Pest Control UK can deal with any pest infestation.

Pest Control Lincolnshire

The figures from the survey show that the council received 20 requests for pest control services per hundred residents. That ranked them 35^th out of 314 local authorities. Many call outs were to deal with rats, while there was only one call out for cockroaches and twelve for bed bugs.

The important thing to remember about these figures, however, is that they do not represent the total amount of call outs for pest control services in Lincolnshire, or even the area of the district council, but rather how many times the council itself was contacted about these issues. Private companies operating in the area, such as Pest Control UK, will also have been called out to deal with all sorts of pest problems as well.

How to Deal with Council Cuts in Pest Control

If you are concerned about the cut in pest control, uk services then there is really no need to be. The fear is that private companies charge too much for the poorest people to afford it. However, if you really look in to it then you will find that in fact call outs are not that high. Not if you go with an efficient and low cost company such as Pest Control UK.

Also, you don’t have to commit to having any service performed before we have inspected your property, identified the problem and given you a quote for the service. Of course no private company is going to be able to offer their services as cheaply as a council offering it for free but this might be one of those times when you get what you pay for.

Private or State-Run Pest Control?

If free council services are so good, after all, then why are there any private pest control services in the areas where the councils still operate? Why do people ever choose a private firm, when they could get supposedly the same service for free from the government instead? It’s because there is a perception, backed up with plenty of evidence from reality, that private firms tend to be better at providing services than governments or local authorities are. The most probably reason being that in the private sector all of the emphasis has to be on providing value for money for the customer, whereas government workers simply have to abide by the rules laid down by the council. They don’t have to impress, they just have to do as little as possible to get the job done. Not that there aren’t good people working for councils, but in general this rule holds true.

The best thing to do then, whether a council is offering pest control services in the area or not, is to check out what private companies are offering first. They are more likely to provide a more effective and efficient service.

If you really can’t afford to pay anything to have your pest problems dealt with though, you might be tempted to try to deal with it yourself. That’s not a good idea because it is quite difficult to get rid of an entire pest infestation in such a way that it will not come back. There are also safety issues to consider in many cases. If you do intend to go it alone then, make sure you at least get some expert advice first.

Pest Control UK

Before choosing to take on an infestation yourself, why not give us a call on our free phone number? We might surprise you with how little we charge for a call out. At the very least you could get a free inspection and quote, as well as some expert advice along the way. So whether your council is still offering pest control services or not, give Pest Control UK a call if you have a pest problem.

Get a free quote and inspection from Pest Control UK.

At Pest Control UK we recognise that dealing with pests is always going to be an unwanted expense. That’s why we’re happy to be able to provide very low-cost pest control services across the country, including free inspections and quotes.

Why the Cut-Back?

Funding for councils has been cut back significantly in recent years (by more than a quarter), meaning they have had to find areas in which they can make savings. Different councils go about this in different ways, but many are choosing to eliminate their pest control services.

After all, when it comes to pest control, UK services can be acquired from the private sector instead. The only problem occurs if a household has absolutely no money to spend on it, but in fact usually the charges are not that high.

There is another benefit in getting your pests eliminated by the private sector as well, which is that the quality is likely to be better. A private company has to try to do a good enough job that you will recommend them to your friends, and you will come back to them if you ever have any problems again. They have a reputation that they have got to try to maintain. With government services, however, they only have to abide by the rules set down by the council, their main focus does not have to be on customer care.

Therefore, even if the council does still operate pest control services in your area, it is still worth checking out what the private sector has to offer first. You will probably be surprised at how low the prices are, particularly at Pest Control UK.

DIY Pest Control?

The other main fear associated with the cut back in council services is that it might lead to people attempting to cut costs by trying to get rid of their pest infestation themselves. That is not a good idea unless you really know what you are doing. It might seem simple, but there is a skill to knowing exactly where to put out poison or lay traps. Not only that but there are significant safety issues involved, especially when it comes to leaving out poison. It is all too easy for a small child or a pet to get hold of it instead of the pest you are targeting.

Pest Control UK

Whether the council in your area has discontinued its pest control services or not, please feel free to call Pest Control UK on our freephone number if you have (or even suspect) a pest infestation on your property.

If you would like to check out some of the free tips and advice we offer, you can find articles on a number of the most common pests in the UK on this site, which you are also free to read at your leisure.

Using pest control services has a number of advantages.

Effectiveness

Sometimes a pest control technique will be used which will reduce the size of a pest infestation but it will not eradicate it entirely. That is not going to happen if you use professional pest controllers though, they will know how to eliminate an infestation entirely rather than just diminish it. If you don’t get rid of it entirely of course, it will just grow again and soon you will be left with the same problem.

An example would be the way that cockroaches are dealt with. One of the best cockroach treatments that you can use yourself is boric acid powder. By laying that down in areas where you know the infestation is active, the cockroaches will get it on their feet and hopefully take it back to the nest where they will kill more of the cockroaches. However that is very unlikely to get all of them, although it should decrease their numbers quite significantly. If you use a pest control company instead though, they will be able to fumigate your home and kill all of the cockroaches.

Speed

Another advantage you get from using professional pest control services is that the infestation should be dealt with quickly. That’s because pest controllers are going to have the skills and experience to deal with the pests as speedily as possible. They’ll know how many traps to leave out for an infestation of mice or rats for example, or how much poison to put down. These are things that come from experience and you can’t really learn just by reading about it.

Safety

There are lots of pests that can be dangerous, either in terms of causing harm to you physically (for example wasps) or though spreading diseases (for example rats and cockroaches). When a pest control expert first gets on the scene of an infestation one of the first things they are going to be able to do is tell you what you should do to ensure that you stay safe. That might involve denying pests access to your home or storing your food so that it is not contaminated.

It’s not just pests that can be dangerous though, it is the treatments as well. If fumigation is necessary for example, people should not be in the area and the person performing the treatment is going to have to wear protective clothing. Professionals are going to have all of the right safety gear and will know all of the procedures to make sure everyone is safe when the treatments is being applied.

Pest Control UK

These are some of the reasons why it’s a good idea to use professionals when you are facing an infestation of pests, whatever kind of pest it might be. If you would like to make use of the services that Pest Control UK provides, get in touch on our free phone number.

Squirrels can cause a lot of damage if they get on your roof.

Access to Your Roof

If you are getting squirrels on your roof then that in itself can be irritating. You might be able to hear them scurrying about up there. They might also be causing damage to your roof, loosening roof tiles with all of their activity for example. If they’re doing that though then there must be some way that they are getting to your roof. For example you might have tree branches overhanging the roof, in which case you should cut them back.

If the squirrels have actually made a nest in your loft though then you should get in pest control experts to come and get rid of them before you carry out any preventative measures. That’s because if you try to remove their access point and block up any holes that you have in your roof they might cause even more damage trying to get back to their nest. For instance if they find some other way to your roof (up a drain pipe for instance) then they are going to try very hard to get back inside. That could lead to a lot more damage being done to your roof.

Getting Rid of Squirrels

The best way to get rid of squirrels is, as mentioned, is to get in pest control experts. They will be able to set up traps in order to capture the squirrels. Unfortunately the option of then releasing them in to the wild again, far away, is not a possibility because there is a law that says you can’t release a grey squirrel once it has been trapped, you have to kill it. This will be done humanely however.

The other sense in which you can get rid of squirrels though is by setting up the conditions so that they are not a problem on your property anymore. The ways that they can be kept off your roof have already been mentioned but they can also cause a problem in your garden.

Keeping squirrels out of your garden is not quite so simple, in fact it will be practically impossible to make it so that they are not able to get in. What you can do though is have it so that they don’t want to come in. You can do that by limiting their food sources, by putting a squirrel guard on any bird feeders for instance. If they are getting to berries in a tree then you can put a wire mesh skirt around the bottom of the tree which will make it difficult to climb up.

Pest Control UK

If you require squirrel control measures to be taken on your property, get in touch with Pest Control UK today on our free phone number to get a free quote.

Commercial pest control is important at every stage of production.

Pest Control Inspections

One of the services provided by Pest Control UK are inspections for commercial entities that deal with food. Whether it is at the stage of food production, packing, storing, preparation, serving or anything in between you will have to get regular inspections. The purpose of these inspections is not just to make sure that you don’t have any issues with pests presently, but to ensure that the conditions are such that an infestation is not likely to occur.

When a pest control inspection is being performed, one of the main things that will be observed is whether you have any pest infestations right now. It’s not just the pests themselves that can indicate that but the waste they leave behind and the sort of damage that they do. For example mice and rats constantly have to be gnawing on something so furniture will be checked for teeth marks and things like that.

As well as pest infestations though the inspection is also going to be for conditions that could lead to a problem in the future. For example the level of cleanliness that is on display. Many pests are attracted to sources of food, and while a certain amount of mess is bound to be made in normal operations it’s important that this is cleared up as soon as possible.

It’s not just sources of food that pests need though, they also need water. In fact there are more pests that are attracted to water than there are that eat the same sorts of food that we do. Making sure that you don’t have water leaking from pipes and that your drains are not blocked or leaking is also going to be an important part of the inspection.

Finally, places that pests are able to get on to your property will also be looked for. That would be little holes in the walls for things like rats and mice. To keep flies away there should be fly screens across doors and windows, and if that is not possible then there should at least be fly traps in your property to kill them if they do get in. The position of these traps will also be considered as they should not be placed above food preparation areas in case the flies fall down.

Pest Control UK

If you do get a pest infestation, at Pest Control UK we understand that you are going to want it to be dealt with quickly and discreetly. As well as inspections then, we also provide quality commercial pest control services to get rid of pests. Contact us on our free phone number to get a free quote for either of these services.

A mouse trap.

Remove Food Sources

There are two basic pest control techniques that can be used to get rid of mice, either putting out baited traps or poisoned bait. Either way then you are relying on the mice taking bait, which is a bit of a problem because mice tend not to go for new sources of food unless they can help it. Probably because mice that are suspicious of new food sources survive for longer, so it makes sense in terms of evolution.

What is going to speed up the process though is if there is nothing else available for them to eat apart from the bait that you have left out. You might think that they would be more suspicious if all the other food disappears and they are just left with these new sources, but that requires quite high level thought which they are not capable of. So before you put out traps or poison the first thing to do is to make sure your house is completely clean.

As well as cleaning though, it’s also a good idea to make sure all of your food is in a solid container. A lot of dry food, cereal for example, comes in plastic bags and cardboard boxes, but mice would easily be able to chew through those. And they may well have access to your cupboards. So you should transfer any food like that in to solid plastic containers, making sure that the food has not yet been contaminated of course.

Getting Rid of Mice

Once you have prepared the area properly it will be time to put out the traps, poison or both. If it’s only a small infestation though it’s best to stay away from the poison and just use traps. That’s because if you use poison you’re not going to know where the mice will end up dying and it could well be somewhere inaccessible. If that happens then you will have dead mice decomposing on your property, and in addition to the smell you might get further pest control problems, for example from flies.

If you use mouse traps instead though then you will know exactly where you’re going to be able to collect the bodies from. You’ll also be able to tell straight away just how successful your attempts at mouse control have been. The only issue with using traps is that if there’s a large infestation it might take a long time to get all of the mice, which is why poison is sometimes used instead as a way to get a lot at the same time.

Pest Control UK

For professional mouse control, get in touch with Pest Control UK and get a free quote.

A common access points for wasps in the roof.

Finding a Wasps’ Nest

The reason that you are asked to discover the location of a wasps’ nest before calling a pest control company such as Pest Control UK is because even though there might be a lot of wasps around, it’s possible that the nest is actually on a neighbour’s property. If that’s the case then the wasp removal experts might not be able to get access to it in order to kill the wasps. So you are asked to find the location of the nest first to ensure it is actually on your property.

That doesn’t mean that you have to lay eyes on it however, you just have to know its general location. So if you are having trouble finding the actual nest, and it might be somewhere that is not accessible, then you will just have to find where the wasps are gaining access to it.

For example, sometimes wasps will nest underground. They can’t dig so they have to use an already existing hole, for example made by rabbits or moles. It is somewhere that provides them with shelter and warmth so it is a popular place for them to nest. You should be wary of this when you are looking for the nest in case you get too close to it.

If you do end up tripping up over the nest when you are looking for it, or getting too close, then the wasps are going to attack. At this point you should trust what your instincts are probably going to be telling you, which will be to run away. A lot of the time the advice on what to do if you have a wasp buzzing around you is to stay still so that they don’t think that you are attacking them. However if you have already disturbed or are too close to the nest they will consider you a threat already so you just have to run.

Other places they will commonly nest are in roof spaces, in sheds, in the hollows of trees or hanging from a branch, in a bush or anywhere else where they are unlikely to be disturbed and they will get a bit of shelter.

If you think that the nest is somewhere in the house but you’re not sure where, the best thing to do is to go outside and look from there. If they are in your house somewhere there will have to be somewhere that they are getting in and out from, maybe between tiles in the roof or a small hole in a wall. If you can find that place, that will be enough information to be able to get pest control experts in for wasp control.

Pest Control UK

For wasp removal services, contact Pest Control UK on our free phone number and get a free quote.

Rats can cause a lot of damage in a loft or attic.

Rat Infestation

The way that you will probably first become aware of a rat infestation in your loft is by the scurrying sound that they make, which you will probably hear at night mostly as they are nocturnal animals. However it’s hard to distinguish between rats, mice and even squirrels. Whatever pest it is though it’s going to be important to employ pest control procedures to get rid of them as quickly as possible.

The teeth of rodents never stop growing meaning that they have to be gnawing on something pretty much all the time to keep them at the proper length. If they are in your loft for long then, they are bound to cause quite a bit of damage to your wood, cardboard boxes, and anything that you store in there. They will also be urinating a lot and leaving faeces all around so it is unhygienic to have them up there as well.

If the rats get to your kitchen then your food is going to be at risk as well. You should therefore make sure that everywhere is clean and that there are no crumbs or scraps of food around that they will be able to get hold of. They’ll also be able to chew through plastic bags and cardboard containers so you should make sure you store any dry food in a solid plastic container to protect it from that possibility. Also your refuse should be kept in a plastic bin with the lid closed.

Getting Rid of Rats

When it comes to getting rid of rats in the loft, as stated the best thing to do is to call in the pest control professionals to do it for you. They’ll know the best strategies to entirely eradicate the infestation in the shortest amount of time. This will be done either with traps, poison or a combination of the two.

If you only have a small infestation of rats, so less than 3 or 4, the best way to get rid of them is with traps. That’s because with traps you’re going to know where to collect the dead bodies from. However if it’s a larger infestation than that then using poison might be more appropriate because that way you’ll be able to get more of them at the same time.

The problem with using rat poison, however, is that you’re not going to know where the rats will die. If they are somewhere inaccessible when they die then you are going to end up with dead rats decomposing on your property, leading to bad smells and also other pest control problems such as a fly infestation.

Pest Control UK

For professional rat control services, contact Pest Control UK on our freephone number.