What is Integrated Pest Management?
The Catseye Pest Control team is dedicated to handling all pest problems using an Integrated Pest Management approach. But for those outside of the industry what does that mean?
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a method of eliminating pests that is both effective and environmentally friendly. In addition to eliminating current pests, the focus of IPM is largely on prevention and maintenance. An important part of the process involves managing ecosystem based factors that will help naturally limit a pest’s ability to thrive in the future.
At Catseye, we use these four steps in our IPM approach:
Inspection
We investigate every inch of your home for pest activity during our free comprehensive inspection.
Identification
We figure out not only WHAT kind of pest is in your home, but HOW and WHY the pests are getting inside.
Treatment
From proactive structural repair to monitoring programs and pest products, we use a variety of ways to fix your pest problems for good.
Partnership
Between you as a homeowner and us as pest management professionals, we can work together to protect your family and keep your home pest-free.
Integrated Pest Management Methods
Typically IPM solutions fall into one of four categories:
Biological Pest Control
Controlling a pest biologically means leveraging the pest’s natural predators to limit its population. This can be applied to pests of all varieties including insects, mites, unwanted weeds, and plant diseases.
There are three basic strategies for biological pest control.
- Importation: A natural enemy of a pest is introduced to achieve control.
- Augmentation: Utilizing a large population of natural enemies of the pest, they are administered to the location to achieve quick, effective pest control.
- Conservation: Natural enemies of a pest are maintained through regular reestablishment.
Cultural Pest Control
Some practices to eliminate pests involve creating significant obstacles to the pest’s ability to survive. This means removing and minimizing the conditions they need to survive. By removing resources like water, shelter, and a consistent food source, unwanted pests are deterred from the affected area. Using cultural control can reduce harmful effects to the ecosystem that are typically associated with chemical pest control.
Physical Pest Control
This is the most straightforward method of pest management, and includes the physical removal of unwanted pests, as well as creating barriers to prevent pest access to the affected area.
Mechanical or physical controls will help make an environment unfit for a particular kind of pest. This may mean introducing barriers to food sources or introducing hazards. This could also mean using traps, vacuuming, mowing, or physical removal depending on the type of pest.
Chemical Pest Control
What is perhaps the most commonly assumed method of pest control is often the last resort. The use of pesticides to eliminate pests is only applied when absolutely necessary and most often in conjunction with other, long-term methods of control. If pesticides are needed, they will be chosen and applied in a manner that minimizes their potential harm to humans, pets, and the indoor and outdoor environment.
We know that every home and circumstance is unique, and through a combination of evaluation and strategic solution planning, we will eliminate your pest problem in a way that is best for you, your home, and the environment, with an emphasis on-long term solutions and prevention.
Learn more about the various pest control services Catseye provide for your home or business.
