Monthly Archives: June 2015

News, Pest Control, Pest Eradication

Minimizing Employee Exposure to Pesticides: Integrated Pest Management

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Pests Are The Only Things That Should Be Affected By Poison
Pests Are The Only Things That Should Be Affected By Poison

When you see pests in your building, you might be tempted to handle the problem on your own with pesticides. However, doing so could end up creating more trouble. Your employees can become ill when you spray pesticides in your building, especially without adequate ventilation.

Instead of risking your employees’ health, look into having Integrated Pest Management (IPM) done in your building. This approach to pest control involves taking steps to prevent pests from entering your building, such as making sure no food is left lying around. Employees should also let you know immediately if they notice any pests in the building.

IPM also involves having pest management professionals use nontoxic forms of pest control to get rid of any bugs or rodents that have found their way inside. For example, Cryonite carbon dioxide snow treatment, which freezes certain types of pests, can be used as a nontoxic method of pest control in many sensitive areas.

When you rely on IPM to keep your building free of pests, you’re ensuring that your employees stay safe and healthy while they’re at work. With IPM, you also don’t have to worry about needing to have your building shut down for awhile in order to have toxic pesticides sprayed. Your employees won’t have to miss out on work when you implement IPM in the workplace.

Keep your employees safe from pests and pesticides. Contact Stern Environmental for nontoxic NYC commercial pest control.

Bed Bug Information, Bed Bug News, Commercial Services, News

Connecticut Gets Proactive on Telling Thrift Stores About Bed Bugs

Bed Bugs
Thrift Stores And Bed Bugs

Many people that shop at thrift stores should be extra careful when they purchase used bedding or furniture. These items may contain bedbugs, in the form of eggs or larvae that may not initially be noticed, and once in your home, they can proliferate and become a serious problem.

Fortunately, there are proactive laws in Connecticut, mandated by the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, titled under Section 21A-232, that do not allow the sale of bedding or filling materials unless “… it has been sterilized or sanitized and has a tag bearing the secondhand dealer’s license number and the permit number of the person performing the sterilization or sanitization.” This assures every Connecticut consumer, who buys used bedding or furniture and filling material, that their items will be bedbug free.

Of course as a consumer, you must always check the tag to ensure that this procedure has been accomplished, and if there is no verification that the used material has been sanitized, consider it in your best interest to pass the item by.

Connecticut must be applauded for taking this step and ensuring the general public that used bedding and filling related items will be bedbug free before they are taken home.

For more information on bedbugs, any other insect or animal pest and the way to control them, please contact Stern Environmental Group. We have the answers to all of your bedbug related questions.

Insect Control, News, Pest Control, Residential Services

Brace Youself It’s Stink Bug Season

Prepare For Stinkbugs In Your Home
Prepare For Stinkbugs In Your Home

Stink bugs have infiltrated 41 states. These thick body, triangular shaped bugs have infested homes and gardens. Stink bugs  are especially bothersome in the mid-Atlantic states. The bugs are a major agricultural nuisance in New Jersey and New York, ruining fruit and vegetable crops and they also cause problems for home and business owners.

The Halyomorpha halys or brown marmorated stink bugs and green stink bugs have hitched rides on goods transported to the U.S. from Asia. These nasty invaders give off an odor from glands in the thorax. They have sharp, piercing mouthparts that suck liquid from fruits and vegetables that eventually dry up and die.

The stink bugs invade homes and offices by crawling in through doors and windows. They nest and they can create four generations of bugs within a year.

Removal and prevention

There are steps that can be taken to prevent an infestation:

  • Keep doors and windows sealed
  • Crawl spaces and cracks should also be sealed
  • Grow plants that attract larger predators.

The best way to remove an invasion of these unwanted bugs is to call in an exterminator. Stern Environmental Group can rid your office or property of these pests using Cryonite, a CO2 substance that freezes the bugs. This treatment has also worked on bedbugs, cockroaches and other beetles.

Call us for a consultation if you find stink bugs, bed bugs or other invasive insects in your home or garden. We have various non-toxic means of eradicating these pests.

Cockroaches, Disease Carrying Pests, Insect Control, News

How to Keep German Cockroaches Out of Your Business

A German Cockroach
A German Cockroach

German cockroaches are more than just a household pest. These pernicious pests infest and scavenge any building with water and food inside — including restaurants, hotels, and even your typical office break room.

These are the half-inch long, reddish-brown cockroaches common in homes and business around New York and New Jersey. Where there is one, there are more. If you have seen a German cockroach during the day, the infestation may be extremely serious.

Here’s how businesses can prevent and control German Cockroach problems:

  • Seal food containers, clean up crumbs: these roaches will come crawling for any little bit of food. Use airtight containers and clean counters and floors at the end of the day.
  • Wipe up water: Don’t leave any drops of moisture around — you should even wipe down sinks with a paper towel.
  • Clean up and seal away other non-food items: German cockroaches will eat soap bars, toothpaste, and many other unexpected substances.
  • Plug entry points: Use steel wool, caulk, plumbing tape, and other appropriate materials around even the tiniest entry points.
  • Closing duties: Mop and dry the floors and surfaces, take out the trash, and vacuum carpet.

When German cockroaches keep coming back (or if they’re scavenging in daylight) you need commercial pest control immediately. Store-bought baits and traps may only limit the problem.

Stern Environmental provides complete elimination and ongoing service to protect your business from an unsightly and unhygienic roach problem.