Pests are inevitable no matter where you live and the number of your household members. As a result, some people are considering controlling the pests’ growth and presence. This occurrence can lead to questions such as, “Are pest control services worth the money?” emerge.
Many pest control service providers provide their services in quarterly periods. Some others can only come to your properties twice a year. To answer the main question, which is, “Are pest control services worth the money?” we’ll start with identifying if quarterly pest controls are “worth it” for us.
Is quarterly pest control worth it
Nearly all services provide installments, including pest control services. The quarterly methods are the most popular methods for people all over the world to pay their installments. Yet, what if we apply the same understanding in pest control services? Are they worth the money?
“Yes” may be the answer when comparing them to other payment plans, such as the pest controllers who come every twice a year. However, being “quarterly” alone is not enough. After all, other payment components need more attention.
The work scopes are the most important for determining if quarterly pest control services are for you or not. “The work scopes” here don’t only involve the types of pests they deal with. The processes from the initial visits to the last steps of executions are included in the scopes as well.
The things around your properties play a huge role. For example, you may have blocks of wood that can prevent some pest controllers to go “in action”. Your lifestyles also help in determining if you should opt for the quarterly pest control services.
Is quarterly pest control necessary
Pests are unavoidable threats to every property owner. That way, it’s imperative to control their growths and presences. There are times when we don’t have every tool necessary to control the pests. So, we may need help from other pest-controlling specialists.
At the same time, some pests have unpredictable movements. Each of the pests has different characteristics, and hence, different preferences of living. It means that their growths may become sporadic even before the specialists come to your properties.
When they’ve arrived, it’s all too late – their tools can only deal with smaller degrees of the whole pest populations. In such cases, you may want to rethink using quarterly pest control.
How much does quarterly pest control cost
Now, you know that the pest control services coming in quarterly periods can be crucial in some situations. On the other side, you need to be able to afford the services. That’s why you need to know how much do the quarterly pest control services usually cost.
The market prices for quarterly pest controls per 2021 are around US$100-US$300 per one visit. Such a price range doesn’t include the initial visit. Some companies provide the initial surveying for free, while the others charge us at approximately the same prices as the main quarterly plan. At some points, the types of pests you want the service providers to control affect the price.
For example, controlling ants cost US$80-US$500 per one-time visit. Such cost ranges fall on the cheaper ranges than controlling termites (US$500-US$3,000) or bed bugs (US$300-US$5,000).
Some companies make the types of pests as the additional costs for the quarterly or monthly payment plans. Some others only base their prices on the types of pests. Either way, the larger impacts the pests have on your properties, the more money you should spend.
How often should pest control be done
Ideally, you would need to take action against the pests in your properties every time you see them coming. Yet, it will bring more stress and wastes of money if pests are the only things that concern you.
Many pest control professionals advise controlling the pests at least twice a year. This advice’s reason is due to the growth trends for many pest types that are more evident in such periods. Some pest control companies only have a one-time visit for their payment plan, in which you can save more money if you choose to have them come twice a year.
Some people choose pest control professionals to come into their properties quarterly or even once every month. Even though budgets can be a concern, it’s you who observe the growth of the pests. Eventually, you can decide on how often they should come and control the pests.
Where does pest control spray in apartments
Most apartment owners and residents use pest control sprays to help minimize the population of unwanted pests. Yet, you can’t apply those sprays to every possible room. That way, we’d probably love to know: Where, in the apartments, can we spray the pests?
Traditional bug sprays are best applied when no one is in the room and, all doors and windows are open. When you use the bug sprays, you should make sure that you don’t use any objects to light up the fire and electricity.
So, kitchens are the most dangerous areas to apply pest control sprays. Most people save their pest sprays in bedrooms or living rooms. Be sure to leave the room for at least 5 minutes after you apply the sprays.
Are ultrasonic pest control devices effective
Conventional bug sprays may be the most widely available and some of the cheapest alternatives to control the pest populations. However, they are not the most environmentally friendly tools to deal with pests in your houses or apartments.
Ultrasonic pest control devices are the alternatives that people often use these days. Many pest control service companies even use these devices instead of the traditional bug sprays.
True to their names, these devices work by transmitting ultrasonic lights and sounds to get rid of the pests when you activate them. When you look at the forms, you’ll notice that they look like smaller-sized surveillance cameras with (usually) three holes to transmit the lights.
The million-dollar question still applies here: Are they safe for living beings in your residences? We’ll uncover more on these over the next few points in this article.
Is ultrasonic pest control safe for humans
Here, “humans” are every child and person who has gone through adolescence. In other words, every people who have gone past 3 years old and above falls into this category. So, are ultrasonic pest control devices safe for them?
First of all, we need to remind ourselves that humans can’t hear ultrasonic sounds. So, pest controllers that produce ultrasonic sounds are safe. It’s not only the sounds that make them safe, though.
Many of these controlling tools are also environmentally friendly. They don’t leave out unwanted odors and don’t cause any harmful substances. These characteristics make them even more perfect for humans.
Is ultrasonic pest control safe for babies
“Babies” are everyone who is between several days old to around 3 years old. Their bodies and responses to the nerve systems are more sensitive than older-aged people. So, is ultrasonic pest control safe for them as well?
Babies as they may be, they are still humans. Thus, the ultrasonic sounds produced by these pest controllers won’t affect them. The environmentally-friendly characteristics of these tools are safe for babies. The ultrasonic pest controllers are also non-toxic, which makes them even safer for (newborn) babies.
Is ultrasonic pest control safe for pregnancy
Health-wise, pregnant women are among the people groups who are sensitive to external and internal stimuli. Many of the tools in hospitals and public health centers provide ultrasonic technologies to some extent. Yet, the main question: Can we apply the same technology to pest controls? Are they safe to be placed near the soon-to-be moms?
Radiation is all that matters for placing any devices near pregnant women. As long as your ultrasonic pest controllers don’t project bright LED lights, you should be okay with them being near pregnant women. Additionally, being both environmentally friendly and non-toxic should make them okay for pregnancy.
However, someone should accompany pregnant women who want to use ultrasonic pest control devices, especially when they’ve reached 6-month pregnancy or more. Even though many of these pest controller devices are lightweight, we should keep in mind that it’s possible for the babies inside to “play” with the tools and thus create unwanted accidents.
Is ultrasonic pest control safe for birds
There are times when humans, babies, and pregnant women, are not the only ones in our residents. Some people have pets in their houses. Some apartment owners permit the residents to own pets. In this part, we’re going to see if the ultrasonic pest control devices are safe for birds.
Birds’ hearing abilities are similar to humans in that ultrasonic sounds are still far beyond their reach. So, in terms of sounds, ultrasonic-powered pest controllers are safe for birds. On the other side, there are many types of birds, and not all birds have the same degrees of sensitivities to sounds.
Consequently, you should pay attention to your birds’ behaviors when the pest controllers are around them. If they suddenly become more easily irritated or aggressive, you should either place the controllers elsewhere. As an alternative, remove the controllers and replace them with the ones that support your birds’ well-being.
Does ultrasonic pest control affect dogs
Dogs are yet other types of common pets in houses and apartments. Now, the question: If ultrasonic pest controlling devices produce different reactions to birds, what if we apply them to dogs?
Unfortunately, dogs have sharper hearing abilities compared to human beings and birds. Even though ultrasonic sounds may not affect some dog breeds, many of them can’t stand the tools.
Here, the same rule for birds applies: If you observe that your dogs get nervous, distressed, or even angry all of a sudden, you should immediately remove the devices and place them somewhere safer. You may even want to consult veterinarians before you place any ultrasonic pest controllers near your dogs.
Does ultrasonic pest control affect cats
Cats are the second most popular pets all over the world. They are mammals like dogs, even though they have different characteristics and preferences. So, here, we’d like to know, do ultrasonic pest control devices affect cats as much as dogs?
Both cats and dogs can hear ultrasonic sounds. Even if cats’ ears can be more sensitive than dogs’, the controlling devices don’t irritate them much. Even so, you need to keep them a few meters away from your cats if your cats love to scratch random things.
This resistance to ultrasonic sounds in the pest controlling devices makes cats some of the most powerful mammals. The controlling devices may harm other mammals, such as rabbits and hamsters, but not cats.
Should I do pest control myself
People use either the traditional pest sprays or the ones that can transmit ultrasonic sounds and lights. You can obtain both of them in the nearby supermarkets and stores. Often, their prices are a lot cheaper than when you hire people to perform routine pest control services.
Therefore, should you do all the pest controlling activities by yourself? To reiterate the central question for this article: Are pest control services worth the money?
Ideally, you would need around 3 months to observe the environments around your houses or apartments. Then, adjust them with the budgets that you have. If you rent an apartment, you should ask the owner(s) to what extent they’d permit you to control the pests.
Doing pest controls by yourself is only okay when you can recognize the center nests of the pests. Else, you should hire pest controlling service providers, rely on their abilities to find the nests of the pests and get rid of them or even kill them.
Trust us, many times, the answer to, “Are pest control services worth the money?” can often be “Yes” all the way. The thing that you should do is to seek the best payment plans and packages for the conditions in your environment.
Then, and only then, you will be satisfied with how the pest-controlling professionals fulfill your expectations.
Are you curious to know will a vacuum kill a centipede, does exterminator get rid of roaches or should you vacuum up ants?
Dr Philip G Cox currently is a professor in Physiology in the Centre for Anatomical and Human Sciences which is part of the Hull York Medical School and the Department of Archaeology at the University of York. Dr Philip G Cox studied comparative mammalian functional morphology for the PhD in the University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge.
