Cleaning Up After a Flood

As the coastal surge retreats and storm Sandy sweeps away from New York City, Pennsylvania and upstate New York, the destruction is far from over. Flood clearance will be encumbered by wind warnings and a wintry cold front which is likely to produce heavy rain, snowfall and local flooding. Some areas may also be without power until next week.

If you are in a high risk flood area take steps now to prepare your home against flooding by raising home appliances such as washing machines and fridges at least 12 inches off the floor – cinder blocks work well. Check you are fully insured for flood damage – on many insurance policies this is optional so make sure you have opted in. Just a few inches of water can create major damage to your home or premises as this interactive tool from the National Flood Insurance Programme demonstrates.

 If you are not insured federal disaster assistance can be an expensive route to take as a loan can comprise tens of thousands of dollars that must be paid back with interest. In contrast flood insurance is a few extra dollars a month.

If you do have to make a claim be prepared by making a full inventory of all your possessions, take photographs and put receipts in a safe place out of the reach of water. Don’t forget to check your car insurance too – a car can easily be carried away by two feet of water.

After a flood there is a chance that rodents have been flushed from their nests and will be looking for shelter which offers food and warmth. Be extra vigilant and shore-up any damage which allows access for mice and rats. Mice can squeeze through a hole the size of a pencil so fill any gaps with wire wool and seal with DIY Spray foam.

Flood Water Is Contaminated

Remember that flood water is contaminated and the same grade as sewage so use a mask, sturdy gloves and safety glasses to clean your property and belongings. Be sure to clean your hands thoroughly after coming into contact with flood water or may you risk contracting a flood water disease.

The World Health Organization holds that “the only epidemic-prone infection which can be transmitted directly from contaminated water is leptospirosis, a zoonotic bacterial disease. Transmission occurs through contact of the skin and mucous membranes with water, damp soil or vegetation (such as sugarcane) or mud contaminated with rodent urine. The occurrence of flooding after heavy rainfall facilitates the spread of the organism due to the proliferation of rodents which shed large amounts of leptospires in their urine.” An outbreak of leptospirosis occurred in Santa Fe in 1998. In October 2010 Andy Holmes, the British Olympic Gold Medalist rower, died from leptospirosis, also known as Weil’s Disease.

Anything which has come into contact with flood water should be considered contaminated. Washing clothes and soft furnishings on a high temperature with an antimicrobial solution will sanitize them. Scrub all hard furniture which has come into contact with flood water and spray with an antimicrobial. Anything which cannot be saved or cleaned thoroughly such as electrics and books should be thrown away.

 As always Servall Termite & Pest Control is here for all of your pest control and home repair needs. Contact us today at one of our four convenient locations or visit http://www.servallpestcontrol.com!

Source: deBugged

Protect your ash trees from pests

In the seemingly never-ending invasion of exotic invasive pests, 2012 brings us the Emerald Ash Borer.

And while this critter may not be the economic and aesthetic destroyer that it was in the Midwest 10 years ago, it may still be significant for some tree owners in Virginia.

After the initial Virginia detection of EAB in Fairfax in 2003, it was hoped that eradication efforts were successful. However, further areas have been detected since 2008, and in 2012 this exotic flat-headed borer has sprung up in nearly every corner of the state.

This summer EAB has been confirmed in the counties of Buchanan, Caroline, Giles, Hanover, Lee, Prince Edward, Stafford and Warren, adding to the already quarantined areas of Arlington, Charlotte, Clarke, Fairfax, Fauquier, Frederick, Halifax, Loudoun, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Pittsylvania and Prince William counties and the cities of Alexandria, Danville, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas, Manassas Park and Winchester.

As a result, the entire state has been defined as the quarantine area, which now allows green (non-heat treated) ash lumber and ash wood products, as well as hardwood firewood to move freely within the state. For additional information about the Emerald Ash Borer Quarantine call the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services at 804-786-3515.

So what does this mean for southeast Virginia. Well, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis data reveal that the volume of ash in our non-urban forested landscape is rather small. The entire state is estimated to have 187 million ash trees, with most of them being predominantly in the western portion of the state and the Piedmont.

However, ash is a very valuable timber species used for furniture, flooring and most notably baseball bats. Forest landowners with significant ash volumes may want to step up their vigilance in monitoring their trees with the reality of a forced harvest under less than prime conditions.

More significant for the general population and general public around the southeast Virginia area are the number of ash trees in yards and urban areas that will be affected. Some may choose to fight for their favorite tree, and there is a solution for possibly saving an individual tree.

The EAB larvae live and eat the living, conductive tissue just under bark ultimately severing the lifeline between the sugar producing leaves and the vital roots. This provides both a challenge and an opportunity.

The challenge being that external sprays and natural predators have little to no effect. The good news is that systemic — meaning contained inside the plant — insecticides work well, and these are easier to apply, have a longer active life and are very precisely targeted to only bad bugs feeding on the plant.

Imidacloprid is the main insecticide labeled for EAB control. This can be poured around the tree and is then taken up by the roots where it is then effective within the cambium tissue where the borer larvae feed for the greater portion of the year.

This is effective, however, it must be done every spring. So continuing maintenance costs are a factor.

EAB is the “poster-bug” for the “Do Not Move Firewood” ad campaign. This common sense approach is quite applicable to avoid the spread of insect eggs that reside under the bark of trees. However, most people don’t think about that because they are out of sight, out of mind.

Instead most people see many dead solid hardwood trees, which equals a fantastic source of fuel wood. But when these bug eggs are on a truck and hauled 100 miles, the range of this pest is rapidly expanded.

Then when that firewood consumer loads a few pieces in their sport utility vehicle to use for a scouting campout that’s 100 miles away, the spread continues.

This practice too can be taken too far as most species of wood are moved harmlessly, but sometimes it’s best to get in the habit as firewood species can be hard to identify by the general public.

Unfortunately, like gypsy moth, stink bugs, bed bugs, etc., it seems the EAB is here to stay, and it will impact the face of our forests in a significant way.

 As always Servall Termite & Pest Control is here for all of your pest control and home repair needs. Contact us today at one of our four convenient locations or visit http://www.servallpestcontrol.com!

Source: Neil Clark, Southhampton County Extension Agent

tidewaternews.com

What once was most unusual can turn into threatening pest

Sometimes, introducing exotic plants and animals into a habitat is the equivalent of throwing a wrench into the cogs of a machine: In some cases, the machine continues to operate, but at a much-reduced efficiency. In other cases, the machine shuts down completely.

 Exotic — also called “invasive” — species are nothing new. A variety of animals and plants has been introduced to North America in the 500-plus years that the continent has been explored, settled and developed.

 Some were introduced on purpose, others by accident. These introduced species are collectively known as “exotic” species because they’re not indigenous to North America. The opposite of exotic is “native.” Native species are the plants and animals that were the original inhabitants of our landscape.

 Some exotic plants such as kudzu and fescue are well-known to people, but there are many others. Some have become so common that we don’t realize they’re not from around here.

 Take, for instance, the two most common types of crabgrass found in Midwestern yards (and the types you’re probably trying to get rid of in yours) — hairy crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis) and smooth crabgrass (Digitaria ischaemum). Neither is native to North America: They were introduced here, probably in the 19th century.

 On the animal side, zebra mussels and Asian carp are highly publicized exotics that have made the news as threats to aquatic habitats in parts of the United States.

 Gypsy moths and emerald ash borers are well-known non-native tree pests that pose both habitat and financial threats to forests in the eastern and central parts of the country.


 One of our less-publicized exotic animals is the house mouse (Mus musculus).
This common pest, which is the mouse species we commonly encounter in homes and other domestic dwellings, wasn’t here when Europeans arrived. It had numerous introductions to North America via the ships of explorers and colonists.


 Though the exotic species that have come here are varied, the reasons they’ve become abundant are similar: Exotic species were introduced into areas that had none of the natural controls (browsing animals, predators, harsher weather, etc.) that kept them in line in their native lands, and, as a result, these newcomers flourished.

 This abundance has often come at the expense of native plants that formed the foundation of our habitats.

 When exotic species invade an area and crowd out the plants and animals that occurred naturally in that location, habitats often change for the worse: The insects that were attracted to native flowers go elsewhere, the native birds can’t find nesting areas because they’re occupied by exotic birds and other animals that needed these species for some part of their life cycles are also negatively affected.
Wise conservation practices using native species pay by enriching our economy and quality of life. Conversely, exotic invasions can have negative financial repercussions.

 Gypsy moths and emerald ash borers are already having an effect on the timber industry. When exotic plants such as musk thistle, spotted knapweed or Johnson grass take over pastures and fields, they can turn what had been money-making acres into financially unproductive tracts of land.

 As always Servall Termite & Pest Control is here for all of your pest control and home repair needs. Contact us today at one of our four convenient locations or visit http://www.servallpestcontrol.com!

West Nile outbreak closer to being second worst in US

The outbreak of West Nile disease in the United States moved a step closer on Wednesday to becoming the second worst on record with federal health authorities reporting 280 cases of the virus-caused illness over the past week.

There have now been 4,249 cases of West Nile recorded this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 20 cases fewer than in 2006, the second-largest outbreak on record.
The number of deaths rose by five to 168 since last week, the CDC said.

The worst year on record for West Nile disease was 2003, when 9,862 cases were reported, the CDC said.

The pace of new cases of the disease - which is transmitted from infected birds to humans by mosquitoes -- has slowed since late summer, authorities said.

More than 70 percent of the cases have been reported in eight states: Texas, Mississippi, Michigan, South Dakota, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Illinois and California. Texas has been the hardest hit, recording close to 40 percent of the cases in the country, according to the CDC.

The Dallas-Fort Worth area has been the epicenter of this year's outbreak, with 33 deaths, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.

The Dallas Morning News reported Wednesday that health officials in Tarrant County, home to Fort Worth, may have vastly underreported cases of the serious neuroinvasive form of West Nile.
The report said the number of cases detected through Tarrant County blood bank screenings - information that helps public officials determine the size of an outbreak - differs significantly from what officials there have reported.

But state health officials said it was unlikely cases were overlooked.
The severe neuroinvasive form of the disease almost always requires hospitalization and can lead to meningitis, encephalitis and death, according to the CDC.

"Neuroinvasive disease is not subtle," said Carrie Williams, a spokeswoman for the Texas health department. "We're confident physicians knew about the outbreak and were on the lookout for disease."

Nationwide, half of cases reported to the CDC have been of the neuroinvasive form. The other half are West Nile Fever, a milder form which causes flu-like symptoms and is not deadly.

Outbreaks tend to be unpredictable and are typically triggered by a combination of hot weather and intermittent rainfall as well as ecological factors such as the size of the bird and mosquito populations.
  
As always Servall Termite & Pest Control is here for all of your pest control and home repair needs. Contact us today at one of our four convenient locations or visit http://www.servallpestcontrol.com!

Stink Bug Prevention: 10 Tips to Keep This Smelly Pest at Bay

We know that fall has arrived when the leaves begin to change, the air becomes crisp and the smell of pumpkin pie fills the house. But, another not-so-favorable sign that the cooler months are upon us is the arrival of stink bugs.

Notorious for their "smelly" reputation, stink bugs frequently enter homes during the cooler months in search of a warm place to overwinter. While stink bugs do not pose a health or property risk to homeowners, this pest can quickly become an odoriferous nuisance around the home.

Like other pests, including ants and termites, stink bugs often enter structures in larger numbers, making them a difficult pest to control once inside. As a result, homeowners are often looking for simple ways to ward off these invaders before an infestation develops.

As the temperatures continue to drop and people begin preparing for the winter months, consider pest proofing the home, both inside and out, to prevent stink bugs and other pests from becoming unwelcome houseguests this fall. Here are 10 simple steps that homeowners can take right now to keep this smelly pest at bay:

1. Seal off entry points: Spend some time inspecting the outside of your home for easy access points. Pay close attention to areas including around siding and utility pipes, behind chimneys, and underneath the wood fascia or other openings. Seal any cracks and holes that are found using a good quality silicone or silicone-latex caulk.

2. Replace and repair: Stink bugs can enter the home through the smallest openings, so it’s important to repair or replace damaged screens on windows or doors. Don’t forget to check for torn weather-stripping and loose mortar. You can also install door sweeps if necessary.

3. Turn off the lights: Stink bugs are attracted to lights, so it’s recommended to keep outdoor lighting to a minimum. During the evenings, turn off porch lights and pull down window blinds to prevent light from spilling outside.

4. Reduce moisture sites: Eliminating all moisture build up around your home can go a long way to help prevent many pest infestations. Check for leaking pipes and clogged drains.

5. Eliminate food sources: Store food in airtight containers and dispose of garbage regularly in sealed receptacles. Also, make sure you wipe down counters and sweep floors to eliminate crumbs and residue from spills.

6. Ventilate: Properly ventilate basements, attics, garages and crawl spaces to eliminate harborage points. Consider using a dehumidifier in these areas. Also, make sure to install screens over your chimney and attic vents.

7. Check your belongings: Inspect items such as boxes containing holiday decorations and grocery bags before bringing them indoors. Stink bugs can travel on these items and make themselves cozy once inside the home.

8. Properly landscape: Keep branches and shrubbery well trimmed. In addition, make sure to store firewood at least 20 feet away from the house and five inches off the ground.

9. Think before squishing: When many people find a stink bug, their first instinct is to squish them. However, when disturbed or crushed, stink bugs have a tendency to release a bad-smelling, bad-tasting odor from pores on the sides of their bodies. This is how the pest earned its name.

10. Use a vacuum: If stink bugs have already entered a home, use a vacuum cleaner for their removal. Dispose of the vacuum bag immediately to prevent odor from permeating the area, as dead stink bugs leave a residue inside the bag that can stink up your home.

Remember that homes can be pre-treated for stink bugs before they become a problem. But, if you suspect an infestation has already developed, contact a licensed pest professional to evaluate and assess the severity problem. For more information on stink bugs and other invasive species, or to find a pest professional in your area, visit www.PestWorld.org.

As always Servall Termite & Pest Control is here for all of your pest control and home repair needs. Contact us today at one of our four convenient locations or visit http://www.servallpestcontrol.com!