southern California, we have to be especially cautious of the Africanized Honey Bee, which can be quite aggressive and will result in painful stings.

Rats and Mice – Just like cockroaches, rats and mice can track a variety of bacteria and viruses into the house. Rats and mice can also chew away at just about everything to make nests – clothes, papers, wiring, etc. They can cause a lot of damage to your home.

If you suspect that you may have some kind of infestation in your home, call for an inspection. We’ll determine the cause of the infestation and recommend the best method for ridding your home of pests. For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.

Everyone is giving more thought to the environment and ways to lessen toxic products. That’s a good thing. But unfortunately, not all the “green” pest control solutions are effective and some may not be all that green.

One of the best methods is called Integrated Pest Management solutions, sometimes referred to as IPM. With IPM, we try to control pests by controlling their access to the home. This means sealing cracks, holes and vents that are allowing pests into your home.

Another option is to consider using bio-pesticides. Unlike traditional toxic pesticides, bio-pesticides use naturally occurring materials such as animal, plants, minerals and bacteria to fight off bug infestation.

There are other high-tech pest control options that are green friendly, such as using rodent traps with fluorescent powder. Mice or rats track the powder back to their hiding spots. A black light allows us to find their entry point into the home and seal it.

Pheromone research has produced a number of lures and traps that attract bugs and insects, but don’t allow them to leave.

What doesn’t work? Electronic noise makers. Whether you are trying to control squirrels, moles or mice, these electronic devices have not been shown to be effective in any way.

Call us to inspect your home. We’ll put together a pest control plan that works for you and rids your home of infestation.  For a free inspection, give us a call at 888-675-0258 or go to http://www.accuracypluscalifornia.com/.