Great Article from USA Today

Your Health: Bug control goes beyond the spray can

When a bunch of pesky flies got into insect expert Art Antonelli's house, he did not reach for a can of insecticide. Instead, he got out a fly swatter — and his shoes, which he used to walk outside his home to look for the source of the sudden fly infestation.

He found it, under his house: "I had a dead rat and a dead possum," say Antonelli, an entomologist at Washington State University's extension center in Puyallup. He called a pest control company to remove the dead animals and then closed up openings that were allowing critters into the crawl space.


CHEMICALS: Skip commercial cleaners for those made from pantry products
His fly problem was solved and the use of a pesticide was averted — something that experts say still happens too infrequently, even among health-conscious, organic-food-buying, environmentally aware consumers. "When there are insects in their homes, there are some purists, but not many," Antonelli says.

"The biggest abusers of pesticides are consumers," says Dini Miller, an urban pest management specialist at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg. "They see an insect in the bathroom, and most people will want to empty half a can of Raid until the last leg stops moving."

Carolyn Randall, a pesticide safety educator at Michigan State University in East Lansing, agrees: "People tend to panic when they see one ant or one earwig," she says. "They reach for chemicals too quickly or call a pest control company too quickly."

Pesticides for home use are carefully reviewed for safety by the Environmental Protection Agency and are not highly toxic to humans, Miller says. "But you never want to use more than you need."

Antonelli says: "If you follow the label absolutely, you can have peace of mind. ... But the label has no eyeballs. It can't see if you point the nozzle the wrong way and spray it in your face." And it can't observe, as Antonelli once did, a woman running through her house spraying multiple doses of insecticide at a single airborne fly.

Here's how to keep your own home (relatively) insect-free without dousing it with chemicals:

•Keep outdoor insects under control. This does not mean bombing your yard with pesticides or getting one of those bug zappers (they kill lots of beneficial insects, Antonelli says). Instead, limit outdoor breeding grounds, Miller advises. Insects love wood piles, tarps, kiddie pools (especially the moist underside) and mulch. If you must use mulch, keep the stuff at least six inches from your foundation, she says.

•Keep outside insects out. Repair screens, caulk cracks, replace inadequate weather stripping and outfit door bottoms with tight rubber sweeps. If you can, Miller says, avoid lighting up doorways at night: That attracts insects, which attract spiders, which are then happy to come inside.

•When an insect gets in, don't panic. Most are harmless: They don't bite or carry diseases, Miller says. And most are easy to kill. Miller endorses stomping, vacuuming and, for those kitchen counter ants, spraying with soap and water.

•Trace the enemy to its source. Those ants on your counter top may come from a nest in a rotted porch column; fix that and lose the ants.

•When you do use pesticides, choose carefully. Read labels to make sure the product is intended for indoor use and the pest in question. You may need to try more than one. For example, ants may ignore one bait but find another irresistible.

•Know that some problems require professional help. Those include bedbugs, termites and, in most cases, cockroaches (which are a major cause of allergy and asthma symptoms), Miller says. Contact your state's cooperative extension service for more information. (Find one at csrees.usda.gov/Extension.)

Sometimes, it is best to leave bug problems up to the professionals. If a pest control problems becomes too much to handle, call the speedy, professional, green team at Craig Thomas Pest Control for all your pest control needs. Visit our website at www.callcraig.com or call 800.255.6777 for a free estimate and inspection.

Article from:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/painter/2009-05-10-bug-spray_N.htm#uslPageReturn

Hudson Valley Green Fair Success

April 25-26, 2009 the Hudson Valley Green Fair was held at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds. This is the first year Craig Thomas Pest Control participated in the second annual event. The Fair was designed to help everyone learn how to “go green” and be environmentally friendly.

Craig Thomas Pest Control takes pride in offering environmentally sounds services and natural products to combat your pest control problems. CTPC may implement steam cleaning, exclusion, baiting, heppa filter vacuums and when necessary our organic line of products, called EcoSmart. For more information on these products: www.ecosmart.com. CTPC takes pride protecting your health, homes and property against pest.

Thank you for everyone who came to the Green Fair (I know it was hot) and stopped by our booth. Below is a picture of our booth at the fair and me (Sarah).

April 25th, 2009 – World Malaria Day!

April 25th, 2009 – World Malaria Day!




Each year, malaria afflicts approximately a half-billion people (roughly the population of the United States, Canada, and Mexico combined).
• Malaria kills more than a million people per year; 90 percent of those who die are African children.
• Every 30 seconds in Africa a child dies of malaria.
• Malaria incapacitates people, keeping countries poor. In addition to the health burden, malaria illness and death cost Africa about $12 billion per year.

Craig Thomas Pest Control continues to donate a portion of their vector sales to the Nothing but Nets Campaign. Nothing But Nets is a grassroots campaign to save lives by preventing malaria, a leading killer of children in Africa. This entire process of purchasing and distributing insecticide-treated bed nets to children under the age of five, as well as providing education and follow-up surveying on their use, is accomplished at the cost of just $10 per bed net. Although $10 for a bed net may not sound like much, the cost makes them out of reach for most people at risk of malaria in Africa, where many people survive on less than $1 a day. Malaria has been brought under control and even eliminated in many parts of Asia, Europe and the Americas. Yet in Africa, malaria infections have actually increased over the last three decades. Malaria is a leading cause of death of children in Africa, killing nearly one million children each year. Every day 3,000 children die from the disease. (Provided by Nothingbutnets.net)

Doing something on April 25th and go to www.callcraig.com and click on Nothing but Nets to donate. $10 to buy, distribute and educate... so little to save a life, and you can help!

Go Craig Thomas Pest Control!!!

Craig Thomas Pest Control is currently sponsoring one of New Paltz's tee ball teams. We wish the Craig Thomas Pest Control Crocs the best of luck in the 2009 Season.




The picture above is Craig Thomas and his son, Eric a team member.

Don't let the bedbugs bite...

Take a look at this video from Dateline on bedubgs:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11916682/

KEY POINTS
- Bed bugs can be extremely difficult to detect. Proper diagnosis requires highly trained professionals.
- Bed bug services are very labor intensive, rely heavily on the careful use of residual pesticides and should only be conducted by highly trained professionals.
- Proper service requires that ALL possible harborages are treated. This usually requires the complete cooperation of the customer to access all areas that need to be treated.
- One service WILL NOT eliminate bed bugs from your home. A typical bed bug management program consists of an intensive initial service followed by a number of follow up visits over a period of several months.
These follow up visits are necessary to ensure a maximum level of control.
- In rare cases, total elimination of bed bugs may not be possible through our regular program. We will work with the customer to design custom treatments to give the best control possible.

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT BED BUGS
Bed bugs occur world-wide and bridge all economic and social strata. Bed bug infestations in North America have become much more common over the past 10 years. Adult bed bugs are brown to reddish-brown,approximately 3/16-inch long, 1/8-inch wide, broadly oval, and flat. Immature bed bugs (nymphs) are tiny and appear translucent or pale in color. The eggs are pearly white in color and only 1 mm in length, thus they can be very difficult to detect with the naked eye. Inspections for bed bugs include looking for live bugs, shed exoskeletons and characteristic black stains created by fecal droppings. These insects feed exclusively on blood
however there has been no evidence to suggest that bed bugs transmit any diseases.
Bed bugs do not enter homes from the natural outdoor environment; instead they must be introduced into the home from a previously infested environment. This can occur by picking them up during travel, bringing them in on rented or used furniture, introduction by guests or visitors, or other means. Often the exact source of the
infestation is unknown. Once in the home bed bugs will seek small, protected areas to hide. Although called bed bugs, they can live in almost any area of the home such as beds, couches, picture frames, night stands, wall voids, under carpeting, or virtually any available small crack or crevice. However, they will most likely try to live very close to where people sleep. Only highly trained professionals can correctly identify and treat all of these potential harborages. Bed bugs are nocturnal insects and therefore usually hide during the day and are most
active at night when they leave their harborages to seek a blood meal. Bed bug bites are essentially painless and often go unnoticed while the bugs are feeding. Bed bugs mature quickly, lay hundreds of eggs, and can live almost a year. Therefore, infestations can grow rapidly and persist indefinitely until proper corrective actions are taken.

Do not try to treat bedbug problems themselves... this will only cause the population to spread and grow. Call the clean, professional, green team at Craig Thomas Pest Control to solve all your pest needs!

Happy Spring!

Happy Spring to all our friends! We can now look forward to warm and sunny days; however warm weather causes insects and wildlife to move around. If you are confronted with insects or wildlife problems at your home, first call a professional. Do not try to treat yourself; you will only make the problem worse. Spring time is a time where termites and ants make their way into homes. How to tell the difference between the two insects can be difficult. Below describes the difference between the Carpenter ant and the termite.

Key features of Carpenter Ants:

• Very large, usually black, about 1/2" in size.


• Distinct one segment pedicel ('knob') protruding from the link between the thorax and abdomen.


• Abdomen encircled by yellow hairs.


• Thorax is evenly rounded C.


• Carpenter ants nesting in wood only hollow out 'galleries' for reproduction.


• Early signs of structural infestations are swarms of adult reproductive flyers in or around the home.


• Most often they can be observed at dusk or dawn when they are most active.


• Sawdust around baseboards and walls is also evidence of carpenter ant activity.

Key features of Termites:

• Characteristics – Size: Worker/Solider: 1/8-inch in length. Primary/Supplementary Reproductive: About 1 inch in length.


• Color: Soldier: Light colored with brown head. Supplementary Reproductive/ Worker: Light colored. Primary Reproductive: Dark brown/black.


• Behavior – This termite is known to swarm in May and June, but small flights can occur at any time of the year.


• Swarming is the primary way the termite naturally spreads after it has been transported to a new area.


• Three elements are needed for swarming to be effective: 1) Proper food resources (cellulose and wood), 2) moisture, and 3) a physical niche.


• Habitat – Subterranean termites live in colonies in the ground, building vertical tunnels that look like mud tubes above ground level so that they can search for food. Subterranean termites will die if exposed to air for an extended period of time, so the tunnels provide protection from the open air, allowing workers to carry food to the nest. Subterranean termites can form tunnels through cracks in concrete, so slab homes are not exempt from these termites. They need to stay in contact with the soil in order to survive.

To learn more about developing a pest management plan best suited for your needs, call the team at Craig Thomas Pest Control!

Save $$ with TAP Insulation

President Barrack Obama recently signed The American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009. The provisions enable homeowners to claim a credit of up to $1,500 for the installation of TAP Pest Control Insulation. The credit is calculated as 30% of the amount spent, or $1,500, whichever is less.

Do something good for your health and home by investing in TAP Insulation.

Craig Thomas Pest Control is currently offering 10% off TAP installations right now!

This offer ends April 1, 2009!

Why not save money, while protecting your home against pests and reducing heating/cooling costs?

For more information visit: www.callcraig.com.

For more information on TAP Insulation visit: www.tapinsulation.com