Making Sure Pests Don’t Hinder Your Reopening

Author
Paul Bates
Managing Director | CleanKill
21st April 2021
Member roleChamber member

With businesses starting to open, it is important for business owners and facilities managers to make sure they take the right steps and have the correct pest control measures in place to ensure they don’t have any nasty surprises.

During lockdowns, some businesses took the decision to suspend their pest control prevention contracts. The logic seemed simple: there’s no one in my office, restaurant, hotel, factory, etc. and so there is no reason to spend money on pest control. The problem with that approach is that it doesn’t consider the real costs of having pests on your premises.

As we begin to reopen, and more and more of us begin to socialise in public settings, there will be an increase in the amount of the food that ends up on the floor. An increasing supply of food will inevitably lead to an increase in the number of pests.

Outdoor dining represents a particularly good opportunity for rodents, who can use the cover of darkness to search under tables to find food. For restaurants and pubs, it is important to always ensure tables are clean and cleared of food waste, and any food that does fall onto the floor is quickly removed. It goes without saying that a guest having a rat run across their foot will not be a good advertisement for any establishment.

This warning isn’t restricted to the hospitality industry, it applies to any business that has people meeting and eating outside. Factories that having people eating outside need to be just as careful with food waste to ensure rodents and bird pests don’t become a real problem. 

Seven Steps to Reopening

The problem is, without a preventive pest control contract in place, pests are given free rein to infest your property. As a pest control business with decades of experience working with businesses of all types, even we have been surprised by the number of panicked business owners who have called us in recent weeks because they have started to get ready to reopen and then found an infestation.

This is a problem because it takes longer to remove a pest problem once it has a foothold. It is far quicker and cheaper to stop the infestation in the first place.

It should also be remembered that pests running around your building will have inevitably caused some damage. Rats and mice will gnaw electrical wiring, parakeets and squirrels might gnaw at roof joists. Wiring damage is a particular concern as the consequences can be disastrous.

Our advice when reopening is to follow these basic steps:

  1. Check outside your building for new gaps and structural changes that may have occurred during lockdown and which will now allow pests to access your property
  2. Get a professional electrician to check your wiring is safe
  3. Check for fresh evidence of rodent droppings
  4. Check loft spaces for nesting birds and squirrels
  5. Check storage cupboards for droppings and cockroaches
  6. Check carpets, curtains and beds for moths and other signs of insect activity
  7. Cut back vegetation that is near the property to reduce harbourage places for pests

  

About Cleankill

Cleankill Pest Control is an award-winning pest control business with offices across the south of England and a team covering Bristol. We specialise in helping businesses protect themselves from public health pests such as mice, rats, cockroaches and pest birds. We pride ourselves on offering fast and efficient service delivery and are recognised as a market leader for ‘green’ and innovative pest control methods. We are also licensed waste removers

From our Bristol office, formerly Good Riddance Pest Control, we cover most of Gloucester, Bristol, Bath and Somerset.

Go to www.cleankill.co.uk for more information and email info@cleankill.co.uk for a free pest control survey or cost comparison.

 

Do you want to join the conversation?

Sign up here