AMPM Exterminators Pest Control Services Insects and other household pests are a common problem for residents of Seattle and its surrounding areas. They infest throughout the year and once they invade a home or a commercial building, they contaminate food supplies, become a nuisance in people’s spaces, and cause some diseases that can endanger the health and well-being of a family. Initial Pest Control Steps When clients approach Seattle’s AMPM Exterminators for assistance in ridding their homes or commercial premises of any form of household pests, the first step that our technicians will do is to understand why the pest chose the client’s house and not that of their neighbor. In this case, AMPM Exterminators technicians will inspect the infested space with the aim of identifying the conditions that are conducive to the pests that have invaded a home or business premises. Once identified, such conditions will first be eliminated before any form of treatment is administered to clear a pest infestation. Common Pests that AMPM Exterminators Service in Seattle & Surrounding Areas Some of the pests that AMPM Exterminators has serviced in Seattle and the surrounding area include: •
Carpenter Ants • These are also known as Big Black Ants. • Their size ranges between 3.5 and 13 millimeters while the queen ant measure between 13 and 17 millimeters in length. • Compared to other ant species in the Pacific Northwest, carpenter ants are larger • They appear to have color combinations that range from brown, black to red. • Their antennas are segmented into 12 sections. • They do not have clubs and their thoraxes are not supported by spines. • Their upper sections are evenly rounded and their anal openings are round and hairy. • They emit a strong formic acidic odor. • Carpenter ants are known to cause damage to wood in homes • They prefer staying in decaying or moist wood because this is easy to excavate • On average, a colony of carpenter ants comprises up to fifty thousand workers while large colonies will have up to a hundred thousand workers.
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Odorous House Ants • These are also referred to as the little black sugar ants. • Odorous ants are tiny and measure about 2.5 millimeters in length. • These ants tend to nest outside the home or business premises. • They construct their nests using mounds of dirt. • They enter homes and buildings in search of food.
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Once they identify a food source, they leave a trail of scent to enable other ants to follow and reach the source of food. These ants produce a nasty odor when crushed hence their name, odorous ants
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Pavement Ant • These ants measure between 2.5 and 4 millimeters long • Their color caries from black to dark brown and they have parallel lined on the thorax and head • The pedicel, which is the connection between the abdomen and thorax has two sections • The dorsal or posterior thorax also has two spines projecting upward the rear • Pavement ants have a stinger on the abdominal segment • The reproductive or swarmer ants have wings and their size is about twice that of workers • Workers also have furrowed thorax and head • Females have spines while males do not
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Moisture Ants • These comprise two ant groups that inhabit moist structures • The most common group in Washington State is the Cornfield ant; it is also larger in size compared to the other moisture ant group • Cornfield ants are dark brown or yellow in size and measure about 1/8" in length • Moisture ants are mostly found in rotten logs or stumps and also nest in wet soil • They feed on sweet substances, other insects and honey dew found in aphids • In homes and buildings, moisture ants mostly inhabit moist areas • Though they ought to be seen as basic structural pests, they are an indicator of serious, pre-existing moisture problem • Their control has to be structural in nature and involves correcting all moisture sources and clearing all rotten wood.
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Bed Bugs • These are tiny, oval, brownish insects that survive by drawing blood from people as well as animals • Mature bed bugs are almost the size and shape of an apple seed • Though they are not flying insects, they are capable of moving pretty fast on wall and ceiling surfaces • The females are capable of laying numerous eggs whose size is that of dust specks in their lifetime • Nymphs shed skin about five times before they become mature bed bugs • They must feed on blood prior to shedding the skin and when this happens, it is an indication that the environment is conducive • Bed bugs can grow to adulthood within one month and increase to three or more generations in a year when the conditions are conducive • Bed bugs tend to retreat to their harborage after feeding • They defecate porous surfaces with brown or black stains and non-porous surfaces with brown to black mounds • Itchy bites indicate presence of bed bugs. • Other signs of infestation include blood stained sheets or pillowcases and dark or rusty spots on sheets, mattresses, walls and other bed clothes
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Fecal spots, bed bug egg shells and traces of shed skin also signal bed bug infestation. These pests secret a stale odor that is offensive, such smell indicates an infestation
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Roaches • Roaches are repulsive; they transmit bacteria that causes food poisoning • They are mostly linked to asthma and are found in food establishment and residential areas • Once they settle, they reproduce very fast. Their growth rate is slow compared to that of other insects and takes several months to one year • Mature roaches can live for up to five years • In homes, roaches infest kitchens and bathrooms and harbor in areas where there is water and food • Adult roaches measure about ½ to 5/8 of an inch in length and they have a brownish or tan color • They have two parallel dark bars on the first segment of their thorax • Their nymphs have dark uniform shades • The most common breeds found in Washington State are German, American, Brown-banded and Oriental roaches
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Fleas • Fleas are mostly associated with dogs and cats present in homes
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These pests jump from pets to people and their bites are itchy and tiny though they prefer to feed on animals as their fur or hair is offers shelter and is more habitable
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Left untreated, fleas can multiply fast and become unmanageable
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Adult fleas measure about 1/8 inches long and has a flat body
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Their color ranges from black to brown and after feeding, their backs turn reddish black
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Fleas are wingless insects that hop from one place to the other
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They are small in size and difficult to squish as they are agile
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They lay their eggs on beddings and on areas that are frequented by pets
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Flea eggs hatch into worm like tiny larvae, mature larvae is almost twice the size of a fully grown flea
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Flea larva is white in color with a fully grown head. It has no legs or eyes and it is slender
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Flea larvae feed on debris and flea fecal matter since they are incapable of drawing blood on their own
Rats and Mice • Rats and mice can be very destructive in structures once they gain entry • They can invade any structure despite the fact that rodents do well in old
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structures that have poor sanitation Rats and mice tend to multiply very fast as they compete for food with other scavengers like birds They excavate long tunnels in search of food and shelter Most rat and mice species are climbers and are capable of surviving falls from up to fifty feet high They use power lines and tree branches to travel from one place to another These pests transmit waste, bacteria and urine and cause diseases such as Bubonic Plaque The common rat and mice species in Washington State include the Norway and Roof rats as well as House and Deer mice
Other Services offered by AMPM Exterminators AMPM Exterminators also provide the following services to clients: • Attic crawlspace rodent waste clean up • Replacement of damaged insulation • Repair and replacement of duct work • Removing insulation, sanitizing, and deodorizing infected areas termite, rodent or insect infestation