Pest Control Crawley

Welcome to Pestforce Pest Control Crawley.

My name is Michael Pilla and I’m your local Pestforce technician in Crawley and the surrounding RH Postcodes. 

My service is high quality and reasonably-priced. Highly trained and priding myself on the use of only the highest-quality equipment and treatments in the pest control industry, call me for a pest control service upon which you can rely.

Please see the list below for the most common pests we deal with;

• Rodents: rats & mice
• Insects: ants, wasps, bees, silverfish, cockroaches, beetles, flies, moths, spiders, earwigs, maggots & more
• Woodworm
• Birds, pigeons, seagulls & more
• Squirrels, rabbits, foxes & moles
• Fleas & bedbugs
• Foxes
• More...

Qualified and Accredited: 

• Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) Level 2 qualified
• Member of Briticsh Pest COntrol Association (BPCA)
• Member of British Traditional Mole Catchers (BTMR)
• Supporter of Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use (CRRU)
• Full FAC Firearms Licence and Shotgun Licence.

Pest Identification

A pest is often defined as ‘a plant or animal that is detrimental to humans or our concerns, such as crops and livestock’. Pests can also cause nuisance and carry disease.

All animals, birds, rodents and insects can become a pest when they become invasive, detrimental, troublesome and destructive or a nuisance. Many people use the term pest alongside the term vermin.

In some cases, some of these animals can be beneficial – for example, as part of the food chain – but in other situations and settings, they can be a nuisance, therefore a pest.

For example, on Christmas day an elderly lady called me because she was very concerned regarding a spider she had found on a bunch of bananas. She was concerned because she had heard of the deadly insects that have been found on imported fruit in the past. She was worried that this could be one of those as it was not a type of spider she had seen before.

PLEASE WATCH - See How Easily a Rat Can Wriggle Up Your Toilet | National Geographic: https://youtu.be/0t2VPBF6Kp4

Rodent Control in Crawley

This is the time of year they love moving into people's homes. Nice and warm and lots of food.

The main type of rat you will encounter is the common brown rat. (Rattus Norvegicus). These rats came to England in ships around the 18th century. They carry several diseases, such as salmonella, Weil's disease and toxoplasmosis. Rats can also cause serious damage to properties, such as gnawing into wires, pipes, timbers and anything they find in their way. Even rats outside properties are a serious issue. they will infest sheds, garages and eventually find their way inside.

Obvious signs of rats are:

• droppings
• 7-10mm long and rod-shaped
• Gnawing marks on items
• Holes in walls or floors
• Possible smear marks by oily fur
• Little burrows outside in the ground or under sheds
• edges of concrete etc.

Mice can cause extensive damage to property as a result of their gnawing. Mice that are outside are not a problem unless they come inside or cause damage. They carry fleas and diseases such as Salmonella, Typhoid, Leptospirosis and Weil’s Disease. An adult mouse can give birth to a litter of up to 14 young every 21 DAYS. They like to make nests with soft warm materials they find. Mice do not need to drink if their food contains more than 15% moisture. A mouse can get through a hole the size of a 5p coin.

Signs of mice include: droppings the size of a grain of rice, holes, gnawed items and smear marks.

Bed Bug Treatment in Crawley

Bed bugs are parasitic insects of the cimicid family that feed exclusively on blood. Cimex lectularius, the common bed bug, is the best known as it prefers to feed on human blood; other Cimex species.   

Bedbugs naturally hitchhike to get around, what this means is they are very easily spread from place to place, Attaching themselves to your luggage or clothing they often find their way to people’s sleeping quarters.

Bed bug problems are initially very difficult to diagnose, often people are being bitten and simply cannot understand why. Because bed bugs generally feast on the blood of their hosts, creeping out of hiding places at night to latch on, some people think that fecal stains from the insects should at least be tinged with the color of blood. This is not, in fact, the case. Fecal spotting tends to resemble smears or stains, which are dark brown or even black. This is because the blood has been digested and excreted.

LOOK FOR THESE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF A BED BUG BITE:  

• Raised, red welts
• Burning and itching
• Straight lines of multiple bites

Wasp Nest Treatment in Crawley

One of the most feared and aggressive pests, wasps will attack and sting, sometimes unprovoked but usually if threatened. This is risk and a cause for concern if you have small children or pets as for some wasp stings can be very dangerous causing severe reactions, with several people dying from wasp stings every year. Common Wasps, generally build their nests inside something, this can be a roof space/loft, garden shed, inside an air brick or even in the ground.

You should always get a Professional to treat a wasps nest, as it can be very dangerous. Wasps inside the nest will feel threatened and often become aggressive.

Bird Control in Crawley 

Birds can be a problem when they find their way into a building looking for food or simply looking to roost. This can cause an undesirable effect visually and in terms of health.

Birds carry a variety of diseases such as Ornithosis, Listeria and E-coli that can be transmitted to man not only from the droppings but also the birds themselves. When dry, pigeon droppings can become airborne in small particles, which can lead to respiratory complaints such as psittacosis. Closely linked to bird activity such as nesting are parasites such as mites, ticks, fleas and beetles.

I offer tried and tested bird control techniques including trapping and shooting. I also offer a full bird proofing service. Whether it's around a few solar panels, or to cover the top of a large building.

Flea Control in Crawley 

Fleas are a small (2mm) wingless insect, flattened side to side and reddish-brown in colour.The most common species in the UK is the Cat Flea which also bites humans. All adult fleas are parasitic on warm-blooded animals. Larval stages live in the nest of the host and feed on blood. When fully grown the larvae spin well camouflaged silken cocoons. When fully developed, the adult waits within this until it detects the vibrations caused by a potential host. Only then does it e...merge.
Their bites can cause intense irritation around a central bright red spot. It’s best to treat infested pets with a special veterinary aerosol, powder, shampoo or flea medication.Different people react differently to a bite, both in terms of degree of reaction and time taken to react – hence the need for FLEA PEST CONTROL.

Mole Control in Crawley 

Moles are not necessarily harmful, but the can leave ridged tunnels and ruin your landscaped garden. Their average lifespan is around 4 years.They are about 15cm (6in) long, with dense blackish-brown fur and broad front paws that are adapted for digging. Vacant tunnel systems may be taken over by another mole from nearby areas. For the control of moles, I only use natural methods by using different types of traps. I do not use gas like a lot of other companies, which means it is safe for wildlife, pets and children.

Cluster Flies in Crawley 

The cluster flies or attic flies.  They are strictly parasitic on earthworms; the females lay their eggs near earthworm burrows, and the larvae then infest the worms. However, the flies are a nuisance; when the adults emerge, they enter houses to hibernate, often in large numbers; they are difficult to eradicate because they favour inaccessible spaces such as roof and wall cavities. They are often seen on windows of little-used rooms.

Fox Control in Crawley

It's an adaptable and opportunistic animal. Although foxes are a welcome vision for some people around their homes, foxes can cause significant damage to people's gardens. They rip open people's rubbish whilst looking for food and scatter it around... They are also a large threat to the lives of pets, from disease and attack. These animals are known to carry, Sarcoptic mange (Scabies), which is transferrable to humans and also Distemper virus which can be fatal for pets.

Grey Squirrel Control in Crawley

These animals can cause endless damage to your home as they like to inhabit lofts and roof spaces. Similar to rodents they will chew through most things they find in these spaces, such as stored items, wires, plastic pipes etc.
They also carry fleas that can be passed to domestic pets and have a bite that could go straight through your finger, for example; In the garden, they will chew through bird feeders to get to the nuts. Damage trees by chewing off bark (which can kill small or young trees). These animals are sweet to look at but can be a serious pest.