Pest Control & Wildlife Removal in Lavallette, NJ

During a scheduled treatment service for a new Home Protection Plan customer in Lavallette, NJ, we found something interesting underneath the deck in the backyard - rat droppings! We found them around the crawl space door, which was broken and being held up by a piece of wood and cinderblocks. As we closely inspected the crawl space, we found even more rat droppings throughout the area and noticed that the insulation was falling down. Turns out that is was saturated with rat urine!

We told the owner, who had no idea that he even had a rat problem! We mentioned that, once the rats are gone, our Crawl Space Division can not only install a more sturdy crawl space door, but also remove all the contaminated insulation and install new insulation! He was happy to hear that and scheduled an appointment. As far as the treatment for the rats, we installed several rodent bait stations in the crawl space, underneath the deck, and along the exterior of the home. Lastly, we scheduled a number of follow up visits to monitor the rat activity and replenish the bait stations as needed. 

A new customer in Lavallette, NJ, called Cowleys after his wife found some damaged wooden beams in the basement and was afraid that they might have termites. Once we arrived and inspected the basement, we immediately found several active termite mud tubes on several of the walls in the basement. Mud tubes are pencil-width size tubes made by the worker termites from soil and wood cemented together using their saliva and excrement as "glue." Termites use these tunnels to travel to and from their nest when foraging for food. These protective tubes allow the termites to stay moist underground. We reported our findings to the homeowners and immediately began treatment.

Since termites live beneath ground level, for an effective treatment, we drilled into the floors & walls of the basement and around the exterior of the home. Once we were finished, we injected a liquid termiticide into floor of the basement, around the entire perimeter of the home, and then injected a foaming version of the termiticide into the basement walls. The termiticide binds to the treated areas and creates a protective zone that the termites can't detect.

The termites will unknowingly come in contact with this treatment as they go about their normal routines, bring it back to their nest, and transfer it among their colony.  In a short amount of time, the termites will be exterminated and the home will be protected from termites for many years to come.

While treating the exterior of this home in Lavallette, NJ we found a praying mantis on a stoop by the back door. Praying mantids are considered beneficial insects, as they prey on bothersome insects like mosquitoes, moths, crickets, and flies. They are typically green or brown, but many species will take on the color of their habitat. They may mimic leaves, twigs, flowers, grass, and even other insects.

Although praying mantises are voracious predators, it is highly unlikely for them to hurt a human. They have no venom, cannot sting, and do not carry any infectious diseases. While being extremely cautious, we safely moved the praying mantis to another location that was out of the way.

The transition into fall brings cooler temperatures, and the cooler weather is a trigger for numerous types of bugs and beetles start looking for a warm and dry harborage (our homes!) in which to overwinter and escape the harsh outdoor elements. One of the more common unwanted overwintering nuisance invaders is the Boxelder bug. These bugs are so-named because these they are a common pest of female seed-bearing boxelder tree. Often, when I tell a customer that they have a boxelder bug infestation and I explain that a “boxelder” is a type of tree, the usual response is that they never heard of that type of tree let alone have one on their property — and unless you are an arborist, most of us could not identify a boxelder tree even if one of its tree limbs fell on us! Even though these bugs feed primarily on the seeds of boxelder trees, they are not selective. These bugs have no issues infesting maple and ash trees, which are more commonly found. When overwintering, these pests often invade structures by the hundreds. They find their way inside by pushing through every available crack or crevice they can find. Although these bugs do not breed inside, their sheer numbers can be overwhelming to the occupants.

While performing my monthly service on one of my commercial accounts, I observed many Boxelder bugs on and around the building.
 
Boxelder bugs have similar behavior to the dreaded sting bug. Both seek to overwinter in warm, dry areas of a home or building. A favorite area of infestation of overwintering bugs is the attic where they like to tuck themselves under the insulation away from view.

The best way to control these pests is by taking preventative steps to exclude them from getting inside the structure in the first place. All cracks around the building should be caulked and any visible entry points should be sealed. However, despite taking these steps, these persistent bugs can still weasel their way inside. It is virtually impossible to make a building completely impermeable to insects. With this commercial customer, there was a heavy active infestation despite taking precautions. I applied a treatment around the building’s exterior perimeter of the structure to repel as many of these unwanted invaders as possible. The treatment substantially reduced the boxelder bug population, and this customer will experience far fewer bugs inside the structure.