The entire goal of pesticides is to repel or kill a target pest in order that it might not cause harm to the humans, plants, or animals needing to be protected. Pesticides are used for all sorts of thing: Agriculture, roof maintenance, pest control, lawn care, structural protection against termites, protection against rodents, and the list goes on. There are massive very important reasons to use pesticides and we should be very thankful that they exist. However, it is important for us to think through the potential harm that is caused by pesticide misuse, including economic damage, and the potential long term dangers of using certain chemicals repeatedly.
We need to recognize first and foremost that the products most companies currently use for pest control will probably not be around 100 years from now. Products that were approved as “safe” by the EPA get pulled from the shelves every year. Entire chemical lines get made illegal to use or sell that had been deemed “safe” by the EPA and the “professionals” only months or years before hand. So if we are using products on a daily basis they must be safe for our techs and for our customers and their families.
This is why Pest Patrol has decided to use only 100% non-toxic spray products for our quarterly and monthly maintenance services. These products include our exterior repellent spray, our interior/exterior knockdown spray for wasps, ants, spider, boxelders, etc., and our rodent control products. While we do carry other products that we are certified for and trained to use on occasion our mission is to keep our customers and team as safe as possible – while helping keep pest pressure low around the home. These products work great, and we stand behind them 100%.
Here is how we explain it to customers: Like we mentioned, every single year there are new products that get pulled from the shelves due to them being deemed dangerous. How many of those products were applied around your home because just prior to that point they were supposedly deemed “safe”? It is clear that all along they were dangerous, but we just didn’t know it yet. So – we must be uniquely careful about using products too quickly before we truly understand what is inside of them. We should be careful about blindly trusting any agency – the EPA, the CDC, the Department of Agriculture, the FDA, etc.
They clearly make mistakes just like everyone, so we need to be careful. With that in mind, we should be putting a strong emphasis on protecting human life, and making sure that the remedy doesn’t do more damage than the problem itself. For instance – if a customer has ants in their kitchen and we go spray poison all over the counter to ensure the ants are gone, have we actually solved her problem or have we created a larger one? Yes the ants are gone, great! But did we make her more safe? Don’t get me wrong, emotional and psychological wellbeing is extremely important – so we should find ways to deal with the ants, but we should do it in ways that puts the customer in the smallest possible risk – and no risk would be ideal. The pest control industry has come a tremendous way in this regard over the last 20-30 years, and it is encouraging to see more companies use minimal-risk products. We should continue pushing the industry in that direction and putting our money where our mouth is. Don’t use the lower quality service simply because it’s cheaper. Use the company that knows how to use the right products, at the right times.
Call or text us at 503-985-6523 with any questions or to schedule an appointment!