1. What is the advantage of having an adulticide, knockdown agent, synergist and IGR in one product?
Mosquitoes evolve quickly to changes in their environment so an effective treatment plan should be multi-pronged. Each component features a unique benefit to mosquito control:
Adulticides can provide long-lasting relief from an adult population of biting mosquitoes. For best results, choose an adulticide with microcap technology. Microcaps provide control for an extended period of time on difficult surfaces.
A knockdown agent provides immediate relief that the adulticide may not.
Synergists are not insecticides by themselves but they enhance insecticide efficacy. Synergists combat insecticide resistance present in the mosquito population. Piperonyl butoxide, or PBO, is one of the most common synergists used. It prevents the breakdown of the insecticide in the insect, leading to increased efficacy at lower insecticide concentrations.
IGRs provide a very different mode of action in combating mosquito populations than adulticides. One type of IGR is a juvenile hormone (JH) mimic, which prevents the transition of larvae into adults. NyGuard prevents potential breeding sites by inhibiting adult emergence in the future.
2. Why is it important to do a pre-treat inspection?
We define a pre-treat inspection as a quick walk around the perimeter of the structure to assess treatment needs. During this step you should:
Check wind direction and potential drift issues including a quick assessment of neighboring properties.
Remove all items from the yard that have people or pet contact such as toys, lawn chairs, food bowls, etc.
Look for and identify areas of concern such as gardens, fish ponds, flowering plants, etc.
A pre-treatment inspection will help you properly determine the type of equipment and product to use. Equipment examples include a backpack mist blower, truck-mounted power sprayer or a compressed air sprayer for smaller areas. Products can include adulticides, larvicides/IGRs, synergists, spreaders or other surfactants. Always review a product label to ensure proper use.
3. What target area is important when treating trees during a mosquito treatment?
Treat all mosquito resting and breeding sites. Resting areas have little air movement and may include soffits, under decks or porches, the bottom 20 feet of trees and the underside of vegetation, where mosquitoes spend 90% of their time resting.
Breeding sites may include stagnant water (not active waterways) such as bird baths and tree holes. Treat these areas with an approved IGR. Remember to treat all potential breeding sites, even if they don’t currently hold water.
4. What are some tips to minimize product exposure to natural bodies of water, fruits or nut trees, vegetables, food surfaces and flowering vegetation?
Avoid treating with an adulticide when there is a natural body of water less than 50 feet from the treatment area.
Do not treat edible vegetation or sensitive areas directly. Treat adjacent areas with a compressed air sprayer to avoid drift and for a more targeted application.
Cover food surfaces or treat adjacent areas with a compressed air sprayer.
To avoid non-target impact, do not treat areas of flowering vegetation. Treat adjacent areas with a compressed air sprayer.
5. What is the best way to manage a customer’s expectations?
Communicate any potential breeding sites or conducive conditions, as well as natural conditions that may affect the treatment control. Include the customer in this process.
Start by inspecting the entire area for harborage and breeding sites. Remove all sources of standing water and any other potential breeding sites. Potential breeding sites include, but are not limited to, bird baths, clogged rain gutters, saucers under potted plants, watering cans, children’s toys, rain barrels and leaf piles. Potential natural conditions that you may not treat include natural bodies of water or an untreated catch basin.
Clear customer communication to manage expectations is key to avoiding unhappy customers.
Companies Provide Meals, Shelters to their Communities
Pest control businesses have a long history of giving back to their communities. Recent volunteer efforts from a pair of pest control companies — EnviroPest and Northwest Exterminating — are perfect illustrations of this generosity.
Every year, Loveland,Colo.-based EnviroPest closes its office for a day to serve a community non-profit. This year, EnviroPest worked with Habitat for Humanity at a build house and at a ReStore. (ReStores are nonprofit home improvement stores and donation centers that sell new and gently used furniture, appliances and more to the public at a fraction of the retail price.) “Our build team painted and worked on the interior of the project,” said EnviroPest President Kevin LeMasters. “At the ReStore, we sorted donated items and helped get them ready for resale. Some of our team worked outside to better organize the larger items.”
LeMasters added, “Our mission statement is ‘We exist to serve,’ and this is something we work to live out every day with the service we deliver and interaction with customers. But having a day where our staff can be in the community is important to us as well.”
In March, the team at Marietta, Ga.-based Northwest Exterminating came together to support the “From Hope to Hunger” initiative with Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). Northwest packed more than 3,000 meals, which will be provided to children across the world to help combat hunger. Feed My Starving Children is a non-profit organization that works to ship meals to undernourished children with the help of volunteers and distribution partners. Their mission is “to reach everyone, until ALL are fed.” The organization has provided more than 2 billion meals and counting.
“It was such an honor to get our Northwest teammates together with our co- presidents — Stephen and Stanford Phillips — to spend a few hours serving to make a difference,” said Kristen Milligan, co-director of the Good Deed Team. “Each year, the Good Deed Team sets out to ‘bring simple, meaningful opportunities for our Northwest team to create a positive impact,’ and we feel fortunate to work with many great organizations across Metro Atlanta who are inspiring change in our communities.”
During the course of two days, the 336 volunteers boxed more than 200,000 meals, which will help feed more than 500 children three meals a day for the next year. For more information about FMSC visit www.fmsc.org.
EnivroPest team members donated time and labor to Habitat for Humanity, Northwest Exterminating’s Good Deed Team packed 3,000 meals for those in need.
McCloud Gives Back to National Charities
Chris McCloud (left) and Pat Hottel.
In March, McCloud Services announced the charitable organizations that will receive a donation as part of its 2017 Employee Incentive Program. In its sixth year, the program has contributed nearly $25,000 to non-profit organizations as part of the company’s philanthropy work.
Charitable organizations receiving donations from the Employee Incentive Program for the 2017 year include St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital; American Cancer Society; Boys and Girls Clubs of America; Big Brother, Big Sister; American Red Cross; and the Humane Society.
“We are thrilled to continue the tradition of recognizing our top-performing employees by donating to a charity of their choice. Now in its sixth year, our employee incentive program not only motivates our employees to succeed, but to also give back to their communities,” said Chris McCloud, president and CEO of McCloud Services.
The program rewards team members who exceed production and sales goals for the year with an employee incentive program that gives back to the community. All individual performance winners have the opportunity to select a qualified non-profit organization for which McCloud Services makes a donation on their behalf. Recognized team members also receive a company-paid trip to Riviera Maya, Mexico. The 2017 Incentive Program winners include: Patricia Hottel; Phillip Dowdy; Jeff Dawes; Josh Rose; Doug Dempler; Noel Rodriguez; Chris Fowler; Sharon Rejsek; Jeff Jones; and Johnny Overton.
In addition, in 2015 McCloud Services created the Walter Award to honor members of the McCloud team who consistently model and promote outstanding leadership qualities and behaviors. Out of numerous nominees, Hottel, the company’s technical director, was honored with the third Walter Award for her contributions in the areas of character, innovation, teamwork, core values and leadership.
Celebrating five decades of service to the pest management industry.
