With the rebirth of spring, a less welcome resurgence occurs in the form of active pests eager to explore and expand their territories. Among these seasonal visitors, skunks pose a unique challenge, known for their distinctive appearance and notorious defense mechanism. As a leading pest control company, we understand the importance of preparing your home or business for the challenges of changing seasons. This article is designed to give you the knowledge and strategies to keep skunks at bay effectively.

At Northern Pest, we combine exclusion, timely repairs, and the strategic use of rat walls to significantly reduce the likelihood of skunks invading your property. Also, be sure to regularly inspect your property for signs of skunk activity or new potential entry points to maintain an effective defense.

Exclusion of Skunks

1. Identify Entry Points: Inspect your property for holes, gaps, or openings around the foundation, vents, and under doors or decks. Skunks can enter through small openings, so it’s crucial to identify all potential entry points.
2. Seal Openings: Use sturdy materials like metal mesh, hardware cloth, or aluminum flashing to seal off any openings. Ensure that the materials are buried at least 1 to 2 feet underground at the base of the foundation or fencing to prevent skunks from digging underneath.
3. Install Exclusion Barriers: For areas that cannot be sealed off completely, such as beneath decks or sheds, install exclusion barriers that extend into the ground to prevent digging. These barriers should slant outward to deter skunks from getting close.

Making Repairs Caused by Skunks

1. Fix Structural Damage: Repair any damage to the exterior of buildings, including broken siding, gaps in roofing, or damaged vents. This not only prevents skunk entry but also enhances overall structural integrity.
2. Secure Garbage and Compost: Skunks are attracted to food sources. Ensure garbage cans have tight-fitting lids and compost bins are securely covered. Consider using bins made of materials that skunks cannot easily penetrate.
3. Remove Attractants: Eliminate food and water sources that may attract skunks, such as pet food left outside, fallen fruit from trees, and accessible water sources like birdbaths or leaky faucets.

Installing ‘Rat Walls’ to Keep Skunks at Bay

1. Installation: Rat walls are underground barriers made of concrete or metal that prevent burrowing animals from digging under structures. Install rat walls around the perimeter of sheds, decks, and other vulnerable structures to a depth of at least 18 inches to 2 feet.
2. Materials: Use durable materials like galvanized steel or reinforced concrete to ensure longevity and resistance against digging.
3. Consider Professional Help: For best results, consider hiring a professional to install rat walls. They can ensure the walls are installed correctly and provide the most effective barrier against skunks and other burrowing wildlife.

If you think you may have a skunk problem, contact Northern Pest; we’ll come out and inspect and make recommendations based on your unique situation.

Northern Pest: Our family serving yours! We are licensed and insured to provide insect and wildlife pest control. Our crew has the expertise to track wildlife entry points and remove pests of all kinds, including our licensed builders, who can make any of the necessary repairs caused by wildlife. Northern Pest is a member of the MDAT and the NWCOA. We are certified by the IICRC to offer professional mold mitigation services caused by animal damage. At Northern Pest, we do it all!

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: www.cpsmi.com

Unfortunately, bed bugs infiltrate hotels more often than you think. These pests are common in all 50 states, and since they bunker down within upholstery and other fabrics, they survive the harshest winters. Bed bugs don’t only sequester hotels; they hitch a ride from unsuspecting travelers and can cause a nuisance within offices, daycares, hospitals, dorms, apartment buildings, residential homes, and more.

Problematic bed bugs have been on the rise in recent years, especially for hotels. Major cities, including Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint, and Lansing, have faced their fair share of bed bug infestations. As you can imagine, a bed bug invasion often has negative connotations; people may assume a run-down, old motel setting, for example. However, bed bugs don’t discriminate based on luxury or cleanliness; they can thrive and multiply quickly within any environment.  

Although bed bugs are not known to spread disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), they are parasites that bite and feed on human and domestic animal blood. These bites result in red, itchy patches that resemble small mosquito bites.  

Bed bugs are incredibly resilient, making them challenging to eradicate. They cling from host to host and are easily transferrable between humans, clothing, luggage, and within the fabric seating of vehicles. Taxis, buses, and airplanes are common hiding places as they wait to find their next host.

Bed bugs can survive for up to one year without feeding. They are nocturnal, and most people who experience bed bug bites do not feel them while sleeping, but typically later, they realize they’ve been bitten. The most common signs of bed bugs include unexplained bites on your body or tiny blood trails on bedsheets or along mattress seams.

Adult bed bugs are visible to the human eye, about the size of a flattened apple seed. They have oval-shaped bodies and are a rusty-brown color.

How to Check for Bed Bugs:

• Examine your clothing and luggage regularly to catch and prevent a bed bug infestation.

• Inspect your room as soon as you arrive, placing your luggage on the tiled bathroom floor or in the bathtub until you are confident all is clear. Use a flashlight to inspect the four corners of the mattress, box spring, and bed seams by carefully removing the sheets and the mattress pad. Inspect the edges and cracks, and check around and behind the headboard.

• Also, check the luggage rack and valet trolley. Inspect the furniture around the bed, including the cracks and crevices of the nightstand. Inspect behind pictures hanging on the wall, and pay special attention to the seams on upholstered furniture.

• If you find evidence of bed bugs in your room, notify hotel staff immediately, so they can investigate. Do not stay in a room with visible bed bugs. Ask for a replacement room – not near where you found the infestation.

• Once home, check for bugs within your luggage. Wash clothes and place all dryer-safe clothing from your luggage in the dryer for 30-45 minutes at the highest setting. If you can’t launder as recommended, place the items in a seal-tight plastic bag for several days, or placing items in a freezer will work too. Also, vacuum the inside and outside of your luggage and the fabric in your vehicle.  

Pest Management Solutions for Bed Bugs:

Hotels have a responsibility to their guests to provide safe and comfortable sleeping environments and protect them from certain dangers, such as a bed bug infestation. If a guest reports a pest problem, staff should take immediate action to remedy the situation like transferring them to another room and calling a professional pest specialist for removal.

At Northern Pest, we consider the severity of the bed bug infestation and the environment they thrive in to determine the best method for successful extermination. Bed bugs are notoriously difficult to eradicate, so we use a unique treatment with specialized products and habitat modifications to eliminate them. Our all-natural application agent is deadly to bed bugs and destroys their eggs, yet is harmless to humans.

Place your business or home in professional hands that you can trust with a qualified and efficient pest control agency like Northern Pest. We assure to work quickly and discreetly to handle your bed bug problem. All services are confidential; call to schedule an inspection and estimate today.

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Northern Pest: Our family serving yours! We are licensed and insured to provide insect and wildlife pest control. Our crew has the expertise to track wildlife entry points and remove pests of all kinds, including our licensed builders, who can make any of the necessary repairs caused by wildlife. Northern Pest is a member of the MDAT and the NWCOA. We are certified by the IICRC to offer professional mold mitigation services caused by animal damage. At Northern Pest, we do it all!

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com/

Northern Michigan is prone to pests seeking shelter during the harsh winter. When temperatures dip near freezing, residents may notice an uptick in pest activity within the premises. For those who own an RV or camper, keeping mice at bay when the vehicle is not in use is especially difficult. Mice are small enough to squeeze through a hole the size of a dime, so cracks and holes you didn’t know existed can be found and infiltrated by these tiny yet destructive creatures.

Tips to Keep Mice Out of Your Home on Wheels:

• Inspect for Entry Points: Examine your camper and detect potential entry points. Look underneath the camper and search for any holes that mice may enter, focusing on areas where pipes and electrical wires egress. Inspect the exterior, including windows and doors, under the hood, and check the “basement” storage area. Finally, check the interior, closely inspecting dark, hidden areas such as the back of cabinets and drawers.
• Prevent Entry: Seal all cracks and gaps with expanding spray foam or caulk. Once you locate entry points, fill them with foam spray, caulk, or wire mesh. Pay special attention to any access panels, the dumping compartment, and your camper’s pop-out or pull-out sections.
• Keep it Squeaky Clean: After your trip, properly clean your camper. When storing your trailer, even for a short period, all food and condiments should be removed, apart from canned goods. Don’t trust a plastic bin to prevent mice from chewing through, either! Thoroughly clean up crumbs, spills, and sticky messes, including the refrigerator, microwave, countertops, cushions, and floors. If you have children, double-check and clean areas such as the pull-out couch, bed, and play areas.   

• Storing Your Camper: If able, it’s ideal to keep your camper on a hard, paved surface. Parking your wheels on grassy or wooded areas is where mice are more likely to roam. A solid surface acts like a buffer to further protect your trailer. Also, regularly check your camper so that if there is a problem, you can act quickly to remedy it.

• Use Natural Mouse Repellent: Consider using DIY remedies such as placing moth balls, dryer sheets, or Irish Spring soap in openings around the camper. Cotton balls soaked in peppermint oil may work, too, as rodents dislike strong smells. Cats are also great at keeping the mice away!

• Set Up Mouse Traps: Kill traps are another option. You can preemptively set up mouse traps to eliminate those who may wander inside. You will need to periodically check the traps, dispose of any carcasses, and reset new traps.

• Set Up Recurring Rodent Services: When all else fails, or if you want to go the easy route, Northern Pest can set up a rodent program that will protect your home and property!

Keeping up on recreational vehicles doesn’t have to be a lot of work, and there’s really no way to seal those things up. Take a load off and relax a bit by calling Northern Pest. Our techs will assess your situation, inspect your premises, and recommend solutions. Our reoccurring rodent program includes strategically setting up tamper-resistant devices which hold rodenticide bait blocks. These attract pesky rodents who will eat the bait and leave as they normally would and die outside within a day or two in search of hydration. Our team will regularly come out as scheduled to check and refill the stations with bait. For hassle-free pest control, call Northern Pest today!

Northern Pest: Our family serving yours! We are licensed and insured to provide insect and wildlife pest control. Our crew has the expertise to track wildlife entry points and remove pests of all kinds, including our licensed builders, who can make any of the necessary repairs caused by wildlife. Northern Pest is a member of the MDAT and the NWCOA. We are certified by the IICRC to offer professional mold mitigation services caused by animal damage. At Northern Pest, we do it all!

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com/

Small brown bats, common in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, may hibernate for more than six months. With the arrival of warm weather and insects, bats too emerge in search of food. In their hunt, they may find their way into your home and decide it makes a nice area to roost. Any suspected bat invasion should be dealt with as soon as possible as these pests create an unhealthy living environment through exposure to rabies and histoplasmosis. Bats can also damage insulation and may cause a severe odor problem.

Despite their unsanitary nature, bats are extremely beneficial to our ecosystem, in part by controlling insect populations by eating 500 to 1,000 mosquitoes or other similar sized insects per hour. At Northern Pest, we recognize the importance in conserving these mammals. Depending on your geographical location and the time of the year, shortly after breeding season for bats, any exclusion work (evicting bats by the installation of check valves, one-way doors that allow bats to leave but not re-enter) may have to wait. The reason? Because any juvenile bats that are in your attic are still unable to fly. They will starve to death if their mother exits the den to feed and is unable to return due to the check valves and seal work recently completed. Usually, by the end of August, juvenile bats have matured and have flown the roost!

Juvenile bats can present another problem. Much like children, young bats are a bit clumsy and can end up in odd places by coming inside through open windows, chimney flues, exhaust pipes, or via a gap in the soffit or the ridge vent. Once inside, a young bat may not know how to get back out. Undoubtedly, a bat within the home is troubling to most people, and many customers have called us for a singular sighting of one.

The best time of year to complete bat-work is between May and July. If you need to wait until after August, try to get something done before the first constant frost (usually October-November) as not to disrupt an overwintering colony.

To lower the risk of a bat problem:

• Seal up any entry points
• Trim trees away from the roof and exterior siding
• If you hear scratching and clawing sounds coming from the walls or ceiling, especially at night, call Northern Pest to deal with a suspected bat invasion!

For safe, humane removal of bats, call Northern Pest. After a thorough inspection to identify entry points, we install check valves that allow bats to exit and prevent them from returning. Once the colony has vacated, the valves are removed, and the entry points are sealed to prohibit re-entry. After a bat exclusion, the cleanup process can begin, and any restoration repairs required can be done. Contact us to learn more about our process.

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Northern Pest: Our family serving yours! We are licensed and insured to provide insect and wildlife pest control. Our crew has the expertise to track wildlife entry points and remove pests of all kinds, including our licensed builders, who can make any of the necessary repairs caused by wildlife. Northern Pest is a member of the MDAT and the NWCOA. We are certified by the IICRC to offer professional mold mitigation services caused by animal damage. At Northern Pest, we do it all!

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: www.cpsmi.com

Rodent Bait Stations

A mice infestation is a common household problem that brings several health risks and hazards to a home or business. Once you spot a rodent scurrying around, there are likely dozens more nesting on the property. The most effective way to get rid of these pests is by using bait stations. Unlike trapping devices that catch and kill a singular rodent, or unsafe piles of rodenticide left in various corners, bait stations are tamper-resistant devices that hold rodenticide bait blocks. Pesky rodents are attracted to the bait within the station, they eat and leave as they normally would, and they die outside within a day or two in search of hydration.

Bait stations only work as long as there is enough rodenticide for the rodents you are trying to control. Our recurring rodent services will regularly come out as scheduled to check and refill stations. We not only make sure to use the appropriate bait, but we will ensure that the bait stations are strategically placed both indoors and outdoors. For hassle-free pest control, call Northern Pest today!

Carpenter Ants

Carpenter ants are starting to wake from their dormant state. One of the most common signs that you have an invasion of carpenter ants is wood damage. Piles of sawdust, similar to pencil shavings called “frass,” is actually the excavated wood that they chopped up with their mandibles and discarded near their nest entrance. Carpenter ants don’t eat wood; they burrow through moist structures to build their colony, typically beginning near a window or door frame, along rooflines, and areas with water damage.

Another tell-tale sign is their size; carpenter ants can be 5x larger than a common black ant, and the reproductive ants are winged. The sight of flying carpenter ants indicates that the colony is well established and searching for new settlements. They are identified by their heart-shaped head and single node below their rounded thorax.

A carpenter ant colony will not go away on its own. If you notice any of the mentioned red flags, it is imperative to seek professional pest control services asap. Our professional extermination services will not only prevent future invasions by sealing up cracks and open voids, but we go the extensive length to make sure no ants are left behind (as just a few can rehome a new colony.) We are also licensed, bonded, and insured to make the necessary repairs caused by wildlife damage, bringing back the integrity of your home or office to pre-pest condition.   

Get Help Today!

From Home, the Lake, Camp, or Your Business -Northern Pest Has You Covered!

Northern Pest is licensed and insured to provide insect and wildlife control. Comprehensively, our restoration crew is licensed builders with the expertise to not only track wildlife entry points but also repair any damage caused by insects or wild animals. Northern Pest is a member of the MDAT and the NWCOA. We are certified by the IICRC offering professional mold mitigation services caused by animal damage. At Northern Pest, we do it all!