Baby Andrew comes from a family of fighters, and his parents Keith and Christy have already created a legacy for Andrew by creating awareness of organ donation to help other families. As of March 2012, there were more than 113,000 people on the organ donation waiting list, 1800 of them being pediatric patients like Baby Andrew. You can learn more and register to become a donor at http://donatelife.net/.

There is also something you can do NOW! We will be at the annual Strawberry Festival in Portland this Saturday, May 19th with “Have a Heart for Andrew” t-shirts and onesies available for $10 and up. Music City Screen Printers was generous enough to donate the screens, ink and labor, and all proceeds will go directly to the Hagewood family.

You can also send a note of encouragement to Keith, Christy and the rest of their family on Christy’s Facebook Page.

For more information, directions, and event details, click here

See you in Portland on Saturday!

Naturally, we want to be there for you when you find yourself with a pest problem, but we also want to help you keep your home or business as pest-free as possible. These simple tips can help you keep unwanted visitors away:

1) Keep food in your home in tight, sealed containers. Where there’s food and water, bugs will happily make themselves at home. Do all you can to keep your kitchen clean, which leads to the next tip.

2) Keep food off the floor and sweep often to remove crumbs. Wipe up crumbs, sweep or vacuum the floor, and clean up spills right away. Don’t leave dishes in the sink overnight. Clean out the toaster and microwave regularly. Scrub down your stovetop every day. Throw away food scraps and packages, and be sure trash bags are securely sealed.

3) Mulch, leaves, and garden debris can all make perfect homes for insects. Try to keep wood chips away from your home’s foundation, and clean up any organic matter. Mow your lawn regularly, and keep it short near your house. Pull annuals out at the end of the growing season, and trim back perennials as appropriate in the fall.

4) Make sure your home is properly sealed on the outside. Replace torn window and door screens. Seal cracks in your siding, windows, doors, utility pipes, and any other openings with a high quality silicone caulk. Install screens on attic vents, and chimney flues. Inspect crawl space openings and make sure they are properly sealed .

5) Fix or caulk leaky faucets to avoid excess water. Many insects thrive in environments with certain amounts of humidity, so sources of moisture can attract them. Repair plumbing issues, no matter how minor promptly. Inspect basements and crawl spaces extra carefully for leaks.

Already have some home invaders? Call P.E.S.T. Inc at 615-382-9774 for a home inspection or more expert advice!

Since we were able to answer so many great questions in person at the Women’s Show, we decided to list, and of course answer, some of those most frequently asked.

Question: How often should I have my home inspected for termites?
Answer: Every home (especially in this area) should be inspected at least once a year. Doing so will help to avoid the possibility of major damage and also help avoid surprises with termites.

Question: What areas do you service?
Answer: We proudly provide pest control services to the following counties: Cheatham, Davidson, Dickson, Montgomery, Robertson, Rutherford, Sumner, and Wilson.

Question: Will your mosquito service really help with my mosquito problem?
Answer: It will absolutely make a big difference! The feedback that we receive from customers who have received mosquito service is phenomenal. 80-90% reduction of mosquitos is our researched result.

Question: Do you require me to sign a contract?
Answer: We do not require any type of contract. There are certain pests that may require more than one visit to eliminate, but we only want to service your home when you want us there, not because you need to have us there.

Question: Can you do my pest control for less than the $40 per month I am currently paying?
Answer: The honest answer is no for two reasons – we cannot offer a great service for that price, and we do not compete on price alone. We do encourage you to call us for a quote though!

Didn’t answer your question? Call us anytime at 615-382-9774. You can also visit www.pestinc.net for a $15 off coupon for first time customers!

Two incredibly common Spring pests are ants and termites. It is best to maintain routine pest control throughout the year, but here are a few helpful hints to keep them at bay for Spring.

ANTS

Because they are such a common house-infecting insect, ants are often thought to be the biggest irritating pest. To keep ants out of your home as much as possible, the first thing to do is eliminate their food source. Be sure to always utilize proper food storage and clean up spills quickly and thoroughly. These preventative measures will help ward off typical ants; however, carpenter ants can cause extensive structural damage to your home and property. Carpenter ants create nests in decaying wood and can multiply into colonies. They can enter your home through window frames, utility lines and plumbing. They are extremely difficult to eradicate, so let P.E.S.T., Inc provide a full interior and exterior inspection.

TERMITES

These little critters can cause very costly structural damage, so keeping your eyes open to the tell-tale signs of their presence could save you tons of money in home repairs!

Termites are not typically a pest that many people have success eradicating successfully on their own. Call P.E.S.T., Inc immediately if you suspect a problem, so we can begin Sentricon® Termite Colony Elimination Systems (by Dow AgroSciences) as quickly as possible. We ensure proven colony eradication, environmental responsibility, and a manufacturer commitment, so termite concerns will be a thing of the past.

If you have questions about this service or would like to schedule a complimentary termite inspection, please contact us at 615-382-9774 or schedule a service with us here!

Business is booming for pest control companies fighting the problem mainly in apartment complexes and extended-stay hotels.

Before an exterminator sprays any chemicals, most likely they’ll ask residents to take the cushions off the sofa, tear apart the bed, get all the clothes out of the closet, and wash or dry clean them.

Read more at News 5 Online.

I have been saying for the last couple of years that the systems have come a long way and that I thought they were much improved over what was offered originally. For the last several months I have been researching the Sentricon^® Termite Colony Elimination System with Always Active technology. I contacted and spoke with many of my peers across Tennessee and in other parts of the country to get their thoughts on this new technology. EVERY ONE of them told me the same thing, that it was the best product that they had ever used to eliminate termites from their customer’s homes!  The Always Active technology is game changing as far as the way termite treatments are performed.

I am very excited that P.E.S.T., Inc. has been certified as an Authorized Operator by Dow AgroSciences and will be offering the Sentricon® System with Always Active technology. There are very few pest control operators that are Authorized Operators and we are proud to be one of them.  I’ll be sharing more about the Sentricon® System in upcoming posts but in the interim please feel free to go to www.sentricon.com to find out more information.

If you have questions about this service or would like to schedule a complimentary termite inspection, please contact us at 382-9774.

-Andy C. Yant

andy@pestinc.net

®Trademark of DowAgroSciences LLC

“We started in June 2001 out of our home in Cheatham County with Andy as the only technician and I worked the office stuff at night,” said Julie Yant. “Within a year we secured office space, relocated to Robertson County and hired our first employee.  Today we employ 14 people.”

In 2010 the TSBDC at Vol State worked with 210 small businesses, offering free and inexpensive classes, and counseling.

“I’m honored to have been elected by my peers to serve as President.  I look forward to the opportunity to give back to the association that has given me so much.  We have a lot of opportunity for growth within our association and I look forward to helping us grow and further the professionalism of our industry” Yant said.

TPCA members and their families attended the summer conference in Chattanooga last week. In addition to the general membership meeting and board meeting, there were social and networking opportunities including a welcome reception, dinner banquet and day events.

The TPCA has been serving Tennessee for over sixty years and is the Joint State Association for the National Pest Management Association (NPMA). For more information about NPMA, visit www.PestWorld.org.

1.  Yellow Jackets in Wall – A child got stung in the middle of the night in his top bunk bed.  Turns out there was a 3 foot diameter nest inside the wall!  Andy neutralized the yellow jackets (albeit while getting stung 5-6 times) then removed the nest from the wall.

2.  Bed bugs brought home from movie theater in NYC? Last fall the media really focused on the increase in bed bugs even though we had seen them trending up over the last five years. One of the stories on the national media was that of bed bugs being in a movie theater in New York City.  A few days after that story broke we got a call from someone who had been in that movie theater and thought they had bed bugs. It sounded plausible to us too but they actually had ticks.  So it’s also good to get a professional opinion when you can and steer clear of DIY pest control methods as you might be treating for the wrong pest.  Ticks inside a home are difficult to treat and we definitely don’t recommend any do-it-yourself methods for ticks or bed bugs.

3.  Family bringing home bed bugs from grandma’s house. This one sort of makes me sad to think of but we had a family that were having some pest issues.  We determined that they were bed bugs and the source was from grandma!  Sometimes the elderly have trouble recognizing a bed bug (and other pest) problem(s) before it’s a major infestation.  Needless to say, there was treatment at both homes and some touchy family dynamics with visiting grandma until the infestation was under control.

4. Encountering hanging meat in a closet during a roach treatment. Not sure what the meat was but did understand why the roaches were so bad.  We’ve actually seen this multiple times now as we’ve serviced more apartment complexes over the years.  Enough said!

5. Rodents gone wild! The rats at a facility  were so bad they were discouraging people from getting out of their cars to bring in donations.  Not good for business all the way around.

6.  Brown recluse in broad day light. Brown recluse were so rampant in a school that the spiders were walking down the hallway in the middle of the day as if they were going to class.  Not exactly the environment you want your child learning in!

7. Don’t move – the termites have eaten me away! Termites infested a home so bad that our inspector was afraid that the floors would fall through if anyone moved much upstairs. The carpet seemed to offer more support than the joists and sub-floor.  Remember to have your home checked for termites annually to avoid a scenario such as this.

8. Snakes! We don’t treat for snakes as a pest control operator however we do encounter them quite a bit.  One time we were called to perform a termite inspection and shortly after entering the dug out basement the inspector realized that there were snakes hanging on the water pipes that he had just crawled under and another snake crawling across my shoe. Let’s just say that he exited those premises pretty quickly!

9. Taking any business we can get! Early on when it was only Andy doing all of the inspections and treatments it wasn’t uncommon to have to do termite inspections on foreclosed / vacant homes at the end of the day and sometimes after dark. On one such occasion Andy removed the crawl space door and didn’t do a preliminary glance before entering the rather low crawl space. Once he got into the crawl space he was greeted by an angry mother possum protecting her babies. Possums aren’t pretty creatures at a distance but they are really ugly at about 2 feet with their teeth showing.

10. Finding more than termites during an inspection. There have been several occasions where we’ve inspected crawl space areas in vacant (usually foreclosed) homes to find evidence of people making their homes in the crawl space area.  It’s a good reminder to for all service professionals to be safe during service calls but it’s also a good reminder to count our blessings that we’ve so abundantly been given.

We’ve thoroughly enjoyed writing this series of posts and hope that you’ve enjoyed reading them as well.  We are grateful for our dedicated customers – internal and external .  P.E.S.T., Inc. would cease to exist without you all and we remember that daily.

Best wishes for a happy and safe rest of the summer!

Andy & Julie Yant

615.382.9774

andy@pestinc.net

julie@pestinc.net

1.  Remove and clean up any food waste, standing water or clutter around the outside of your home.  Check the outside of your home to make sure you do not have anything that may be drawing pests to your home.  Wood should be stacked off of the ground and away from the house; garbage bins should be tightly closed; tree branches should not be touching the house.

2.  You should also check for and repair any cracks or openings on both the inside and outside walls of the house.

3.  Correct moisture problems to help prevent termites. Make sure gutters and downspouts are unclogged. Water should be channeled from downspouts away from your foundation. Repair leaking pipes and don’t aim sprinklers against your house. Slope soil away from your home. Trim shrubbery blocking any vents.

4.  Clean up dirty dishes quickly; take garbage out promptly, do not keep recyclables in the house; wipe up spills and dry them; do not leave open food containers sitting around.  These tips will help with ants and roaches.

5.  Check used furniture for signs of bed bugs.  Also follow all of our tips for bed bugs (including when you travel) as found here.

6. If there’s a hornet, wasp, bee or other flying insect in your house and you have no insect spray, kill it with hair spray.

7. If your home becomes infested with fleas, vacuum rugs thoroughly before treating, and throw the dust bag out at once.

8. To keep rodents out of your house, seal every opening they could squeeze through. Some need less than 1/4 inch of space. Stuff deep cracks/holes with steel wool or scouring pads pushed in with a screwdriver. Close the spaces with spackling compound mixed with steel wool fragments.

9.  Carpenter ants are most active searching for food from midnight to 4 a.m., so if you see these pests during the day, you are seeing only a small fraction of what is happening at night. They love leaks or other moisture problems, blocked or leaking gutters, or a poorly ventilated attic or crawl space. Tree stumps, dead tree limbs, and firewood also can stimulate problems with carpenter ants, as can trees and shrubs that touch a home and keep walls more moist.

10.  Yellow jackets prefer to locate their nests in the ground, usually in an old rodent burrow or similar hole. This wasp also commonly locates its nest inside the walls of a building by entering through cracks or holes in the outside walls. To prevent accidental stings:

• When working in a garden or flowerbed, be aware of numerous wasps flying into and away from a single point in the garden or to a hole in the side of the house. This will usually indicate a colony.

• Be careful when using powered lawn equipment, such as edgers, trimmers, and mowers. Loud, vibrating noises disturb yellow jackets and may send them into an attacking frenzy.

• Stay away from yellow jacket nests once you know where they are located.

• If yellow jackets are seen entering and exiting a wall, DO NOT plug the hole. You will only forces the wasps to find another way out. Sometimes they might actually eat through an interior wall and enter the house.

Some of the above tips should be used in conjunction with using a pest management professional (PMP) treatment as certain insects such as fleas and roaches will continue to hatch eggs for up to ninety days.  However if you have minimal infestation these tips can go a long way in terms of helping achieve control with or without the help of a PMP.  If you have any questions about bugs or rodents in your home then please call us at 615-382-9774.

Andy & Julie Yant

andy@pestinc.net

julie@pestinc.net