When Mother Nature Says ‘Not Today’

Mother Nature is the top challenge for outdoor pest control, with weather conditions often halting work. This is especially true for an industry focused on preventing pests from entering, instead of reacting to them being inside.

Among Midwest PMPs, 54% cited weather as their top challenge, compared to just 17% in the West.

“Weather is a major obstacle,” said Jeffrey Emerson, owner of Mosquito Enemy, Newburyport, Mass. “Wind over 12 mph prevents effective spraying, and rain stops us completely. On many days, we can’t get much done due to weather conditions.”

Other significant challenges include dense vegetation (15%), uncooperative customers (10%), ineffective products (7%) and tree limbs or bushes against buildings (7%).

Mark Sims, owner of Fikes, Federal Way, Wash., noted additional difficulties: “Challenges include customers not eliminating harborage, food and water sources, as well as urban environments with excessive litter. Nearby businesses or environments that can’t be altered, like livestock feed or construction disrupting rodent burrows, also contribute to pest issues.”

RAINY DAY BLUES.

Among weather events that are preventing PMPs from getting outdoor pest control work completed, rainstorms (83%) and high winds (50%) are by far the most obtrusive forms of weather.

Snowstorms and freezing temperatures were both cited by more than 30% of pest management professionals as issues preventing them from performing a treatment. Flooding, tornadoes and hurricanes — i.e., atypical weather events — rounded out the lesser percentages of those surveyed as they don’t affect people on a daily, weekly or even monthly basis.

“Weather is first and then customer cooperation and that means keeping things in order on the exterior, not letting things overgrow,” said Blasingame Pest Management’s Billy Blasingame, who added sanitation is necessary for effective pest control, but so is remediating issues like standing water and debris that attracts outdoor pests.

Avoiding callbacks is a reason to stop when weather takes over, said Seek Pest Solutions’ Ramos. The day he was interviewed for this story, his route was rained out.

“Today’s a rainy day so we can move everything to another day but other larger companies, their schedules are packed. I need to get a good treatment when I go there. We don’t have callbacks.”

MAN-MADE PROBLEMS.

While weather may affect treatments, Bohannon’s Keller said the internet causes its own set of problems when it comes to customers.

“Ironically, today our biggest challenge is the internet because people can research things and that means people can research themselves stupid,” Keller said. “You can find something that said grape jelly [moves] fire ants away from around your house. The availability of quick info is a hindrance sometimes.”

Keller noted another challenge: customers often expect immediate results. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies and baiting are approaches that typically require more time — something that customers might not tolerate. “(We) want to get to the root of the problem.”