A Complete Guide To Effective Pest Control For Your Business In The Woodlands
Operating a business in The Woodlands requires a lot of hard work and dedication every single day. Whether that means you run a nursing home, warehouse, apartment complex, or other commercial property, no day is without its challenges, including pest infestations. The pest problems that you might face can range from property-damaging termites to nuisances such as ants or rodents that can spread health risks and cause property issues. Having pests around your property not only looks unprofessional but it can also be harmful to the well-being of your staff and patrons.
Rather than spending your time and money on DIY methods that might be unsafe and unhelpful, consider seeking help from a pest control professional like Modern Pest Control. We have been the company that countless businesses have turned to since 1952. As a local business, we are dedicated to keeping our community safe and we know that starts with you. We are QualityPro-certified, so we abide by the industry’s most stringent standards, and we are also trained by the Food Industry Sanitation Auditors and the American Institute of Baking, which makes us ready to work with any commercial customer. We hope that the following information is helpful in understanding the issues that pests can bring to your business, and if you’re interested in learning more about our commercial pest control in The Woodlands, please call us today.
Common Pest Problems For The Woodlands Businesses
Operating a business in The Woodlands means potentially coming into contact with a broad range of pests, some of which include:
- Termites: These pests can be a significant problem for the businesses that they invade. Their main priority is to eat away at wood, which they will do 24/7 unless they are stopped.
- Spiders: Spiders are creepy pests that business owners might find in storage areas or hidden nooks that they rarely access. These pests are largely lured by the presence of other pests, which they eat. Some of the pests spiders prey on include ants, mosquitoes, and cockroaches. Spiders in The Woodlands are largely harmless; some include orb weavers and wolf spiders.
- Cockroaches: Roaches in The Woodlands come in a wide variety of species, including American cockroaches, German cockroaches, and oriental cockroaches. These pests are usually lured to food scraps and moisture issues. They are also notoriously difficult to eliminate due to their quick reproduction, hard exteriors, and the German cockroach’s growing resistance to common treatments.
- Bed bugs: Businesses have the ability to be a main source of bed bugs because commercial facilities see a lot of people come and go. Bed bugs are parasitic pests that look for people to feast on while they’re sleeping. As parasites, they get around by way of hitchhiking and are very common in movie theaters, nursing homes, restaurants, schools, and public transportation.
- Rodents: Locally, the most common rodents found in properties are rats and mice. While the two might look the same and lead to similar issues, they are in fact different. Rats are often larger than mice and are regarded as skilled climbers. They use this ability to scale overhanging trees and enter properties that way. Some species of rats even maneuver through sewer systems in order to enter businesses. Mice are very nimble and can slip through dime-sized openings. Both have an incessant need to chew on things in order to keep their teeth from growing, which can lead to property damage.
- Wildlife: Pest animals such as raccoons, skunks, and pest birds often flock to the area’s businesses for safe haven. They come in search of food as well as somewhere to hide out or build their nests. These animals are known to be wildly unpredictable and tend to have free roam of properties due to their ability to climb, fly, and scamper. It’s also important to note that wildlife is also linked with both health issues and property damage. They are likely to carry parasitic pests such as mites, ticks, and fleas, can leave behind feces that may contain harmful pathogens, and some wildlife can chew on electrical wiring that may instigate fires.
For complete pest control in The Woodlands, call Modern Pest Control today.
How Pest Infestations Can Damage A Business
When pests such as termites, rodents, ants, and cockroaches appear in the businesses around The Woodlands, they can damage a business in more ways than one. Some of the types of damages that pests can bring to local businesses include:
- Property damage: One of the most serious realities of having a pest population present is the property damage that they can cause. Birds are known for leaving behind fecal matter that can corrode the exterior of buildings as well as any cars that they might leave droppings on. Rodents will chew anything that they can find to keep their incisor teeth from overgrowing, which can mean nibbling away at electrical wires or ruining insulation. And termites are known for their insatiable appetite for wood, so they can create lots of stability issues for buildings.
- Health issues: While there are many nuisance pests, there are also ones that spread health problems through things like droppings, saliva, and even body parts. Cockroaches are linked with the spread of staphylococcus and streptococcus, rodents are associated with salmonellosis and hantavirus, wasps can sting people, leading to significant pain and allergic reactions, and birds are associated with histoplasmosis through their feces.
- Secondary pest problems: Wildlife animals and rodents are largely linked with the spread of parasitic pests like fleas and mites. They are ideal hosts for these pests to feed off of, which also means that they likely spread them wherever they go. Additionally, having ants, silverfish, earwigs, or flies around a business may lead to spider populations because they feed on these pests.
- General discomfort: Any abundance of pests, whether it’s a flock of birds or too many spiders, can easily make customers feel unwelcome. People may interpret the presence of pest problems as a business being unprofessional as well.
- Lack of morale: Having pest problems can cause damage in the sense of them being bad for team spirit. People who work in places that are infested with pests will not feel good about coming into work or doing their jobs at all. Infestations can also make people sick and even cause them to bring pests back to their own homes.
For total pest control in The Woodlands and to limit exposure to these types of problems, call Modern Pest Control today.
Sensible Pest Prevention Practices To Implement In Your Business
Pest problems might seem like a reality of running a business, but they don’t have to be. While some pests are drawn out due to seasonal conditions, others may be attracted to certain contents within the four walls of your business. If you’re looking to mitigate your exposure to property damage and possible health threats, try some of the following tips:
- Maintain tidy landscaping. To start, look around the property that surrounds your building and aim to keep it free from clutter. This may mean raking up leaves, getting rid of fallen branches, and pruning hedges often.
- Avoid wood-to-foundation contact. When landscaping, always maintain at least 20 inches of barrier between your foundation and mulch. You will also want to keep the wood around your property in good condition and never stack wood piles on top of your building, all to prevent termites.
- Take care of moisture issues. Pests such as spiders, rodents, termites, cockroaches, earwigs, and more are all lured by the promise of moisture. Be sure that faucets are always shut off entirely, keep gutters free from build-up, install dehumidifiers in storage areas and crawl spaces, and fix faulty plumbing.
- Clean meticulously and often. One of the most important ways to keep pests away from your business is to make cleaning a habit. This may entail vacuuming carpeting, wiping down surfaces at desks and in shared kitchen areas, and disinfecting bathrooms.
- Practice proper food storage. If you operate a business that has a kitchen, then storing food in airtight containers is going to be vital in deterring pests such as rodents, cockroaches, and ants. If you run a business such as an office building or a healthcare facility where staff might bring meals and snacks, encourage them to use proper food storage as well. It’s also important to clear out common refrigerators on a regular basis to eliminate decomposing food items.
- Educate your staff. All of these tips may help reduce the number of pests that you see around your property; however, they’re only as good as your ability to share them with your team. While employees ought to follow pest prevention tips in your place of business, it’s also important to encourage these behaviors in their own homes as well. Certain pests, such as bed bugs and ticks, can transfer very easily from one property to another and can then become an issue in your place of business.
- Work with a pest control expert. The most reliable form of protection against future pest problems is undoubtedly professional services. An established pest control company is going to have the training, top-shelf products and equipment, and ability to handle a wide range of pest problems that might come your way. Better yet, they can provide you with ongoing coverage to give you peace of mind.
For more information on professional commercial pest control in The Woodlands, call Modern Pest Control today.
The Best Pest Control Solution For Your Business
When it comes to protecting your business from pests, the most reliable solution is working with a pest control expert. While you might be tempted to purchase traps or products at the store, they might not be safe and it’s very easy to use them incorrectly. Additionally, these types of offerings don’t get at the root of the problem and create lasting change. At Modern Pest Control, we are the answer to all of your pest control needs.
We are proud to be a family-owned business that has been in operation since 1952. And as members of the community that we serve, your safety has always remained our top priority. One of the most important characteristics of our company is that we’re Quality Pro-certified, which means that we are part of a very small selection of pest control companies across the country that meet the most rigorous standards across the board. It’s a mark of excellence and it informs everything that our team does on a daily basis.
As far as our services are concerned, they are informed by the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) method, which is vital for your business. IPM is a system that allows our technicians to gain a comprehensive understanding of your property and the way that pests interact with it. This means that we will work to understand your pest concerns, discover the source of them, and build strategic treatments to address them. IPM strategies also allow us to be as environmentally friendly as possible in all of our work.
Whether you’re dealing with an active pest problem or are looking to take proactive measures to prevent future ones, please give us a call. Our service begins with a detailed inspection of your entire property so that we can look for signs of pest activity, make accurate pest identifications, locate entry points, and suss out conducive conditions that could lead to future pest infestations. Once we have this information, we’ll create your treatment program. In some instances, businesses require sanitation services or physical changes that may aid in pest-proofing. We typically recommend ongoing services so that we can continue to provide uninterrupted pest control coverage and help you create the safe work environment that you deserve.
When you partner with us, you can have peace of mind knowing that we stand by our work and will provide re-treatments if you need them. We also make scheduling straightforward in order to meet the demands of your busy schedule. Our team is always discreet and professional for your continued comfort. And given our extensive background, we are ready to work with apartment complexes, houses of worship, the hospitality industry, and more. For more information on commercial pest control in The Woodlands, please call us today.