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What is Pest Control?
By Aja McClanahan MONEY RESEARCH COLLECTIVE
Pest control is designed to protect your home or business from vermin, insects, and other animals The general concept can include services that get rid of pests and prevent them from entering in the first place. Pest control provides the services and products needed to protect your living space, your home’s structural elements, and your pets and plants.
While the presence of insects and vermin in a home is always a cause for concern, it presents particular problems for those hoping to sell their homes – and for those hoping to buy them. The presence of pests on a property will almost certainly depress its sale value and may make prospective buyers leery about making an offer. Here’s what you should know about pest control and the role it plays in home maintenance.
How much does pest control cost?
Are pest control companies worth it?
How to find the right pest control company
What is pest control and how does it work?
Pest control is the management of insects, rodents, vermin and other pests that are harmful to humans, animals, or property. It utilizes various methods, including traps, chemicals, and natural predators. Effective pest control is both an important part of public health and an essential part of being a homeowner.
To implement a solid pest control plan, you’ll need to understand the types of pests that are prevalent where you live, the different techniques used to get rid of them, and your options for hiring a pest control service.
Types of pests
Depending on the region where you live, you could be exposed to different types of pests including:
- Insects: ants, cockroaches, spiders, centipedes, gnats, bedbugs, wasps, fruit flies
- Parasites: fleas, ticks, mites, worms
- Animals: mice, rats, snakes, moles, opossums, raccoons
- Building material pests: rodents, termites, concrete mites
- Fruit-bearing tree, shrub, and vine pests: borers, worms, aphids, stink bugs, cankerworms
- Lawn pests: Grubs, weevils, webworms, billbugs
Types of pest control
Chemicals
One of the most common pest control methods involves the use of chemicals that kill or repel the pests they’re targeted toward. These chemicals can be deployed as sprays, baits, or dusts. Chemicals treatments can be very effective at killing or repelling pests, but some can be harmful to humans and animals if not used properly.
When choosing chemical pest control, you’ll need to weigh the pros and cons carefully. For instance, you may decide to forgo stronger chemical treatments for your lawn because you want to protect your pets and small children from certain pesticides. If you’re unsure about which substances are harmful to humans, consult with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) resources on Human Health Issues Related to Pesticides.
Trapping
Another common method of pest control is trapping. This involves using a device to capture or kill a pest. Trapping is often used for pests that are difficult to control with chemicals, such as rats, mice and raccoons.
Natural predators
Natural predators can also be used to control pests. For example, it’s not uncommon for farmers, homeowners or even city managers to rely on cats to deal with rats. Some people prefer to use natural predators because they believe them to be more environmentally friendly than other pest control methods. However, in some cases, if the number of these natural predators grows substantially, they can cause unsanitary conditions and become a threat to the animals that you enjoy having around, such as songbirds.
Prevention
One of the best pest control strategies is to prevent pests from entering your homes or business in the first place. This can include sealing cracks and crevices, using screens on doors and windows, and properly storing food and garbage so as not to attract pests. If you work with a professional exterminator, prevention will likely be an important component of your pest control plan.
How much does pest control cost?
Although pest control can get pricey, it might be a necessary line item for your household budget. The cost of pest control varies depending on the type of pest, the severity of the infestation, and the size of the area that needs to be treated. Unfortunately, this is not something normally covered under a homeowners insurance policy or a home warranty, so in nearly all cases you’ll have to pay for pest control out of pocket.
You can control extermination costs with DIY methods such as store-bought traps, fumigation bombs, sprays and treatments. A quick search on YouTube will also help you find home remedies and lower-cost pest control and prevention options.
A professional pest control service may charge $100-$200 to treat a small home for ants. In contrast, a larger company may charge several thousand dollars to treat a commercial building for a termite infestation. However, there are ways to save money on professional pest control services. Many companies offer discounts for customers who sign up for regular service, and some offer free quotes and consultations.
Are pest control companies worth it?
Pest control can be expensive, but it’s essential to preserving the value of your home and providing you with peace of mind. Pest control firms typically have the experience and knowledge to deal effectively with a wide range of problems. They can handle unpleasant pest issues so you don’t have to. In most cases, they can save you time and money by using the most effective methods for your particular situation and type of infestation.
If you’re unsure about the value a professional exterminator can bring, consider the time and energy you could expend trying to get rid of pests on your own. If you lack the knowledge of how to deal with an infestation problem, you could wind up spending a lot more money on unsuccessful attempts than you would by bringing in a professional.
Then too, a pest control professional can often remediate your insect and vermin problems more quickly than you can yourself. To put it in perspective: would you rather get rid of a wasp nest in two days or two weeks? Would you rather get rid of rats in a week or a month? Answering these questions might help you determine whether professional extermination services are worthwhile.
How to find the right pest control company
There are a few things to remember when choosing a pest control company. First, you’ll want to make sure the company has experience dealing with your particular type of pest. Then you should get estimates from different companies to compare costs and offerings.
Be sure to choose a reputable company that offers a satisfaction guarantee. Ideally, the service guarantee will include free service calls if pests reappear within a specified time frame after treatment. Some exterminators will send someone out at no cost if you continue to see pests (or evidence of pests) up to 90 days after treatment.
Finally, look for companies that have a good reputation for effectiveness and service. You can research companies on sites such as Yelp, Google Business, Angie’s List and the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Some exterminators may also maintain reviews on their Facebook page, but you should be wary of relying too heavily on the reviews that businesses themselves choose to publish.
Summary of what is pest control?
The presence of insects and vermin in a home or business can seriously impair your comfort, health, and property value. Pests can be controlled with a variety of methods, but the best approach will depend on the type of pest and the severity of the problem. If you’re unsure about how to deal with a particular pest problem, contact a professional pest control company for an estimate and consultation.
Aja McClanahan is a writer that covers personal finance and a number of related topics. Her work and personal story of paying down over $120,000 in debt have been featured in publications around the web including sites like Money, CreditCards.com, Business Insider, Inc., Experian and many others.