Make 2018 A Pest-Free Year

Make 2018 A Pest-Free Year

With 2018 quickly approaching, you may be starting to think about making some New Year’s resolutions. If making your home more healthy and comfortable for your family is how you want to make a fresh start in 2018, then you may want to look into some year-round pest control programs. There are many benefits to year-round pest control. One of those benefits is making your home pest-free all year long, and not having to worry or lose sleep over what pests are lurking in the dark corners of your home. As you know, pest’s aren’t just a nuisance; some can be very dangerous. Cockroaches and rodents inside your home can be extremely detrimental to your family’s health through bacteria, viruses, and parasites that they may introduce to your home and food. In addition to the many health concerns those pests can cause, pests like termites can cause serious structural damage to your home before you even know that you have an infestation. These and other damaging pests can cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars in damages, not to mention the stress and sleepless nights they can cause you and your family.

Year-round pest control means you don’t have to worry about pests all year long, and that saves you money in the long run. You won’t have to call an exterminator after an infestation of any of these pests creeps up on you. That will just cause you to scramble to get them exterminated when you could have avoided the inconvenience altogether. Once these pests have been evicted, the only sure fire way to make sure they won’t come back is with year-round protection. Take a look at these year-round pest control programs from Russell’s Pest Control in Knoxville and Eastern Tennessee. We are a trusted home pest control company that understands just how important your family and your home are to you. That is why we have been fighting pests for over 45 years, and we want to offer homeowners in Tennessee the safest, most effective and efficient pest control available.

Our Power Program gives you year-round protection from over 30 common household pests, like ants, spiders, roaches, mice, silverfish, fleas, beetles, stinging insects and other common bugs. We start with a thorough inspection of your home for pests and follow through with four service treatments per year that are guaranteed. If pests return, so do we!

The Power Gold Program gives you the same great protection as our Power Program with the addition of termite control by the use of the Sentricon® System with Always Active™. This system is useful not just for effectively eliminating termites, but monitoring for their presence in the first place!

With the Power Plus Program you also have the Power Program benefits, but with the addition of control for seasonal pests like mosquitoes, fire ants, fleas, and ticks. In addition to the four regular visits per year, our experienced technicians will use outdoor treatments that target those seasonal pests monthly while they are active.

Our Power Platinum Program offers the best protection overall that covers all of the 30+ most common pests included in the other programs, plus Sentricon® with Always Active ™, as well as treating for mosquitoes, ticks, carpenter bees, and fire ants seasonally.

As you can see, Russell’s Pest Control has something for every need and budget. If you are a homeowner in Knoxville and Eastern Tennessee, give us a call with your pest control New Year’s resolutions. All of us at Russell’s Pest Control would like to wish you a very Happy New Year, and we look forward to making your home pest free throughout 2018!

Best Bed Bug Prevention Tips Of 2017

Best Bed Bug Prevention Tips Of 2017

Bed bugs are constantly in the news lately due to the growing population of bed bugs in both homes and public areas. Plus, everywhere you look there is someone saying they know the best way to prevent an infestation. Are you someone that has fallen for some of these time consuming and costly tips? Or maybe you’ve tried some of the over the counter products that say they can prevent bed bugs, but in the end, they fall short of their promised assistance in your fight against an infestation?

Well, bed bugs may not be so easy to deal with, but here are some tips that may actually help you avoid bed bugs this year. Avoid used furniture or mattresses, which could be hiding bed bugs inside, and without the proper treatment could cause an infestation. If you buy used clothing items, be sure to wash them in hot water right away to kill any bed bugs in them. When traveling, be sure to inspect your hotel room when you get there for bed bugs, carcasses, shed skins, and tiny maroon dots on bedding. Do not place your purse, briefcase or other items on the floor of public places, as this could be a place bed bugs will transfer from someone else’s things to yours. When you return home from a trip wash all of your clothing in hot water, and clean/vacuum out your suitcases and other luggage you brought with you.

Even if you follow these tips or any other DIY’s that you have seen or heard about in the news or on the internet, bed bugs can still sneak into your home, and once they’re in, you’re not going to want to fight them alone. Your best bet is to call on the professionals at Russell’s Pest Control in Knoxville and Eastern Tennessee. We have been getting rid of bed bugs for many years and have the expertise and technology to get rid of them completely. When you call Russell’s:

  • Our professionals will do a bed bug inspection to confirm their presence, as well as to pinpoint the areas where they are congregating.

  • They will review their findings and discuss a bed bug treatment plan with you.

  • On the day of treatment, our experts will use professional heat remediation equipment to eliminate all of the bed bugs.

Heat treatment is very efficient, effective, and non-toxic. It eliminates bed bugs of all stages of development, reaches hidden bed bugs, can be done in a day, and leaves behind no residue. These are some of the many reasons that we use this type of treatment to assure you of complete eradication, which will give you peace of mind that your home is free of bed bugs once we are finished. Give us a call today to find out more about bed bug treatment and control in Knoxville and Eastern Tennessee.

Flea Infestations On The Rise In Knoxville

Flea Infestations On The Rise In Knoxville

Our phones have been ringing off the hook with flea complaints. It seems that these parasitic little pests just keep coming back around in Knoxville, and homeowners, renters, and business owners alike want them gone and gone for good. Flea infestations are very common because they have two incredibly helpful traits for getting around, their small size and incredible jumping ability. No pest can hitch a ride quite as easily as the flea, and with plenty of warm-blooded animals on the move, they can’t help but end up all over the place. And once they reach your home, it’s time to eat, lay eggs, and settle in.

Fleas get into homes almost exclusively by being carried. For the pet owner, this is no surprise. If Fido spends his days sniffing around the backyard, he could quite easily return carrying some quiet stowaways. But how do these fleas end up in our backyards? And what about homes without pets? Well, wildlife is the main culprit. Deer, raccoons, and rodents can all carry fleas, and having these animals in the area greatly increases the chances of them getting into your home. Neighbor pets may also introduce fleas onto your property, and even a quick visit from someone carrying fleas could be enough to start an infestation.

This all sounds very scary, especially when we hear of fleas carrying disease or tapeworms. Luckily this is fairly rare, and there are some things you can do to minimize the risk and fight against flea infestation. Your first step should be getting pets treated for fleas. This is huge, as pets are a much easier host for fleas to take advantage of than humans. Next, vacuum regularly, even often. It is a fact that milder flea infestations can be completely defeated with vacuuming alone. Finally, flush any flea you see. Most often you will feel an itchy sensation on your arm or upper ankle; quickly grab the offending bug between your thumb and forefinger and take it straight to the bathroom. The fewer opportunities adult fleas have to feed and escape to lay eggs, the more quickly their population will thin out.

Another option and best one for defeating fleas is to call in the pest control professionals. While milder infestations can be dealt with yourself, as mentioned, it doesn’t take long for a flea infestation to reach levels that are more than you can handle with good housekeeping and diligence. Over-the-counter methods might be considered here, but they have their own health risks for people and pets, and it’s especially frustrating to enter a cycle of DIY pest control and find that it just isn’t getting the job done, even after weeks of effort. At Russel’s Pest Control we have been fighting the good fight against fleas and other pests right alongside home and business owners in the Knoxville area, and we know just what it takes to clear out a flea infestation of any size. A visit from us can identify risks and treat your problems, and even better, our year-round pest control plans cover at least 30 different common household pests, including fleas! Russell’s Pest Control can even put pest prevention methods in place to minimize the risk of future infestations. In fact, we’re so confident in our work that we offer a pest-free guarantee; if the pests return, then so do we, at no cost! Don’t let the menace of fleas keep you and your pets indoors. Call Russell’s Pest Control and let us defend your home for you, so you can enjoy it instead.

Most Likely Places Camel Crickets Will Be Found

Most Likely Places Camel Crickets Will Be Found

Likely you’ve never even heard of a camel cricket, but if you see one chances are you will never forget it! Camel crickets have a spider-like appearance and a humped back with large back legs. They do not have wings nor do they fly, but they sure look like they are flying when they leap at you and go soaring through the air. These brown little creatures are surely a pest you don’t want to share your space with. Camel crickets like to chew, and they can destroy your upholstery, fabrics, and clothing.  

Outside in nature, you will find them hiding out in rotting leaf piles, under decks, near drain spouts, and more. They will find sources of moisture to inhabit such as by leaky outdoor faucets or in clogged gutters. When it gets too hot or dry out, camel crickets will find their way into your home. They will often take up residence in dark damp basements, crawl spaces, and sometimes improperly sealed attics. They will settle anywhere they can find a cool, moist area.

The easiest way to avoid getting a camel cricket infestation is to remove sources of moisture. Rake up any leaf piles and remove rotting leaves from around your home. Make sure all outdoor faucets are not leaking and that gutters and drain spots are clear and functioning properly. Seal up cracks in foundations and windows that might allow water to enter. Run a dehumidifier in basements and attics to keep those areas dry.

If you already have a camel cricket infestation, you may want to take a more dedicated and intensive approach. The professionals at Russell’s Pest Control are fully equipped to seek out the dark corners and creepy spaces that camel crickets will hide in. These nocturnal creatures are difficult for a homeowner to find. Russell’s Pest Control can come out and do a one-time treatment, or they can work with you to come up with a pest control plan that will not only eliminate the camel cricket problem but will help you avoid one again in the future.

Why Rodents Enter Our Homes

Why Rodents Enter Our Homes

Winter is on its way, we can feel it in the air as it is getting colder outside. Unfortunately, pests are feeling the same temperature change and will be in a search for a warmer place to call home throughout the winter months. Besides warmth, these pests are in search of shelter to raise their young, as well as food and water to survive. These particular pests are rodents, like those mischievous mice and rascally rats that scurry about and skulk around the pantry foraging for food. And here’s the problem with rodents inside your house: they carry diseases, chew everything in sight, and cause damage to your home. Not a creature you want to have around.

Let’s start by talking about the diseases they can carry, like the deadly hantavirus, which can lead to hemorrhagic fever or acute respiratory failure. You and your family could be at risk for other diseases as well, like leptospirosis, lymphocytic disease, and salmonella as a result of a rodent infestation. Rodents can also bring parasites like mites, fleas, and ticks into your home that can affect the health of your family and pets too. On top of this, rodents are looking for food, and will contaminate anything they can get their claws into.

Since rodents have incisors that continuously grow, they chew incessantly to prevent overgrowth of their teeth. They can chew the legs of furniture, picture frames, books, clothing, wires, pipes, insulation, and much more. Normally the chewing would just damage single items, but if an electrical wire is chewed, it could spark a fire in your home. Likewise, if a plumbing pipe is chewed through, you could experience a lot of water damage.

So, how do you prevent rodents from entering your house in the first place? You will need to block off all entry points by caulking all gaps and holes around your foundation and exterior walls, the preferred method is to stuff a hole with steel wool and then caulk it, as rodents can chew through the caulk alone. You will also need to fix or replace all damaged vents, screens, chimney caps etc… Try to keep trees and bushes trimmed back away from your house and eliminate piles of wood and junk near your home. Your garbage cans should have tight-fitting lids as well. Inside your home, keep all of your food secure in containers with tight-fitting lids, and never use food that has ripped, torn or chewed packaging. You should also be on the lookout for rodent droppings that look like small black rice with tapered ends. As an extra precaution, you should clean up food and drink spills right away and repair leaky pipes and faucets.

If you already have an infestation, you should contact a professional pest control service in your area. If you live in the Knoxville and Eastern Tennessee area, call on Russell’s Pest Control for full-service pest management. Our year-round home pest control services effectively address all rodent activity to ensure proper eradication of the rodents and keep them away with a multi-step process. So, if getting rid of pests for good is what you are looking for, look no further. Russell’s Pest Control has solutions that will give you the peace of mind you need, that ensures you a rodent free home all year long.