Pests We Treat Before & After Photos

Recently, I was dispatched to a residence in South River, NJ. The homeowner was having a problem with yellow jackets. These wasps with their distinctive yellow-black coloration are one of the most territorial, aggressive stinging insects we come across. They seem almost anxious to sting at the slightest provocation.  

Although yellow jackets often nest outdoors in rodent burrows and other cavities, sometimes they decide to build nests inside homes. Decks, eaves, soffits, gutters, and even holes in brick are all potential yellow jacket nesting sites. Here, the wasps found an opening of a roof dormer soffit. The homeowner realized he had a problem because he was hearing buzzing and light scratching/clicking sounds in his upstairs ceiling. These wasps, as many wasp species, will chew on wood because cellulose makes for great nesting material. They are powerful enough to chew through drywall. These were some of the sounds that the homeowner was hearing. By the way, don’t knock on the drywall. It may be so paper thin that you’ll make a hole in it!

Upon arrival, I immediately inspected the exterior and observed yellow jackets entering and exiting the dormer soffit. I also saw a paper hood protruding out of the soffit that was clearly part of their nest. Yellow jackets build paper nests that are completely surrounded by a paper envelope. This paper-like pulp is a mixture of chewed wood fibers and their saliva. Inside, I inspected the upstair ceiling and found that the moisture from the nest had soften the sheetrock.

It was time to treat the nest. Because of the aggressive nature of these wasps, i don’t take any chances. I put on my protective suit with a hat and veil to protect me against any insect stings. When yellow jacket nests are first treated, you are often “greeted” by a swarm of angry, aggressive wasps. A individual yellow jacket can sting multiple times, so f a nest is disturbed you can be facing dozens of painful stings. For obvious reasons, active yellow jacket nests, especially those built in challenging locations, are not DIY homeowner projects. 

I climbed on the roof and used an extension pole sprayer so I could keep as safe a distance as possible from the nest, and injected a dust into the soffit opening. The dust will be shared with all of the members of the nest and it won’t take long for the queen and the rest of the colony to be eliminated.

After noticing a large number of fruit flies in his sink room, this customer in Metuchen, NJ called Cowleys for help. During our inspection, we noticed that the fruit flies were hovering around one of the floor drains. As we got closer we noticed that there was some food debris sticking out. With the owners permission, we unscrewed the covers and discovered that the floor drains were loaded with food & liquid debris and fruit flies! This was were the fruit flies were harboring. 

First, we applied a liquid application in the floor drains and scrubbed them out with our heavy-duty scrubbing brush. This product removes the bad bacteria from the drain, which is the breeding ground for the fruit flies. Next, we applied a bio-foam solution that removes the organic build-up, odors, and scum in the drains. As a precaution, we repeated this process to ever single floor drain in the area. Lastly, we applied a fly bait, which will exterminate the adult fruit flies.

We were sent out to a home in Metuchen, NJ to handle a hornet situation. Once we arrived, we realized that these stinging insects were bald-faced hornets. Bald-faced hornets are social stinging insects that are a close relative to yellow jackets. The surface of their upper midsection almost looks triangular from the side, and they have white markings on their face. They are EXTREMELY aggressive and will not hesitate to sting anything that invades their space. What makes them even scarier is they have smooth stingers, which means they can sting over and over again, can actually sense vibrations in the air, and remember their invader's face!

Using our extendable pole, we treated the bald-faced hornet nest with a knockdown aerosol application. A short while later, we also injected a knockdown dusting application into the nest. Both of these treatments will quickly exterminate the bald-faced hornets. After some time had passed, we removed the nest, disposed of it, and applied a liquid non-repellant residual to the soffit. This will neutralize any bald-faced hornets that return to this area and prevent them, and any other stinging insect, from building a new nest.

This Woodbridge, NJ homeowner had a mouse infestation in her basement. We set up a baiting system, and, fortunately, there was no indication that there was still an active infestation. However, mice and other rodents are messy home intruders, and they left behind a toxic mess of fecal pellets and urine stains. We completed a thorough clean-up of the basement, sanitizing and deodorizing the area. 

After completing the cleanup, we returned to remove unsightly stains left my the mice. Mice not only leave urine stains, but they also leave behind runway tracks (rub marks). Mice have poor eyesight, and they facilitate movement by hugging walls as the travel. The mice memorize these routes and rarely stray, enabling them to run rapidly along a path, even in the dark. Over time, they leave a faint, dark trail of body oil and dirt. 

We also replaced a rotted piece of fascia under the rear slider that was an entry point for the mice. For long-term rodent control, it is critical to exclude them by blocking all of the known entry points.

The homeowner could not have been more pleased. She was happy to have her basement back with no more “reminders” that there once was a rodent infestation down below.

During a regular treatment service of this customers home in Colonia, NJ, we spotted the beginning of a wasp nest on the soffit, right next to the back door. As we closely inspected these stinging insects, we were able to identify them as paper wasps. Paper wasps received their name from the paper-like material out of which they make their nests. They are semi-social stinging insects that usually have brown bodies with yellow or reddish markings. A sting from a paper wasp can be extremely painful and can cause allergic reactions in some people.

For treatment, we grabbed our extendable pole, attached an aerosol product to it, and liberally treated the nest. This product rapidly neutralizes the paper wasps. Moments later, we removed the nest, disposed of it, and then applied a liquid residual application to the soffit. This will prevent the paper wasps, as well as other stinging insects, from returning to this area and build another nest.