What is Pest Control For?
Pests are essentially any living organism that humans class as harmful or detrimental to their welfare or property. Pests are found in agriculture, small and large scale business or manufacturing and in houses.
Common examples of pests that effect residential houses are rodents (rats, mice or grey squirrels), crawling insects (fleas, bedbugs, mites) and flying insects (cluster flies, wasps, hornets, carpet moth and carpet beetle).
Rodent Infestation and Extermination
When you have rats, mice or squirrels getting into your house then they are classed as a pest. Rats in your garden are also classed as a pest as they carry disease. Squirrels can chew on roof tiles and facias and again this would class them as a pest as they are damaging your home.
If you are seeing or hearing rodents in your house then you have a rodent infestation. People often hear and see squirrels in their attic. It is also common to hear rats and mice moving in wall cavities and in loft spaces. If the rat or mouse infestation is left unchecked it’s likely they will start coming into your living spaces and it is then common to see mice or rats in your kitchen. All rodents, especially squirrels, will chew wires, wood, plastic and metal so will cause expensive rodent damage as well as carrying diseases.
Professional rodent pest control is a service provided by trained pest control technicians. Anyone providing a professional pest control service has to complete a rodent pest control control course which includes safe use of rodenticides (baits) including an exam.
Insect Infestation and Extermination
When you get wasps nesting in your roof or garden there is a risk to human health so they are classed as a pest. Cluster flies also impact on human welfare as a cluster fly infestation can be overwhelming.
If you are being bitten by insects in your home it can commonly be fleas or bedbugs. A bedbug or flea infestation is detrimental to human health and wellbeing so bedbug or flea pest control is advised. Carpet moth and beetle eat fabric rather than human blood, however can cause expensive and unsightly damage to furnishings and carpets so again carpet moth and beetle infestations are classed as pest infestations.
Ants in your garden are not generally classed as a pest, however if you see ants in your kitchen or other areas of your house then they are then classified as a pest and this is an ant infestation. Again, ant pest control is then recommended.
Insect pest control is regulated as much as rodent pest control. Professional pest control technicians offering insect pest control services have to pass exams in safe use of insecticides as well as attend an insect pest control training course. These courses specifically cover bedbug and flea pest control as well as ant pest control and also effective wasp, hornet and cluster fly pest control and safety.
Professional pest controllers have to top up their training and knowledge regularly and all reputable pest control services will have full public liability insurance for pest control, as well as being registered with either NPTA (National Pest Technicians Association) or BPCA (British Pest Controllers Association). It is also advisable to use a pest control company that has DBS checks in place on all staff visiting private houses.
