Termites, commonly known as "white ants" are insidious pests which can hollow out building timbers
from the inside, as well as wooden flooring and fixtures, quietly and continually, causing extensive
damage resulting in expensive repair costs. In addition, any perceivable termite ("white ant")
damage tends to be very unsightly, especially the termite trails, which are made of mud, will leave
stains on concrete and plaster walls.
Unlike conventional methods where wooden and tile flooring had to be drilled or pantry cupboards had
to be exposed, the camera causes no damage and detect exactly where these pests are. In the past,
residents not only had to vacate premises or move goods but spend fortunes on restoring furniture
and flooring. Insect erosion of furniture is a common sight in Sri Lankan homes and half the time
home owners are at a loss over what to do.
Termites are soft-bodied insects commonly known as white ants. They are small in size (4-11 mm) and
have three distinct body parts namely, the head, thorax and abdomen. Termite colonies have a number
of different looking individuals known as castes. Each caste has its own duties within a colony. The
largest member in a termite colony is the termite queen. Incidentally, it is also the longest living
insect in the world.
Termites are insects from the order Isoptera. The name being derived from their having equally sized
wings, iso=equal and pteron=wing. The wings, when present, are long, slender, in two pairs and of
similar size and shape. These are usually shed following a short nuptial flight after which males
and females pair up to start a new colony.
Termites are social insects, characterised by the allotment of labour within the castes with the
sharing of food, shelter and resources and cooperation in rearing the young. The castes include the
worker, soldier and reproductive. Social groups of subterranean termites are composed of both males
and females, unlike most other social insects where the majority of members are females.
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If you are reading this page then you may well be suspecting a colony of termites has
moved into your home. If this is the case then you have come to the right place and your
next step should be to contact the professionals. They are trained to evaluate the extent of
your problem and advise you on your best course of action.
Termites are tiny little insects attracted to water and wood. Termites are quite
destructive and have been known to cause considerable damage to residential buildings,
farm buildings, crops and plantation forests. They readily chew through vinyl, linoleum,
and underground cables and can wreak havoc on wood. Nevertheless, they are also very
important to the conservation of the environment because they themselves are food for
many predators and they also recycle nutrients in the soil and they hollow out timber to
provide shelter for other small creatures and birds.
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Termites are commonly referred to as ‘White Ants’ because of their pale, white bodies and perhaps
because like ants, they live in colonies of several hundred to several million individuals and work
together to get tasks done. However, they are in no way actually related to Ants but are in fact
more closely related to cockroaches.
A termite colony consists of the following selection of termites: nymphs (semi-mature young),
workers, soldiers, and reproductive individuals of both genders, with the addition of several
egg-laying queens. The colony is self-organised and together they work to exploit food sources and
build nests, which could never be achieved by each of them individually.
The termite workers construct nests for the colony using a mixture of soil, mud, chewed
wood/cellulose, saliva, and faeces. The termite nest has many purposes; as well as a protective
living space for its inhabitants; it is also designed to collect water through condensation. There
are specially built chambers for reproduction and many tunnels for air to flow through and allow the
termites to travel about. The termite nests are most usually built underground inside big pieces of
wood or fallen trees. Some termites prefer to build a mound above ground in which they nest instead.
These mounds are then used by other creatures after the termites have departed.
A colony of termites may include a few termite ‘Queens’ and each of these ‘Queens’ will reproduce.
Female termites can produce an incredible number of eggs, even as many as two thousand per day.
These eggs will sit in the queen’s abdomen, extending her size considerably and deterring her
ability to walk. This is where the colony again pitches in and attends to her needs.
It is the wood-burrowing termites that are most bothersome to home owners. Because termites live
together in colonies and can multiply at rapid rates, it is vital that you extinguish the entire
colony as quickly as possible if you want to free your home from their existence.
The primary step for termite control in shielding a house is to prevent termites from gaining access
in the first place. This is achieved by placing a barrier below or around the house. You should keep
all perimeter walls, foundations, slabs, patios and flowerbeds free from clutter and unnecessary
debris. You can get treatment for wood that will deter termites from making a home there and you can
also buy pre-treated or naturally resistant timber for any garden furniture or wooden objects that
will be put in close proximity to soil. Wood is the main staple in a termite’s diet, so remove all
unnecessary wood from your garden. This includes old tree trunks or stumps, leftover building
materials, ornamental sleepers and logs.
Termites are also attracted to water so you should ensure your property does not have any leaks or
dripping taps. The worst time of year for termite activity is early spring to late summer.
In the unfortunate circumstance that you have found an infestation of termites in your property,
please try to remain calm. The chances are those termites will have already been there a little
while, so another day or two is not going to make a very big difference. However, it is vital that
you take measures to eradicate them as quickly and efficiently as possible. Otherwise, the damage
they can do will certainly get worse and then you really would be facing a panic situation.
When you are trying to eradicate a colony of termites it is imperative that you kill the reproductive
kings and queens, otherwise they will continue to reproduce and your infestation will be
reintroduced in no time. Your local pest control professionals, are the best contact when your home
is under threat of a termite invasion because they know exactly how to go about tackling them and
can boast years of experience in dealing with this very problem.
If the thought of all these termites invading your home is giving you sleepless nights and making you
uncomfortable, you should consider the fact that in some countries termites are actually eaten as
food by humans.
You can of course try to tackle the termite invasion yourself, with products bought from DIY stores
specifically for termite removal such as Bait or Termiticide. These products do work and this may
appear to be a cheaper option but in the long run it is probably not going to be nearly as effective
as having your home inspected and cleared by a termite control company. This is because one of the
most effective ways to combat a termite infestation is by fully understanding how they work, this
includes which areas of your home they will be most attracted to and how they react to different
treatments. Obviously most people are not equipped with this knowledge and that’s another reason
it’s a better idea to get in the professionals, plus when attempting to deal with the termites
yourself, you won’t have the assured peace of mind that the problem has been entirely dealt
with.
ANT REMOVAL
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Ants may be small, but they sure are clever and working together they can
achieve amazing things. Signs that there may be ants inhabiting your property include
identifying ant pathways coming in and out of your house or small piles of earth and ground,
which may indicate nesting sites.
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The presence of ants on your premises can infest and contaminate your food and clean areas. They are
not well liked but they are relatively harmless and can usually be controlled fairly easily.
To identify the species of ant invading your home, or business premises, you really need to get
advice from professional pest controllers. There are over 15,000 different species of ant around the
world, although only 40 are well known in the United Kingdom. You should ant-proof access points in
your garden and arrange for professionally qualified experts to make regular inspections after an
infestation has been eradicated to ensure they do not return.
The Black Ant and the Pharaoh Ant are the two most common types to be found invading our homes. Black
ants nest outside but are commonly found within houses on their hunt for food, they prefer sweet,
sugary foods such as jam. As well as human food, ants also prey on greenfly and blackfly and other
small garden insects. . They are more of a nuisance than a health risk because they do not transmit
any diseases, but they do travel through unhygienic places and as such they can quickly contaminate
food with their germs.
Ants traditionally built their nests around plant roots but they are increasingly being found in the
cavity walls of properties. Although ants are generally disliked, they are quite important within
their natural surroundings. They aerate soil, break down organic matter and assist in controlling
the population of other insects.
Ants establish colonies in order to work together and get tasks done. They send out ant scouts to
find food and water resources and these scouts leave a scented trail which allows them to easily
find their way back to their colony with news of the resources they have found. They then get other
colony members to come with them to retrieve the food and water.
If you want to get rid of ants you need to destroy their scent trails, eliminate their chances at
finding food sources and seal off the entrances to your home that they may use to gain access.
In order to destroy the scent trails effectively you should use soapy water and carefully scrub down
the entire area from where they found food right back to their colony, if you can trace it.
The use of Vaseline, chilli powder, cinnamon, diatomaceous earth and boric acid are all items people
have used to deter ants from entering their homes and they’ve all been reported to work well on a
temporary basis. A more permanent solution is to caulk cracks, holes and crevices where the ants may
crawl through.
Because ants are so tiny they can squeeze their way into even the smallest of gaps in a bid to get at
a newfound source of food. All your opened food should be kept in tightly shut container and
jars.
Ants appear in hot weather and don’t like the cold so Ants don’t tend to enter your refrigerator,
therefore your food will also be safe in there. You should always wipe down all surfaces such as
worktops, tables and floors on a daily basis. Hygiene is the best ant deterrent and regularly
cleaning out your cupboards, washing away stains and crumbs will certainly help eliminate their food
sources. A tiny crumb to us will be a very satisfying meal to an ant colony.
Ants will eat anything and pet food can be a particular favourite. In order to deter them you should
put your pet’s food bowl within another bowl of soapy water, which will create a moat around the
bowl that ants will crawl into and trap them.
A garden product that Ants thrive on is the honeydew which is created by certain insects. If you can
control insects that produce honeydew and choose plants that do not attract these insects then you
will again reduce the ant colony’s food supply.
Baits can have both a positive and negative effect on eradicating ant colonies. Ant bait contains
something that tastes good to ants so they are very attracted to it and the ant scouts will send for
their colony to sample it. The ant bait also contains poison so it kills them off. However, because
it is particularly tasty bait for ants, they can end up being lured from miles around, so instead of
just eradicating the colony which originally entered your home, you will have inadvertently
attracted many more colonies to visit your home. Baits are best used in the path of an ant trail and
removed fairly promptly after the ant activity ends.
Sticky barrier traps are a very popular deterrent to stop ants from climbing trees and plants. The
queen is in charge of an ant colony and she is the only one to reproduce. The rest of the colony is
made up of scouts (also known as workers), infertile females and males. They have slightly different
features from one another and differing roles within their colony.
Ants mate using their wings and breed during flight. Males die very quickly after mating and the
queen then sets up a new colony in her chosen spot. The queen hibernates through the winter months
and lays her eggs in spring.
If you discover an ant’s nest near your home you should pour boiling water into it. Ants can survive
in water but boiling water will kill them. This is not a terribly effective method though and you
are advised to contact pest control experts to fully eradicate the ants with the use of specially
formulated chemicals.
Cockroach Removal
The prospect of cockroaches appearing in your home is enough to send anyone
over the edge. They are dirty little pests, with a particularly unpleasant appearance which
terrifies many people.
If you have turned on the lights in the middle of the night, only to catch site of these
ugly little critters scurrying over your floor, you will no doubt be looking to
exterminate sooner rather than later. Unfortunately Cockroaches are known for being
pretty resilient and unaffected by many of the traditional extermination methods, which
makes getting, rid of them an even harder mission. |
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The cockroach is a dark brown insect, about one inch long with spiky hind legs and large antennas, a
broad back and a relatively small head. They are extremely primitive creatures with mouthparts on
the underside of the head. The Cockroach does have wings, but doesn’t actually fly very far; it has
two parallel streaks running from the head to the base of its wings. The most common cockroach to be
found in homes, restaurants, hotels and food establishments is the German cockroach.
Cockroaches live in warm, dark areas and tend to be nocturnal by nature. Residential properties are a
particularly attractive home prospect for cockroaches because they like to escape from the ravages
of weather elements. Unfortunately they like to find warm, dark places to hide such as shoes or the
humidity of the bathroom. One of the reasons Cockroaches are such filthy creatures are that they
very often live in sewer pipes and emerges from these to enter the home. They are full of germs and
are known to carry dysentery, gastro-enteritis typhoid and food poisoning organisms. Cockroaches eat
anything and happily feed on scraps in your kitchen, or in your bins, with the result that they
easily contaminate food and spread diseases from their body or from the droppings they leave all
over your property.
Throughout the world there are over 4,000 species of cockroach, 30 of these are associated with human
habitations and four are particularly well known as pests in residential properties. These four
include the American Cockroach, the German cockroach, the Asian Cockroach and the Oriental
Cockroach.
Cockroaches develop from eggs to adults over the course of a three month period and they live from
six months to approximately one year in total. Female cockroaches lay eggs up to eight times,
producing three to four hundred baby cockroaches. When a large infestation is present, you may get
an unpleasant scent, not unlike almonds.
Therefore, you can quickly get the idea of how rapidly these beasts multiply if one cockroach can
produce another 400 in such a short space of time! Apart from the fact they are hardened to changes
in the environment, they are also able to survive without food for as long as three months and water
for a month. They are quite immune to the effects of ordinary insecticides but nowadays there are
many cockroach specific brands on the market, available from DIY hardware stores and on the Internet
or even some supermarkets and pet stores.
As a short term solution to getting rid of cockroaches people often make their own traps using jars
or containers with an inch of water, which cockroaches can fall into and drown. Boric acid powder is
commonly used around points of entry where cockroaches might attempt to get into the building. This
powder sticks to the underside and legs of the cockroaches and when they ingest it they will die.
The bonus about the powder is that they bring it back to their nests and ultimately kill other
members of their family.
If you have discovered a problem then you really shouldn’t get complacent about it and although you
can use the aforementioned suggestions, it should only be to give you immediate reassurance that you
are attempting to tackle the problem whilst you wait for the cockroach control exterminators to
arrive. These short term solutions really won’t make much of a dent in a cockroach infestation
purely because of the number of eggs each one is capable of producing and because their hiding
places are usually difficult to gain access to or indeed find.
Longer term solutions for exterminating cockroaches on a permanent basis include the use of an
electronic emitter which sends out a high frequency noise that they hate the sound of. Alternatively
you could use a ‘pesticide bomb’ or ‘fogger’ but these emit a strong, chemical based pesticide so
the room has to be fully sealed off and is not ideal for use in the home, unless carried out by
professional cockroach control experts. Sticky traps are sometimes used to capture them but these
are not for the faint hearted because not many people like the sight of cockroaches, whether alive
or dead, so they are unlikely to want to deal with having to dispose of them from the sticky
traps.
With Cockroaches being so resilient and environmentally adaptive, it is important to aggressively
attack their presence in your home and Pest Control Exterminators are completely trained to do this
efficiently and without fuss, sending these pests packing in no time.
Fleas Treatment And Control
There are a few different types of fleas but the most well known are dog
fleas and cat fleas. Human fleas used to be a problem too but they are very rare nowadays.
Fleas don’t have wings and they tend to jump from place to place. They are absolutely tiny,
between 1/12th and 1/6th of an inch. Fleas are parasites with very sharp mouths; they attach
themselves to hosts and use their mouthparts for piercing the skin and sucking out the
blood.
Fleas lay eggs on the ground, in nests, in carpets, bedding, blankets, upholstered suites
or cracks in the floor. The eggs then hatch where they lay, between one and two weeks
later. The larvae born from the egg begins feeding straight away on organic debris and
is particularly partial to the faeces of adult fleas, which contains a quantity of
undigested blood, which they thrive on. |
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Fleas most often enter the home via domestic pets. Cat fleas are the most common type and if you
discover that your pet has fleas you can be pretty sure that they will have begun making a home for
themselves throughout the rest of your property. The larvae from fleas loves nothing better than to
develop in dry, warm conditions, such as bedding, carpets and homes with central heating.
Although fleas do not directly spread diseases, dog fleas have been known to transmit dog tapeworm to
humans and fleas give their hosts annoying little bites, which can become infected if they are
over-scratched.
Unfortunately animals are prone to fleas and there is very little you can do about that other than
regularly washing them and treating them with a flea shampoo. You should also thoroughly wash all
pet bedding at least two or three times a week and tumble-dry if possible as well. Infestation
tell-tale-signs include small red bite marks on your body which are usually very itchy and you would
probably notice your pet scratching more than usual.
Minor flea infestations can be treated with insecticides from hardware stores, pet shops or your
local veterinary surgery. These come in powders, sprays and shampoos and can be used to treat
sheets, blankets, carpets, curtains, drapes, upholstery and throws. You can get a flea collar to put
round your pet’s neck, which will regularly release small quantities of insecticide onto your pets
fur, it is not strong enough to kill fleas outright but it acts as a good repellent.
If you are unfortunate enough to have a flea infestation in your home then you should call in the
pest control professionals immediately for advice. Prior to them arriving at your property you
should ensure that you have begun to combat the flea problem by thoroughly vacuuming the entire
house, including upholstery to remove animal hair, fleas, flea eggs and pupae. You should take any
pets to the vet for full flea treatment and you should ensure all bins and vacuum bags are disposed
of out with your house. You should also ensure your house is free of clutter.
Pest control experts have many years experience in eradicating homes of flea infestations so you will
have no worries once you have spoken with them.
Bedbugs Removal & Control
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Bed bugs are tiny little insects that suck the blood from humans and
animals. The adult bed bug is 4 or 5mm long with a flattened oval body and no wings. It is a
reddish brown colour, whilst the baby bed bugs are translucent so cannot be seen without the
aid of a magnifying glass. They crawl around bedding and feed during the very early hours of
the morning, about an hour before sunrise. They are present throughout all months of the
year and are able to reproduce all year round. The eggs are milky-white coloured and about
1mm wide. They are usually found in clusters of anything up to a few hundred.
No one relishes the thought of Bed bugs or their eggs inhabiting their bedrooms and if
you suspect that you may have a bedbug infestation then you will want to get rid of them
as promptly as possible.
There are a number of products on the market for ridding your home of bed bugs; these
include bedbug specific insecticide sprays and powders. One of the most effective
home-method is the use of a steam cleaner because the intense heat from the steam will
kill them outright, it will also do a great job of cleaning your mattress and wherever
else you intend to use it.
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Because Bed bugs are so tiny and they multiply at a rapid rate you can never be 100% sure you have
got rid of them all, that’s why most people prefer to call in pest control professionals to
eradicate them completely.
If you are bitten by a bed bug you will probably not feel it right away. When the bed bug bites you
it simultaneously injects your skin with an aesthetic which numbs the surrounding area, this means
you are unaware you are being bitten until the numbness wears off. Everyone reacts differently to
bed bug bites, some people get weils that weep puss from the middle, whilst others experience tiny
red bumps like a rash. They are always incredibly itchy and excessive scratching at them can cause
infection in the skin or even scarring. Other than this, bed bugs are not actually considered a
medical threat because they do not transmit any known diseases. If you have bites on your body that
you think may be caused by bedbugs, you should closely inspect your bedsheets for tiny droplets of
blood.
Bed bug eggs hatch in one to two weeks, and the newborn nymphs begin to feed immediately. They pass
through five moulting stages before reaching maturity, requiring a feed during each of these stages.
They are attracted to the warmth of human bodies and the carbon dioxide on our breath. Their
favourite place to thrive is the bedrooms but they can be found in cracks and crevices of other
places through the day. Their most likely hideaways include the seams of mattresses, cracks in your
bed frame or headboard and behind bedroom furniture.
At one time bed bugs were pretty much completely eradicated from the United Kingdom, but in the past
fifteen years they’ve begun to make a comeback. There are a number of reasons for this, firstly the
increase in accessible and cheap international travel, along with many foreign nationals making a
home in the UK. Secondly, there used to be an insecticide used to kill off cockroaches from place of
high occupancy, such as hotels and it inadvertently killed bed bugs at the same time. Unfortunately
the use of this substance is now banned and many types of bait are used to catch cockroaches
instead. These baits don’t attract the bedbugs so they are left in peace to thrive once more.
Bed bugs are most commonly brought into homes after you have stayed in a hotel or other residential
establishment, which was experiencing an infestation. The bedbugs crawl onto your clothes and are
unintentionally packed away in your suitcase and brought home.They can also live in upholstery so
are sometimes brought home with furniture from thrift shops or car-boot sales and antique
fairs.
One of the best ways to keep them at bay is to keep an extra clean and hygienic house. Vaccuum
everyday and vacuum your mattresses on a regular basis. Change your bedding at least once a week and
boil wash and tumble dry it if possible. By using DIY products along with maintaining good hygiene
levels and regularly deep cleaning you are likely to keep any emergence of bedbugs under control,
but to fully eradicate them from your premises you don’t have much choice other than to call in the
pest control experts for a fast, efficient service.
Bed bugs are pretty hardy and can survive very cold or hot temperatures, they are certainly one of
the most difficult household pests to fully eradicate. They can crawl through walls to adjoining
properties and can travel on clothes or blankets, so you should be very careful not to transfer your
bedbug infestation to neighbours or friends properties.
If you suspect a bed bug infestation in your home, you are highly advised to contact the pest control
experts immediately.
Rats- Control And Removal
Rats are large long-tailed rodents and one of the worst possible pest
infestations you can be subjected to. Rats are extremely unhygienic creatures, which cause
lots of damage to property and pass on diseases.
If you discover you have rats in your home, it is vital that you get it dealt with
immediately. Do not delay; call your local pest control professionals immediately. Rats
are extremely unsanitary and are a serious hazard to public health. Historically it was
fleas from rats that caused the outbreak of Bubonic Plague and to this day they
regularly spread diseases such as Salmonella Food Poisoning, Jaundice and Typhus.
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Rats contaminate food with their droppings and urine and they cause untold damage to buildings,
equipment and personal effects. Their teeth are sharp and can gnaw through wood, they destroy
anything in a bid to build their nests and this regularly causes fire hazards when the chew through
insulation and electrical wires. A bite from a rat can be extremely serious, even fatal in certain
circumstances.
Rats can be a nuisance at any time of the year but are more common in homes as the weather gets
cooler. They are most active in the early evening and build their nests behind walls or underground.
They want to be safe and near to food and water sources, if you are suspicious of rats in your home
you should check behind cupboards or worktops and wall spaces near to rubbish disposal.
Rats multiply very quickly, they are fertile creatures and have as many as six litters per year, with
6 to 14 baby rats in each litter. By three months old the offspring are ready to reproduce
themselves, therefore if you ignore a rat infestation in your home, it could rapidly take over. The
usual lifespan of a rat in the wild is 18 months.
There are a few tell tale signs indicating the presence of rats. Evidence could include gnawing,
damage to stored products, rat droppings (dark brown and the size of a sultana), oily rub marks
(rats excrete an oil to protect their fur), small footprint tracks in dust, burrows, nests, and the
noise of rats scurrying about.
The most common rat found in homes is the brown rat. This is also known as the Sewer Rat or House
Rat. It is dullish brown and measures 32 cm to 43 cm from nose to tail. Its ears are small and
close-set and it has very sharp teeth.
The biggest reason for rats is unsanitary conditions, which encourage them to set up home. When you
call in the pest control professionals they will give you advice on rat-proofing your home and
improving the hygiene levels to deny them access to any food sources other than the poison bait used
to catch and kill them.
In order to prevent rats entering your home you should ensure that all foodstuffs are carefully
stored in sealed containers and rubbish should be kept in bins that are regularly emptied.
