Pest Treatment in Queensland

Importance of Pest Control

Queensland is famous for its tropical rain forests, its vast deserts and unfathomable swamps. While the flora and fauna of Queensland is ideal for remaining fit and healthy, the abundance of Australian bush often causes the multiplication of nagging pests (often during the rainy & the winter season). Unwanted insects such as termites, cockroaches, ants, fleas, rodents, silverfish, bed bugs, spiders, bees, mosquitoes, ticks, possums and rats can invade your home. When they do, take control of your property. Nicholas Favreau from Pro Pest Control Brisbane says “homeowners can remove most pests themselves by using eco friendly products. Spray pesticides to treat stubborn pests.”

Sometimes you need professionals to oversee and permanently eradicate unwanted pest infestation from your home. Professional pest control companies exterminate pests from both residential as well as commercial complexes. The licensed technicians working for such companies provide safe and reliable services that help several top-notch companies in Australia (including several government departments) as well as home owners, to keep their buildings bug-free.

Common Services

Residential Pest Control

Your home is your biggest investment. Nonetheless, unwanted pests can cause havoc to the economic structure and the health of its occupants. To safeguard your precious investment and oversee the health of your family members, hire a qualified team of pest exterminators. They shall take necessary measures to eradicate unwanted guests such as cockroaches, mice, bed bugs, yellow jackets, termites and similar pests. Kindly note that residential pest controllers are trained to safeguard homes and apartments from unwelcome pests.

Commercial Pest Management

If you have an office, a shop or a restaurant, you would like it to remain safe from unwanted pests. A licensed commercial pest exterminator shall identify the entry point, the water sources, the harborage point, the food sources and the employee areas of the office to detect the exact nature of pest infestation in your office and prevent your business from getting crippled by unwanted bugs. If you ignore pest control and allow bugs to remain in your official complex, the results may be catastrophic. Pests may lead to structural damage, damage to inventory, lower employee morale, spread numerous diseases and even cause food poisoning (especially in restaurants)! You may also be booked for violating health regulations.

Termite Control

Termites may seem harmless but they cause billions of dollars of structural damage annually. In fact, home owners spend two billion dollars annually to repair damages done by termites. To ward away termites from your precious home, you may use:

Chemical Free Treatments

These include creating physical barriers during the construction process (sand and steel mesh). Alternately, you may use fungi and other biological control agents to deter termites from entering your home.

Chemical Treatments

You may opt for wood treatments (by spaying borates on newly constructed structures). You may also use soil based anti-termite methodologies to create a barrier between these pests and your home. The active ingredients of soil applied barrier treatments include acetamiprid, fipronil, bifenthrin etc. The use of termite baits that exterminate mites is also recommended but the use harmful chemicals such as diflubenzuron, lufenuron, hexaflumuron in baits, may cause serious health hazards.

Pest Inspections (for property owners and buyers)

Keep your home safe from unwanted pests by conducting periodical pest inspection services. Pest inspection teams detects bug infestation in your home using the latest pest detection tools including thermal imaging techniques and moisture meters. Please ensure that your chosen pest exterminator follows the Australian Standards 4349.3-2010 while conducting pest inspection.

The licensed inspectors check the exterior and interior of the building that includes sub-floors and void roofs (wherever applicable). All traces of termite damage, fungal decay and other timber related structural damages are detected by the inspectors and a final report is prepared. You need take the necessary remedial action on the basis of this report.

Building and Pest Inspections (for property owners and buyers)

Professional pest control staff follows Australian standards 4349.1 while inspecting buildings for any signs of pests. Licensed building inspection servicemen are reliable, insured, skilled and proficient to carry out a detailed inspection of you building (both interior and exterior). They detect major and minor defects in the building structure and offer remedial advice. The final Building Inspection Report allows you to compare your structure with similar structures (keeping in mind that the construction type and age of the compared buildings are similar).

Pest Control Licensing Requirements in Queensland:

The Legislation Process:

1. Pest Management Regulation 2003 (an extension to the Pest Management Act 2001)
2. Part 52 of the Regulation Deals: This law states a set of rules that need to be followed by pest control agencies while inspecting and controlling termite infestation in areas where the construction work is complete.
3. Part 53 of the Regulation Deals: This law governs the installation of physical or chemical termite barriers by licensed professionals in newly constructed building structures.

The Government Authorities that Issue such Licenses:

1) Pest management licenses for commercial and domestic premises are issued by Queensland Government Department of Health.
2) Licenses for horticulture and agriculture purpose are provided by Queensland Government Department of Primary Industries.

Individual Exterminator Licenses:

1. For timber pests licensing, the concerned authority is License re pest Control
2. For fumigating construction sites, you need to have a valid site approval
3. A licensed technician needs to oversee a trainee (as a trainee is not required to procure a license to practice).

Pest Advice for Homeowners

Home owners should keep a close watch over their kitchen area, bathrooms, areas where you keep your appliances as well as your garage, as these are the places where pests love to nest. To identify pest infestation, you should look out for damaged furniture (holes in the sofas), chewed wires, squeaking noises, feces, nests in small wall cavities and unusual stench.

Let us discuss the most common pests that infest homeowners and commercial complexes in Queensland area & suitable remedial actions:

Detecting Ants

Ants make an entry into your home during early spring and head for moist places such as your washroom and kitchen. If your home is devoid of heating ducts or a concrete floor then ants would be more prone to make their entry into your house. There are many species of ants including queen ants, carpenter ants, winged ants, worker ants and queen ants. You may use ant baits or government approved insecticides to remove ants from your house. Avoid putting insecticides near food areas, crockery and keep them out of children’s reach.

Detecting Cluster Flies

These are slightly bigger than the normal flies and they usually invade your home during the early winter season. Cluster flies have a short lifespan and they leave your home during spring only to return in the month of August. To remove cluster flies, apply insecticides on your home’s exterior during the fall season.

Detecting Snow-bugs and Centipedes

Centipedes (millipedes) are visible during winter. These insects usually leave your home in spring. When they are present within your house, they are usually dead or dying. To reduce their occurrence, it is advisable that you perform an exterior home application of insecticides during the summer season.

Spiders Beatles and Bugs

Spiders are venomous but they rarely bite humans. Use mouse glue traps to catch spiders and remove cobwebs on a regular basis. Beatles and boxelder bugs are a common site during the winter season. Simply use a vacuum cleaner to flush them out of your home and seal mold cracks on walls or ceilings using ‘clear chaulk’. These pests usually leave your home during the spring season.

If you detect any of the above insects in your home, call a pest exterminator immediately.

Professional Pest Treatment

Rather then performing these treatments on your own, you should ideally hire a professional exterminator. This way, your termite extermination process would be performed in a safe and smooth manner ensuring that no physical or structural damage is caused to your property and family members.

How to Find a Reliable Exterminator?

Things to Keep in Mind While Choosing a Suitable operators:

1. Google Search – Conduct a google search using a keyword that is closest to your choice. For example, if you are seeking pest control services in Queensland, then type, “Pest Control Services in Queensland”. The results that “show-up” after you hit the “Enter” button shall help you achieve your goal. Try and choose companies that appear on the first page.
2. Social Media Sites – If you use Facebook or Twitter, you can easily find exterminators placing their adverts on such platforms. Before choosing a company, always check the reviews left behind by genuine customers.
3. Qualifications – Check qualifications from local Government license searches.
4. Rates and Packages – It is a good idea to get a clear estimate about the rates for providing its services. You may also check whether they offer a package deal or discounted deals (for example, an annual package).
5. Customer Support Staff – Last but not the least, you need to call up the customer support staff of your chosen company and gauge their responsiveness, politeness, professionalism and willingness to resolve your query.
6. Customer Warranty – They should offer a 12 month customer satisfaction guarantee.
7. Safe Products – Insecticides should be environment friendly.

When you choose a suitable pest management service, you would bid adieu to unwanted pests forever!