What Are Silverfish?
A silverfish is a small, silverish-brown insect that is typically around ¾ of an inch long. Silverfish differ from other common insects like ants, beetles, and flies because they are primitive insects, meaning they almost look like a fossil that has come to life. Silverfish can move extremely quickly, sometimes looking like they are swimming across the ground, hence their name. These insects have six legs with long antennae and three additional appendages that stem from the end of their bodies, but they do not have wings. Silverfish are known to feed on and cause damage to a wide variety of items that might be found in your home: books, clothes, wallpaper, flour, sugar, coffee, oats, and much more. These insects often thrive in dark yet humid environments, such as basements, attics, bathrooms, pantries, laundry rooms, and any other place in a home that may have those characteristics. While silverfish are not particularly dangerous, they are considered a nuisance pest that can cause damage to items in your home and trigger allergies.
Should I Be Concerned About A Silverfish Infestation In My Home?
As mentioned above, silverfish do not pose any serious concerns to you or the other people living in your home. However, this does not mean that you want these insects living in your home. Silverfish are known to breed rapidly, meaning an infestation could get out of control faster than you may think. Additionally, silverfish can get into paper products and dry food items, both of which they feed on. If you notice that a silverfish has gotten into a bag of flour, coffee, sugar, or any other type of food, you should dispose of it as they are unsanitary insects. One more reason that silverfish can be a concern is that some people may be allergic to their dropping and shed scales, leading to symptoms like sneezing, itching, coughing, and other common allergy symptoms. Signs of a silverfish infestation include:
- Seeing live silverfish
- Silverfish dropping & shed skin
- Silverfish damage
Contact Absolut Pest Control!
If you believe your Massachusetts home contains a silverfish infestation, the best way to deal with it is to contact a pest control professional. Our team at Absolut Pest Control has years of experience dealing with a wide variety of pests, including insects, rodents, birds, bats, small mammals, and much more! Contact us today by giving us a call at (978) 388-4589 or by filling out the contact form on our website!
Tips On Getting Stink Bugs Out Of Your Home
Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs – more commonly known as just stink bugs – are native to eastern Asia but were unknowingly introduced into the United States ecosystem at some point in the mid-1990s. Stink bugs often begin to creep into homes in Massachusetts when the weather starts to get chillier in the fall and early winter. Stink bugs can be seriously annoying because they reproduce quickly and can seemingly appear in your home out of nowhere. Stink bugs also give off a foul smell when they’re killed, hence their name. For this reason, you may want to consider removing them from your home with alternate strategies. Absolut Pest Control provides southern New Hampshire and greater Boston with professional pest control services, including stink bug removal and prevention!
How To Remove Stink Bugs From Your House
While stink bugs can be an extreme annoyance because of the odor they give off, the good news is that they’re relatively easy to catch. Stink bugs fly rather quickly, but when crawling, they’re quite slow. If you notice one or many stink bugs inside your home, avoid touching or squishing them because they give off a terrible smell when they die. Instead, grab them gently with a plastic bag or trap them in a cup, then take them outside to dispose of them or set them free. If you notice them on the floor or on a carpet, you can vacuum them up, then empty your vacuum cleaner into an outdoor trash can. However, like with most pests, the best way to get rid of all your stink bugs and make sure they’re gone for good is to hire a pest control professional!
How To Prevent Stink Bugs From Getting Inside Your Home
Once you’ve gotten rid of the stink bugs that were already inside your home, it’s essential to prevent more from coming in. One way you can prevent stink bugs from entering your home is by going around the exterior of your house and sealing up any cracks in your screens, windows, and siding. Another strategy for preventing stink bugs is to coat your home’s entryways in an odor-free insect repellent. As always, if you’re worried about stink bugs or any other bugs entering your home, you should hire a pest control professional who will get the job done right!
Contact Absolut Pest Control!
If you have any questions about our pest control services or need pest control at your home, please don’t hesitate to contact us! Give us a call at (978) 388-4589 or fill out the contact form on our website, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible!
3 Pests That Are Common In The Fall
As the colder weather approaches New England, critters and pests begin looking for a warm place to stay for the winter. This article will go over some common pests that people often have problems with in the fall months.
Mice
Like many rodents, mice begin searching for food and warmth when the cold New England weather starts in the fall. Because of this, your home may seem like an attractive place for them to shack up in the fall and winter. The best way to prevent this is by being proactive and making sure to seal off any potential entry points like tiny holes in doors or screens, air vents, gaps around plumbing, and any other small holes that lead into your house. You may also consider setting some preventative mouse traps so you can catch them if they do somehow make their way into your home.
Spiders
Fall is the time of year when some species of spiders begin laying their eggs before their life comes to an end, which can increase the population and bring the creepy crawlers into your home. While New England doesn’t have many dangerous spider species, it’s still a good idea to call a pest control professional if you have a spider infestation because they can deal with the problem effectively and make sure that the infestation does not persist. If you see spiders or spider webs outside your home, it’s important to remember that spiders are a crucial part of our ecosystem because they control the population of other bugs.
Beetles
You may begin to see beetles in your home in the fall months because this is around the time that these insects look for a safe place to hibernate for the winter. Some of the most common New England beetles that people have issues with at this time of year are ladybugs and stink bugs. These beetles often congregate around warm areas, so keep an eye out for them near any heat source. When you see beetles, an effective way to get rid of them is by vacuuming them up. Be sure to close off windows and holes in screens so these beetles don’t have an easy entry point into your home.
Contact Absolut Pest Control!
If you have any more questions about autumn pests or have a pest control problem in the greater Boston or southern New Hampshire area, don’t hesitate to contact us! Give us a call at (978) 388-4589, or fill out the contact form on our website!
What Is The Most Effective Ways To Get Rid of Mosquitoes
It is almost summer. And when summer is around the corner we are all excited for days at the beach, road trips, and of course summer BBQs. In fact with the recent heat waves, you may have already installed your air conditioning units and fired up the grill a few times this June. But summer isn’t all fun and relaxing. Summer is when insect pests thrive. And nowhere is that felt more than with mosquitoes.
What Should Know About Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes are one of the most hated pests. Aside from annoying bites, they often carry diseases from animals to humans. This includes the West Nile Virus. A single mosquito can lay over 100 eggs, so their growth happens exponentially. The most important thing to understand is the difference between mosquito repellent and mosquito killers. Repellant only keeps mosquitoes at bay for a limited time. The mosquitoes will still be on your property and continue to create new generations. However, killing mosquitoes isn’t an easy task or good for the environment. Years of pesticides have allowed certain species of mosquitoes to become more resistant to pesticides. This means we have to use stronger methods which could be hazardous to other animals and plant life. The best thing you can do is prevent mosquitoes in the first place.
How To Prevent Mosquitoes
Throughout the spring and summer, you want to eliminate standing water around your property. This includes your gutters, bird baths, and large puddles. Mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water, so eliminating this can prevent mosquitoes from breeding a new generation right outside your door.
How To Handle Mosquitoes Inside Your Home
If you hear a mosquito buzzing around your room you can lure the mosquito by turning off the lights and then using a flashlight. Like many insects, mosquitoes are drawn to light. This is an easy way to quickly get insects all in one place. Then you can use a fly swatter or other tool to get rid of them. To stop mosquitoes from getting inside, make sure to inspect window and door screens, install mosquito nets, and identify any issues with windows/doors/siding that might allow mosquitos inside. There are also a variety of mosquito repellants that homeowners swear by including essential oils that use lavender or lemon.
How To Handle Mosquitoes Outside Your Home
Mosquitoes can be just as annoying outside as they are inside. One of the most effective ways to handle mosquitoes is with a bug zapper. Bug zappers use insects natural draw towards bright lights against them by zapping the insects as they get too close. There are also a variety of products that spread smells that repel mosquitoes including special candles. This another great method as it has no lasting impact on the environment around your home. Outdoor fans can also help push mosquitoes away from your patio or deck by constantly moving air around making it difficult to fly.
When To Call Pest Control
If there are large swarms of mosquitoes inside or outside of your home, it may be time to call pest control. A pest control expert can help you handle mosquitoes throughout your property. For more information please give our team a call.
How to Identify & Get Rid of Carpenter Ants
Generally, ants are harmless but they can be annoying and very destructive to your home. The carpenter ant is probably the best example of this. They become very active in warmer months, during which they search for new homes and for food. They could infest your sidewalks, driveways, and siding, and your home.
This guide will cover both how to identify and how to get rid of carpenter ants from your home.
How Do You Identify Carpenter ants?
Carpenter ants are often misunderstood as termites. Both damage your home, and both are annoying pests. But termites eat wood, while carpenter ants simply burrow. Carpenter ants won’t eat the wood, rather chew it and make their way in, leaving behind traces of debris.
Carpenter Ants are usually all-red, black or brown, or a combination. They are 6 legged (like all insects), oval in shape, and are 1/2” to 5/8” in size. They are found throughout America and are commonly found in New England and the northeast. They live in colonies which usually house 20,000 to 50,000. Compared to termites, carpenter ants leave a lot of debris because they do not eat the wood they burrow into. Compared to regular ants, they are larger and consistently make their colonies near trees, siding, and other wooden structures.
How do they get in?
These ants love moist wood that makes it easy for them to set up a colony. These ants can invade your home through any crack or opening, including cracks in your siding. You can find them in areas near AC units, sinks, bathrooms, dishwashers, etc. due to the moisture these appliances generate.
How to get rid of Carpenter ants?
The most effective way to get rid of any pest is to call a local pest control provider. However, there are some DIY methods that may prove effective including:
Carpenter Ant Bait
Ant bait is an effective way to draw out ants and get rid of them. You can buy ant bait at many different stores in the home improvement section. Or you can make your own. Most ant baits use sugar to draw ants in and then a poison to kill them. Always make sure to check if the bait is safe for your pets and children.
Clear their trails
Insects, other ants, and carpenter ants rely heavily on their scented trails to locate food and return on the same path. You can erase that trail by using tea tree oil, lemon, orange, or cedarwood. Put any of these on a sponge and clear the trail. You can also use dishwashing soap plus water and pour it on the trail. Erasing trails is a good method early on before ants infest your home. Unfortunately, if you have a colony living in your home this method will not be effective but is effective when you only have a few scouts in your home.
Destroy the nest
If you are able to locate a nest inside your home or outside, destroying it may deter ants from staying and rebuilding. Inside a home, you can drill a small hole into your siding or your walls, and then use ant-killing products to destroy the colony. Boric acid is often recommended but is not a great DIY solution as it presents a significant danger to your home. It is recommended you consult a pest control team in advance before using boric acid.
Conclusion
Now that you know how carpenter ants can destroy your living, it’s time to act. You can contact our team at Absolut Pest Control to get rid of ants and other pests.
Frequently Asked Questions About Ant Pest Control
One of the most common pests that bug homeowners nationwide are ants. There is a variety of different types of ants including carpenter ants that destroy furniture, walls, and flooring, but no matter what type of ant problem you have it is still a problem. As pest control experts in Massachusetts, we help homes and businesses throughout Greater Boston handle all sorts of problems including ants. Here are some of the common questions we often hear when it comes to ant problems.
How Do I Prevent Ants?
The best way to deal with pests is to not have pests in the first place. There are two things you need to consider when preventing pests from moving into your home: access & resources. When ants (or really any pest) are picking a place to live they need a place that provides food for their entire colony and that is easy to get into. The key to pest-proofing a home is to start by making it harder for pests to enter. Check door and window screens, look around entrances for gaps between the frames and the doors, check on the siding and roofing for holes, and do a quick perimeter search for damage. Your second priority is to decrease access to food. Keep food in airtight containers to prevent ants or mice from getting inside. Take out the trash consistently (including small bins in bedrooms and other rooms). Vacuum the floors weekly, and make sure to empty out the vacuum into the trash regularly.
What’s The Best DIY Solution for Ants?
Even though we are a pest control company we understand that not every issue requires professional help. Often ant colonies send out a few scouts to look for new homes. If you take the right precautions early you can avoid needing full-service pest control for your problem. Baits are an effective way to quickly handle ant problems. You can buy them at stores, or make your own by mixing Borax with sugar at a 1 to 1 ratio.
What Type Of Ants Are In My Home (Carpenter or Regular Ants)?
With most pests, identification isn’t as high of a priority as just simply getting rid of them. However, when it comes to ants you really want to know what you are dealing with. Carpenter ants pose a much larger threat to your property than regular ants. We wrote an entire article on how to tell the difference. But in short, if you notice wood shavings around your floors you likely have termites or carpenter ants that are destroying your home.
Call Absolut Pest Control For Insect Removal in Boston
Absolut Pest Control travels throughout the Greater Boston area to provide ant removal services. If you need ants removed from your property give us a call or send us a message via our website.
Tips For Preventing Insects This Summer
Late winter and early spring is the best time to prevent summer pests. As you start looking forward to working on your yard, your garden, de-winterizing your pool, you should also start thinking about how to prevent pests. Mosquitoes, bees, wasps, and other annoying insects are looking for homes and breeding grounds in late winter. Here are a few tactics to deter insects from choosing your home.
Pests are looking for a variety of things when choosing where to make nests. One of those is easy access to food. In the wintertime and late fall, we recommend that homeowners avoid leaving out any food indoors as the combination of a shelter and easy access to crumbs is the perfect incentive for most pests to set up in your house. During the spring and summer, you want to decrease food waste inside and outside your home. Take out the trash promptly and do not leave garbage rotting in bins outside. This will attract ants, other insects, and even rodents. Always rinse out your cans and food containers before putting them in recycling bins. Anything you can do to decrease potential food for pests will help you in the long run.
Be On The Lookout For Hives
Unfortunately, bees, wasps, and yellowjackets can get by eating pollen from local flowers and plants. So unless you live in a city, it is impossible to remove the food source for these pests. That is why you need to be on the lookout for nests. Corners of homes are usually where bees will build nests because of the natural walls it provides them. Bees want to be efficient so they tend to build in the corners of porches and roofing, especially near a garden. The quicker they can zip to and from the nest the better. So be aware of where your flowers are and any nearby structures that would be prime real estate for their nests. Honeybees are an important part of our ecosystem but that doesn’t mean you have to live with them. Pest control professionals at Absolut Pest Control remove nests and relocate them to protect the bees.
Remove Standing Water
Aside from looking for food and shelter, many pests are looking for standing water. Mosquitoes breed and lay eggs in standing water, and usually can be found where ever it is humid and damp. If you have birdbath, or puddles that have developed on your lawn, you should consider finding ways to drain them. Additionally, if you have a pool, covering it when it is not in use can help prevent pests from breeding.
Pest Problem? Give Us A Call
For homes and businesses in Amesbury and Greater Boston the team at Absolut Pest Control is happy to help you prepare your property for the summer and handle any pest problems you are dealing with, contact us for more information about pest control.
When Should You Call Pest Control?
The mere presence of a single pest may make you uncomfortable or concerned, especially depending on the type of pest or the sort of damage it causes. Some pest issues you can handle on your own with a little know-how or an instructional guide on the web. Other cases require expert help to remedy the problem and give you some peace of mind. Often, homeowners and renters waste time and money on insufficient traps, baits, and other at-home solutions. In the long run, it could save you money on repairs needed to fix damages caused by nuisance pests. When should you actually call pest control? Here’s a look at when’s a good time to give your local pest control company a call.
Seeing Pests Around
Seeing isn’t believing, it’s knowing. Sightings of pests on your property are a clear sign that you have unwanted guests around. If you spot one rat, for example, likely, there are more around for you to deal with. Some pests like ants and termites create a colony which is an indication of an infestation. A single pest sighting should give you cause for concern and compel you to investigate further to know the extent of the pest infestation. You may need expert help and pest- control professionals can determine the kind of solution that you need. Many homeowners are dismayed that even after a storebought trap successfully catches one mouse, the sounds of mice in the walls or the sight of them scurrying across the floor doesn’t immediately go away.
Pest Droppings and Urine
Maybe you’ve come across what looks like urine and droppings in your attic or basement. You might not be able to identify what type of pest did it, but you know it’s a sign of trouble to come. Pest droppings are a health hazard for you and your family, especially those with allergies. Droppings contain plenty of bacteria and viruses that can spread illnesses, from salmonella to murine typhus. Pests are nuisances that you should never tolerate in your home and ignoring them can be perilous for you. For this reason, you want to get rid of pests at the first sign of their existence.
Damage to Your Property
Have you noticed gnawing marks on your walls or furniture? Maybe you’ve seen claw marks in your attic or holes chewed in your siding. Some pests can be destructive and cost you money in property damage. Squirrels, for example, are believed to be the source of 25% of house fires. Rodents are known to gnaw on wires that can lead to electrical fires and other pests, like termites can inflict damage to the structural integrity of your home. The last thing that you want is for your pest problem to get out of control.
Scratching and Rustling Noise
Does hearing scratches or rustling sounds while doing house chores cause you to pause? Trying to figure out what it could be? It’s not likely to be paranormal activity. What it may turn out to be could be much worse- a pest invasion. Scampering across your floors, for example, is usually a sign that mice are present. Get professionals to check it out if you can’t access the location the noise is coming from or are scared. If pests are around, it’s in your best interest to have them removed asap.
Contact Absolut Pest Control For Services in Amesbury
Absolut Pest Control is a great pest control company that can provide you with expert solutions. We are equipped to provide the first line of defense against the pesky invaders that want to take over your home. Call or send a message to our team to speak to our pest control expert and to get a quote today.
How To Identify & Get Rid of Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are a common pest throughout America. Like many of the worst insect pests, bed bugs drink blood which means the most common way of finding out you have them is by getting bit. Bed bugs usually enter our homes via clothing, furniture, or moving boxes. Once they find a home they can quickly infest it. A single female bed bug can lay thousands of eggs in her lifetime.
How To Identify Bed Bugs
Bedbugs are relatively small. Adults are about half a centimeter or the size of an eraser head on a pencil. They are oval-shaped and usually greyish in color. They cannot fly and most commonly live in upholstered furniture and textiles. Like fleas, bed bugs have to be introduced into a home. There are often horror stories of motels and hotels with large bed bug problems that then spread bed bugs to homes and apartments throughout the country.
How To Prevent Bed Bugs
The following tips can help you prevent bed bug infestation from your home.
- Check secondhand furniture and clothing. If you get any furniture from a yard sale, garage sale, or from goodwill, you should always check it for bed bugs and make sure to clean it.
- Be careful when using shared laundry rooms. If your building has a community laundry room or you are using a laundromat down the street make sure to inspect your clothes after they come out of the dryer for bed bugs. This is why folding your clothing at the laundromat or in the community laundry room is a great practice.
- Inspect your suitcase after traveling. The common horror story is homes getting infested after visiting the wrong hotel or motel. Make sure to check your suitcase for any hitchhiking bedbugs before your stow away your clothing.
- If you live in a larger building make sure to secure your living space. Multi-home buildings and apartment buildings can run the risk of spreading pests. Make sure to seal cracks in the flooring and baseboards around your unit (it can also help decrease noise pollution from your neighbors).
How To Get Rid of Bed Bugs
If you already have bed bugs you likely want to get rid of them. Of course, a pest control company may be the quickest and most effective way to get rid of a pest. And if you live in Massachusetts or Southern New Hampshire we would be happy to provide a quote. But there are a few ways homeowners and renters can deal with their bed bug problem on their own if needed. Make sure to do your research on the products that are available. Foggers can effectively get rid of pests but it is important to make sure to research how the product works and how to do it safely.
How To Treat Bed Bug Bites
Typically a bed bug bite is harmless like a mosquito bite or a bite from a flea. It may be very annoying and may cause extreme itchiness. Home remedies for itching include oatmeal baths for the affected area, but there are also topical creams that can help reduce the itchy sensation. Fortunately, bed bugs do not seem to spread illnesses like fleas, rodents, and ticks.
What Is The Difference Between Carpenter Ants & Regular Ants?
Do you have ants crawling around your home? No matter what species of ant they are you probably want to get rid of them. If they are only a few ants, you may be able to use ant bait, but once a colony moves in your best bet is working with pest control. Depending on the ant infestation, the potential threat of the pests is very different. Normal ants, are a nuisance and may eat or spoil your food, but carpenter ants can actually destroy your home. That’s why knowing the difference between the two types of ants is so important.
What Are Carpenter Ants?
There are a variety of carpenter ant species, but they all share one thing in common; instead of making their home outdoors in the dirt, they make their homes inside wooden materials. That includes anything from trees to your walls and ceilings. This is what makes them a much worse threat compared to other groups of ant species. Carpenter ants are often compared to termites and even mistaken for termites because they consistently chew up wood and cause structural damage to buildings. Regular ants usually infest a home because they are looking for food, and their colony is usually located outside the home close to a gap in the siding or gutters or windows. But carpenter ants actually live inside your walls or floors and continually destroy more and more property.
How To Tell The Difference Between Carpenter Ants & Regular Ants
There are a few visual differences between carpenter ants and regular ants. The first is the difference in thorax shape. The thorax is the middle of an ant’s body between their head and their back. A regular ant will have an indented thorax, and a carpenter ant will have a fully round thorax. Although if you aren’t looking at individual ants under a magnifying glass it may be hard to tell. Another visual distinction is that carpenter ants are larger than their regular-sized counterparts. A full-grown carpenter ant is usually around half an inch, whereas most normal ants are about 0.2 inches in length. But most importantly, you can tell the difference based on signs around your home. If you notice small holes in wooden furniture, sawdust, wood shavings, and similar debris, it is likely you have carpenter ants.
How To Handle Carpenter Ants
If you think you have either carpenter ants or termites in your home, the best thing to do is get rid of them by hiring pest control. A licensed and professional pest control expert can quickly solve the problem. For homeowners and businesses in Massachusetts, Absolut Pest Control can help with termites, carpenter ants, and regular ants. Contact us for more information.