There are a number of pest control chemicals that can harm children and pets if they are ingested, and there are a number of companies that spray these chemicals around the homes of their customers. Luckily, Critter and Pest Defense owner Carl Shaw says that his company is not one of these businesses. Located in Orlando, Shaw is an exterminator who utilizes the most eco-friendly solutions possible when working inside people’s homes as a way to protect children, pets, and anyone else living in the residence.
According to Shaw, far too many exterminators use harsh chemicals when getting rid of roaches. To control roaches in a home or commercial property, some exterminators will use harmful ingredients. “These exterminators will tell people they have to clear out all their pots and pans, and then wait for them to dry before they can use them again,” Shaw says. “But that just seems crazy to me. If you are going to tell people they can’t have their pots and pans in the home while you are spraying it, then why would it be alright for them to put their pots and pans right back on the same surfaces once the extermination is over?”
Shaw worries that homeowners who don’t understand all the potential consequences of using harsh extermination chemicals could end up putting themselves or their families at risk, especially if they don’t clean their homes well enough after an exterminator has sprayed all the surfaces with his harsh chemicals and solutions.
Instead, Orlando homeowners in need of an exterminator should find someone who knows the proper way to treat roaches—without using chemicals that could harm children or pets. “The proper way to deal with a roach infestation is through a bait and crack and crevice treatment system,” he says. “That is how we treat it at Critter and Pest Defense.” Using a bait and crack and crevice treatment system is the only way to safely get rid of pests inside a home, Shaw explains, because these baits go in places where pets and people would never go.
The reason more exterminators don’t do these types of treatments is simply because they tend to take more time, and many exterminators aren’t willing to make the effort to use bait-based treatment systems when they can use harsh chemicals instead.
Unfortunately, Shaw explains that a lot of homeowners don’t know whether their exterminators are using the harmful chemicals or not. Without asking the right kinds of questions, a typical homeowner will have no way to tell. This is especially true for people who are simply going for the lowest price when they hire an exterminator in Orlando, since the price of the services alone does not tell the full story of how the job will be done.
According to Shaw, the first step when determining if the pest control company you are hiring is using harmful chemicals is to take a close look at its website. “One of the first things that we have on our site at Critter and Pest Defense is to explain that we are eco-friendly, and pet and child safe,” he says. “Because when we come in and do our service, we don’t just spray all the way around inside the house.”
Homeowners who are interested in this type of service, should look for keywords like “eco-friendly” or “child-safe” on exterminator websites. In addition, Shaw says most companies that are eco-friendly, like his own, are willing to take the time to dust the switch plates in a homeowner’s residence before they leave, as well. Although this takes more time during the job, dusting behind the switch plates ensures that all the pests are really out and that as little of the chemical residue is still sitting on open surfaces as possible.
Although Shaw cautions that even eco-friendly pest control specialists have to bring a spray can with chemicals into a home from time to time depending on the job, he says that good exterminators know enough to not spray the chemicals everywhere. “That is what you would get with a lot of people, but not with us,” he says. “Good companies spray only where it is necessary, because that is always going to be the safer option when it comes to putting as few chemicals as possible into homes with children or pets.”
