How To Choose a Pest Control Company
When choosing a pest control company, you want to find the right one to meet your needs. Some things you may consider include qualifications and licensing, treatment methods, years of experience, customer reviews, and cost.
Below, we explore the details of each of these factors.
Does the company have a valid license and permits to perform pest control?
Per the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), all pesticide applicators and those that supervise them need to be licensed at the state level. The EPA maintains minimum standards of competency, and the New York regulatory agencies handle the granting, maintaining, and revoking of licenses.
Is the company a member of any professional organizations?
One optional certification that could be worth looking for is the GreenPro Service Certification. To obtain this certification, a pest control company must both demonstrate that its practices are more environmentally friendly and uphold certain training standards for its technicians. Companies can also obtain other certifications from trade organizations like QualityPro to further back up their work.
Pest control companies can also belong to various professional organizations. Companies can belong to the National Pest Management Association (NPMA), or state-level organizations. NPMA membership provides companies with access to education, resources, and a network of other pest control companies. While not required, membership in professional organizations helps back up a company's reputability.
Professional Experience and Specialties
How long a pest control company has been in business can tell you something about its experience dealing with pests in your area. Online reviews or the company's own website can also inform you whether it has the experience necessary to eliminate the particular pests that are plaguing you. If you cannot find the answers to your questions online, calling a representative is an easy way to learn about the company's areas of expertise.
Reviews and Recommendations
You can browse reviews and recommendations on social media or local review sites, look up a company's rating on the Better Business Bureau (BBB), or check the status of its license through the New York licensing board.
Cost of Services and Guarantees
The cost of pest control can vary based on things like the size of your house, your location, the type of pest being treated, and other factors.
When considering the cost of services, you should try to determine whether a company includes free on-site estimates as part of its services. This can help determine whether the company fits into your budget. Also consider a company's guarantees: If the problem is not resolved, or if it returns, does the company promise to offer additional treatments until the problem is satisfactorily handled?
Safety and Treatment Methods
Your choice of pest control company might be influenced by how environmentally friendly a provider's practicesare, as well as how safe its methods are around your family and pets.
Safety
You should ask your pest control provider if the chemicals they're using are low toxicity or non-toxic, and if not, what kind of precautionary measures they will have in place. Any pesticides that are not minimum-risk chemicals need to be registered with the EPA. Your pest technician should be able to supply information about all of the pesticides that they plan to use.
Treatment Methods
Many companies have started making the switch to using more natural and greener treatment methods before, or in place of, harsh chemical pesticides. Some employ a program called Integrated Pest Management (IPM). The steps of IPM are as follows:
- Identify problem pests and determine if immediate action is required.
- Decide on the safest course of action.
- Manage the pest problem using a combination of physical, biological, mechanical, and cultural controls.
- Use chemical controls only when required, and always along with other controls for effective long-term pest control management.
- Evaluate outcomes and provide additional pest control solutions as needed.
