Flies what exactly is the harm in them?

There are over 100,000 species of flies in the world today ranging in size from very tiny 1mm to a chunky 10mm. Flies all belong to the same group of insects called Diptera which means two wings. Although you can only see one pair of wings, the other pair is still there but has evolved into a form of gyroscope which allows the fly to change direction rapidly. These gyroscopes are called haltares.

Flies are notorious carriers of disease such as salmonella, campylobacter, and typhoid to name a few. As there are so many species, I will in this article talk about the common and lesser common house flies. They pick up these diseases as they travel from filth to food and back to filth. Once a fly lands on your food this is a short scenario of what happens.

The fly will land on your plate and as it's "taste buds" are in its feet it will stomp around tasting your food. Then as flies cannot chew they have to liquefy your food. They do this by vomiting an enzyme over the food which they then stamp in . This enzyme breaks down your food to a liquid consistency which they then suck up. Sound gross right? But that’s not the end, while feeding, it is likely that the fly will then defecate on the food before flying away.

Now you know this does it make you want to control them?

All flies undergo a 4 stage life cycle from egg to larvae to pupae to adult. The house fly will lay its eggs in damp or semi liquid putrefying material. In her life time she will lay around 750 eggs. The newly hatched larvae will tend to burrow into the food source they have been laid in and search for high temperatures.

An adult house fly may travel up to 5 miles in search of good breeding site and it's whole life cycle will be between 1 - 5 weeks long.

For effective fly control use an residual insecticide which can be wiped on to alighting surfaces then a power fogger to knock down any flying adults. As with all flies the key is increase housekeeping. Have a good look around for potential breeding site which may vary depending on the species of fly but all flies need a breeding site and if this is not found and eradicated then the flies are likely to return after a very short period of time.

An ultraviolet Electronic fly killer machine will attract the flies into the trap and zap them and fly screens on windows may offer some help but as I mentioned before only eradicating the breeding site will give you full control

Pest Repellers - How they work and which one is right for me

Pest repellers have been on the market now for around 10 years so they have been put to the test in many situations. No matter what the professional pest control servicing companies say Pest repellers do seem to work on a variety of pests and they are very popular with home owners as they give a completely non toxic pest control option.

There are two types of Pest repellers on the market and I will talk about bout both then you can decide which one if any you use. The first one is the Ultra sonic Pest repeller which works by emitting a high frequency sound which is not audible to humans. This creates a harsh environment for the pests to live in and therefore they move on. It works on rodents and many insects so be aware if you have pets such as hamsters it will affect them. The limitations of these type of pest repellers is that ultrasonic sound does not travel through object and this is a major drawback. Say for instance you have mice in your kitchen nesting under your units, the ultrasonic repeller will not penetrate into these places or in other situations such as in an attic the ultrasonic sound will be blocked from travelling by any object such as Christmas decorations you are storing up there.

The other type is one that works on electromagnetic frequency. Simply put when you plug the unit in, it uses the wiring of your electric system in your whole house to create an electromagnetic force which again creates a harsh environment for the pests to live in. The benefits of this are the force field it builds up will travel wherever you have electrical wiring. So even if the pests are harbouring inside the wall cavities they will be driven out similarly if they are in an attic and you have wiring in there then they will also fell the effect and leave. This is the major benefit of using an electromagnetic pest repeller over the ultrasonic pest repellers even though the ultrasonic ones are usually much cheaper.

Some repellers such as the PestStop 2000 has both functions so you get the full benefits of both types of repeller and these types of units are proving popular.

When using pest repellers remember that they will only create a harsh environment for the pests to live in. They will not stop pests from entering your premises so you still need to do your detective work and find the point of pest entry and block it up with either caulking sealant for insects of cement and wire wool for rodents. Once you have carried this out then you should be able to easily maintain a pest free environment and therefore reduce the risk of disease

Rodenticides and poisons - how they work

There are a wide variety of mouse traps on the market today. These traps range from the old style break back traps to the super advanced electrocution traps. Each and every one of these mouse trapshas a place in today’s market both for professional pest controllers and amateur home owners alike.

Nowadays mouse traps can be bought online for little cost but it is how these traps are used that show their true effectiveness. For example with a wooden break back mouse trap you can easily increase your chances of gaining a kill by placing the trap at right angles to the wall floor junction rather alongside. That is to say that the shortest side should be touching the wall floor junction. This will ensure that no matter which way the mouse hits the trap you will capture its whole body which will then be caught by the arm of the trap.

It is worth while noting that catch rate can also be increased dramatically by using an attractant which can be placed on the trap for example either a square of chocolate or a smearing of peanut butter will attract the rodent to the trap and will result in a clean kill.

Should you use a chunky type of lure such as a square of chocolate then another tip is to tie the bait onto the trap rather than just placing it on. This causes the rodent to pull at the bait which will trigger the killing arm and once again increase your catch rate.

Another way to keep rodents out of your home is to block up the points of entry. This can be done either with cement or a small gauge mesh. Do not use expanding foam to do the job. Rodents are able to chew straight through this and it offers no protection what so ever from rodents. Once you have filled any suspect gaps then keep an eye on them for a week or so to ensure they have not been breached by the rodents who may be a little more persistent especially if you have blocked their favourite route back to their nest. If your hole blocking does become breached then simply redo it with an extra layer of blocking to ensure complete restriction of rodents

Do not forget that rodent carry diseases such as salmonella so if you are unlucky enough to have a rodent infestation ensure you clean any surfaces which the rodent has come into contact with. This will help reduce the risk of disease spreading. Disease is carried in two ways either through their urine which they deposit as they walk over surfaces or by bacteria which they carry on their feet which is transmitted as they walk from filth to food. A readily available bacterialcide will be enough to ensure the risk of disease is kept to a minimum.

new lower post and packaging costs

I am pleased to announce that we have been able to secure a reduced rate from our delivery carrier today. of £1.20. I will be passing this saving in full to our customers making our post and packaging costs £5.99.

I will continue to pass on any future savings onto our customers

ants ants and more ants

Well the ants are well and truly out and making a pest of themselves. I have received several calls from customers fed up with the ants in their lawns. As the nights get lighter, those lucky enough to be sitting outside with a nice cold glass of wine (or tea!) are seeing this little pests running around their feet.

We have had really good success with our insectaclear product in getting rid of these pests and anyone faced with the same problem should take a look at www.pestwarehouse.co.uk and check out the ant section

bring on the Ants

Well with BST upon us the ants have started to come out in force making my customers lives a misery. Well never fear as Pest Warehouse stocks a huge range of all kinds of products to kill those pesky ants and reinstate a bit of calm into your house

Summer starts NOW

Well its finally happened. Summer has started - Well not quite! but this is the first week this year that we have started to get calls about ants and wasps. These pests have started thier annual invaision on our homes and will continue to bring misery to all until late septemeber at least. If you need any advice then visit our web site at www.pestwarehouse.co.uk where you can get free advice from leading experts not just on the pest but o DIY treatments to save you money and get rid of your summer pests