When you have heard noises and scratching in the attic, walls, or crawlspace, you need to look for Wildlife Removal immediately to prevent a potentially huge problem. When you decide on a particular Animal Removal company and you are expecting the Technician to arrive any moment make sure you are proactive. Before allowing the Pest Control provider to enter your home, ask to see his or her identification, license, and certification, and check to ensure it is current. Virginia, D.C., and Maryland requires that technicians be certified and that they participate in annual training to keep the license current. At Summit Environmental Solutions, all our Technicians are Licensed, Bonded, and Insured.

Do your homework. Is the company licensed, bonded, and insured? This is very important to both protect your property and protect against liability. Go online and visit the company’s website. Does it appear professional? Is it knowledgeable? Does its value correspond with your own? At Summit, we work hard to ensure our licensing is up-to-date and our website is maintained to provide all the information you need to know.

The technician should be knowledgeable enough to answer your pest control questions. There may be a question or two that he does not know off-hand, and, if so, he should be willing to say he will find out and let you know. It is better to hear an honest “I don’t know, but I’ll find out,” than to be given a wrong or made-up answer. Our technicians go through constant training to maintain knowledge of what is new and trending in the industry.

When the technician comes to your door, his or her uniform and overall appearance should be clean and professional. The truck, equipment, and chemicals should also provide you with a secure feeling of professionalism. To provide further comfort, all of our trucks are clearly marked and branded with Summit Environmental Solutions.

Before calling a Pest or Animal Removal company, ask friends and neighbors for referrals. Check with your state pest control association for a state-by-state list of providers. It is always wise to check any company with the Better Business Bureau (www.bbb.org). If you did not receive any personal recommendations, you may want to ask the provider for references — and follow up with calls to the customers provided. Currently, Summit has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and we are proud of this.

As the old adage goes, “you get what you pay for.” The lowest price is not always the best deal. If a company says it will solve your problem in one service for $X, and your problem still exists after you’ve paid for that service, you haven’t saved any money, have you. Instead, you will most likely need to start over with another service provider and end up paying a great deal more than if you had chosen quality over price the first time. We use the top-of-the-line products meant to remediate Wildlife for which we guarantee our Wildlife Removal. The guarantee covers the entry points of the Wildlife so to be proactive to prevent further invasions, we recommend doing the whole exterior as well as vents and chimneys.

If you are hiring a company for ongoing service, discuss your options with the technician. Will this be a one time fix and you are done for good? What about trapping? If we are speaking of rodents and bugs, will quarterly service take care of the problem? Or do you need monthly service? Perhaps you will start with monthly, or more frequent, service to eliminate the problem, then drop to a less frequent maintenance schedule once it is solved. Be sure to read the contract carefully, understand all fine print, and ask questions before you sign on the line. At Summit we are always here to help if you have any questions.

Before attempting any service, the technician should talk with you to discuss exactly what the problem is, find out where and what you’ve seen or heard, and ask probing questions to ensure she fully understands the pest problem. Following that discussion, the Animal Removal or Pest Control Technician should inspect your home or building with a professional eye, identify the pest or pests, and set a treatment plan.

In many cases, the Animal Removal or Pest Control Technician will use chemicals for elimination, but he should be willing to discuss the chemicals he expects to use, any possible adverse effects and any non-chemical options. All chemical containers should be labeled and have a clean, professional appearance. Upon request, the technician should be able to provide a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) and specimen label for each chemical used.

After completing service, the technician should provide a report detailing the service performed, any necessary follow-up action, and any customer advice. The report should also detail the service costs.

At some point during service, the Animal Removal or Pest Control Technician should make recommendations for future prevention. Depending on the service being performed, it is possible that this could come before, during, or after service. For example, if the inspection reveals a potential pest harborage area, the Animal Removal or Pest Control Technician should inform you and recommend immediate clean-up. If a structural issue is found, the technician may wait until the end and recommend maintenance, such as screen replacement or repairing of holes.

Many Pest Control companies offer guarantees, even if it is as simple as “Guaranteed satisfaction.” Be sure to read the fine print of this as well, know what your responsibilities are and how to invoke the guarantee if needed.

If you would like one of our Animal Removal or Pest Control Technicians to come out and provide a free inspection, give us a call or visit our website: summitenvironmentalsolutions.com. Or simply call 703-382-2532 and one of our friendly Customer Service Representatives will help you.