Pests We Treat Before & After Photos

I was called to a community in Oakhurst, NJ where a homeowner was concerned about a huge hornets nest on a tree outside of a school bus stop. I arrived after all children were in school to treat the nest. I dusted the entrance/exit of the nest and then poked a hole in nest to eliminate the population trapped inside the nest. After allowing a few moments to pass, giving a chance for the treatment to take effect,  I cut the nest off the tree. It's quite interesting to see the inside of the nests.

Recently, I was sent to treat and remove a paper wasp nest for a homeowner in Oakhurst, NJ.  

Paper wasps have that typical appearance we associate with wasps — a slender waist and long legs. They are called “paper” wasps because of how they build their nests. These wasps gather fibers from plant material and mix it with their saliva to make a brown or grey papery material for nest-building. They will build a small paper nest with a single tier of open cells to lay their eggs and rear their young. The nest has no external covering and looks like an umbrella, (that’s why paper wasps are sometimes called umbrella wasps). These nests are commonly attached to the underside of some structure by a short stalk.  

Paper wasps, like any social insect, live in large colonies with a queen and the supporting workers that keep the colony thriving. Other social wasps that we regularly receive calls for are hornets, and yellow jackets. Although paper wasps are considered less aggressive than these other wasps that’s of little consolidation to anyone stung by one of these guys! Any wasp will aggressively defend its nest if it perceives someone as a threat, so a wasp nest that’s in an area where people are regularly walking to and from is a potential hazard that must be removed. If a nest is located somewhere on the property where it’s out of the way and not likely to be disturbed, I recommend to just leave it alone. Wasps can be beneficial insects by reducing other insect populations on the property.

For this nest, I used a quick knock-down aerosol and then removed the nest. These stinging insect jobs are particularly rewarding to me because I know that I likely prevented some awfully painful stings. 

Recently, I was sent to a home in Rumson, NJ to resolve a troublesome mouse infestation. The homeowner had observed mouse activity in the garage and utility room, and contacted Cowleys before they found their way inside the living areas of the home. Here, the back wall of the utility room directly abutted the garage. Garages are common entry points for mice and I inspected the area to determine how they could be gaining access inside. There was no shortage of entry points. The mice had numerous ways to get inside the garage. I showed the homeowner what needed to be done to stop the mice from gaining access. Both the garage door and side door had openings that needed to be fixed. Often, weather stripping can deteriorate leaving openings and garage doors do not close all the way down. If you can see daylight coming in, assume a mouse can as well. 

I went to work plugging the the hole in the wall into the utility room from the garage with a chew-proof copper mesh. I also installed three RTU (Ready-to-Use) bait stations. These stations have a special key needed to open up the boxes to apply the bait cannot be accessed by non-target animals. These stations also allow me to monitor the level of rodent activity when replenishing the bait. After finishing up with the garage, I plugged up the holes in the utility room and installed two more RTU bait stations there. The homeowner did the right thing by contacting Cowleys at the first sign of rodent trouble. It is far easier to deal with an infestation before they gain access in the kitchen and other living areas of the home.

We were sent out on a service call to a home in Rumson, NJ to treat for hornets. When we arrived, the homeowner mentioned that the nest was right above her backdoor. Sure enough, when we checked, we found an active 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. One very important fact that you must know about bald-faced hornets is that they are EXTREMELY aggressive and will not hesitate to sting anything that invades their space. Their stings carry venom that makes the stings hurt, itch, and swell for about 24 hours!

First, we equipped our personal protective bee suit and treated the nest with a knockdown dusting application and then a knockdown liquid product. Both of these treatments will exterminate the bald-faced hornets almost immediately. Once a majority of the hornets were eliminated, we removed the nest, properly disposed of it, and then treated the area with a residual product to eliminate any returning bald-faced hornets & prevent them from building another nest. 

As we were servicing this customers property in Rumson, NJ we stumbled upon a few paper wasps beginning to build their nest up underneath the second story window. 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.

We grabbed our extendable pole, attached a knockdown dusting application to it, and liberally treated the nest. This product rapidly neutralizes the paper wasps. A short while later we removed the nest, disposed of it, and applied a residual application to the area to prevent the paper wasps from returning and building a new nest.