If you are the proud owner of a piece of property, whatever the type, whether it is your home or your business premises, a time may come when your impeccable property is tarnished and sullied by the pests. The inescapable truth is that pests are a problem that has the potential to cause catastrophic damage to your property. Infernos have been known to raise grand structures to the ground, with the arsonists a mere gang of rats, who only stand guilty of the crime of nibbling away on the wiring. Not to forget the incredibly awful, sometimes lethal diseases people can contract in living spaces which are infested with these filthy unwanted guests who have set up camp in your property. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
Pests are nothing less than a ticking time bomb, sometimes one which is carefully hidden underneath the exterior, creeping up on an unsuspecting host, like a bleeding internal wound in a seemingly whole and healthy body. Or, on the other side of the spectrum, they can be one which is staring you squarely in the face, not flinching. Maybe as an ever-present eyesore of hideous droppings, or a pungent odour that when the time comes will need a lot more than coercion to be forcefully removed from the premises. This is just a sample of the many numerous ways that pests can make you pay dearly if allowed to fester or is not spotted in time.
After all that, now begs the question, how frequently should you book a pest inspection? At this juncture, it is very crucial to note that before the initial purchase of the property, if it had a previous owner, that it is prudent to arrange to have an inspection carried out prior to even entering into a contract. This may not always be easy and depends a lot on the conveyancing process and how well it is carried out. However, it saves carrying over unnecessary leftover pest issues into your tenure of ownership and offers a good initial point of reference for future inspections.
Back to the frequency of booking an inspection. There is no stipulated rule on how long to wait between inspections, however, it is advisable to have commercial pest control services conduct one at least every twelve months. First off, in a pest control inspection, what will tend to happen is that the residential pest control professionals will go over your house with a fine-tooth comb and look for signs of damage, using nothing but the best equipment in the market. They then look for problem areas, check for possible entry points of pests into the home and identify the suspected pests that are causing the damage if any. Lastly, you will discuss a range of extermination options. The recommended twelve-month time frame, however, is also subject to the following factors;
Age and Construction of your Property
Pest inspections for older buildings will require comparatively more frequent inspections due to their having been around for longer than newer ones, leaving an opportunity for the fast deterioration of its state with compounding effects. If your type of construction may be particularly susceptible to pests, like termites in the case of timber structures, you may one require more frequently as well. All this keeping in mind that newer buildings and those with little or no particularly vulnerable materials like timber are also still very susceptible.
The environment and location of your Property
This also has a very major bearing on the frequency of pest inspections. Tropical climates, heavily wooded areas, swampy, humid areas and other generally pest-prone regions definitely require more frequent inspections compared to areas of less-pronounced activity of the pests. These areas with favourable living conditions for the uninvited guests, naturally provide a perfect breeding ground for pests. Thus this requires one to pay more attention to the need for regular inspections and signs of possible infestation.
Apart from those factors, you also need to look at possible trends of pests in your area. For example, if termite infestation is a common feature in your vicinity, it follows that you should have a termite inspection at least more often than an ideal situation. The worst part about all this is that you as the owner of the property will literally have to pay the price for the crimes of these pests, which can sometimes even go unnoticed, making it even more untenable for you. The best thing to do is schedule inspections on your property according to how often they will be required, on a strictly per-case basis as the spatial context of the building really matters. It is good to be paranoid sometimes because prevention is definitely better than cure.