PREVENTING
PREMISES PEST DAMAGE
David Cross, Head of Technical Training Academy at Rentokil
Pest Control, explains why it’s always best to take preventative measures against pest damage.
Pest infestations can be unpleasant experiences for all involved. Many people have genuine fears of pests, as they carry disease and cause irritation to humans. But aside from the health risk to humans and reputational risk to a business, pests can also cause significant damage to a property.
Research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) for Rentokil found that in 2015 the global impact of pest damage totalled £5.8 billion in operating costs. This research also found that 92% of British companies had suffered pest problems over the past five years. With that in mind, it’s critical that organisations have a proactive pest control strategy.
“In 2015 the global impact
of pest damage totalled
£5.8billion
in operating costs.”
THE LIKELY CULPRITS While many pests can cause some form of physical damage that requires a significant clean-up, there are two kinds that are notorious for causing damage to a property – rodents and birds.
46 | DAMAGE MANAGEMENT
Rodents are hard-wired to gnaw on just about anything. Their teeth continuously grow, so gnawing helps wear their teeth to a manageable size and shape. It’s also what helps rodents access your premises in the first place: they chew the smallest hole into an entry point. Once inside they continue to cause damage, gnawing on anything in their way – including electrical wiring and cables – not only damaging equipment, but creating a fire hazard.
While most birds in the UK are rightly celebrated, pigeons and gulls are bird species that have become a major problem throughout the country, creating headaches for facility and building managers. They can block guttering and dislodge roof tiles during their nesting process, and have a habit of dropping items collected during scavenging which can also cause damage to roof tiles and even break windows. Finally, the guano (droppings) they leave behind is not only unsightly but, due to its high acidic content, can erode materials such as metal and therefore be harmful to the structural integrity of a building. Bird fouling is also a major health hazard, harbouring diseases such as Salmonella and Ornithosis.
PREVENTION IS
BETTER THAN CURE A proactive pest control strategy is at the core of preventing property damage. This includes regular treatments and ongoing strategies to ensure pests are not making their way into the premises.
Rodents will tend to be more of a problem in the winter months, as cold weather causes pests to come
“Once inside
they continue to cause damage, gnawing on
anything in their way – including electrical wiring and cables”
indoors looking for food and shelter. A proactive strategy could include external baiting to detect and manage rodents before they make their way indoors. Rentokil’s AutoGate is a new, innovative bait box containing a smart, battery powered gate mechanism which uses infrared sensors to monitor for the presence of rats externally. When activated by a rat, the gate opens for a defined period of time, providing access to rodenticide held within the bait box, resulting in the quick, effective and responsible control of rats.
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