Pest Control Services & Exterminations in Perth Amboy, NJ

As we were treating the property of a Home Protection Plan customer in Perth Amboy, NJ, we noticed a stack of firewood and old lumber on a pile on the landscape and decided to investigate. When we inspected the pile, we found subterranean termites crawling inside several pieces of lumber! We spoke to the owner and mentioned that this is way it's a good idea to keep any and all firewood on a concrete or metal slab at least 6 inches off the ground and at least 20 feet from the home!

With the owner's permission, we discarded all the wood and began our treatment. We treated the entire exterior perimeter of the home with a liquid termiticide. The termiticide will bind to the treated areas and create a protective zone that the termites can't detect. The termites are going to come in contact with this treatment, return to their nest, and spread it throughout their colony. A short while later, the termites will be exterminated.

I was sent to a home in Perth Amboy after the homeowner contacted Cowleys because of an ant infestation in her kitchen. Upon arrival, she was justifiably quite upset because these ants formed their foraging trails inside her cabinets where food and her tableware was stored.

As often happens, the homeowner first attempted a DIY treatment prior to contacting a professional pest control service. She removed all of the cabinet contents, and treated for the ants with an over-the-counter pesticide. Not surprisingly, this did nothing to failed to resolve the infestation. You can’t get rid of an ant infestation, or any social insect infestation for that matter, by killing the foraging workers. Foraging ants are expendable, and there are plenty more where they came from! To resolve an ant infestation, you have to kill the colony and the breeding queen. These DIY sprays simply chase away the ants to every hiding place they can find. The also make it more difficult for the technician to find out the source of the ant infestation because they disrupt their pheromone trails. 

During my inspection, I did not observe any ant activity in or around the cabinets because of the spray. That did not mean the infestation was gone, only that the ant had moved to other locations, repelled by the spray. Fortunately, as I was applying a crack and crevice treatment along the back of the counter, I observed ant activity behind the backsplash on the other side of the stove. After observing even more ants trailing along the cabinet kick plates underneath, I knew that I found the “hot spot” attracting these pests. I pulled out the stove and found the culprit — several pieces of dry dog food that managed to roll underneath. 

Often, homeowners are very conscientious about sealing all of the food in their cabinets or on their counters, but overlook hidden food sources for pests, especially food that winds up on the floor and gets stuck underneath kitchen appliances. After cleaning underneath the stove to remove the insect attractant, I finished my treatment with a non-repellent product that will be carried back to the colony, killing the queen and the other pests. Now, the homeowner's ant problem in her kitchen has been properly resolved.