Cockroaches, rats, fleas and bedbugs are relatively common pests in Portuguese homes. Whatever the case, it is advisable to disinfect the affected spaces, preferably in a professional manner. Procedures can vary according to the situation found. No two days in a technical visit are the same", says Moisés Ventura, the Truly Nolen disinfestation specialist. It's enough that the typology of the house is different, to trigger a specific procedure.
Let's assume that if you're reading this text, you've already seen signs of rodents in your home, or suspect a plague of cockroaches in the place where you work. First of all, learn how disinfestation technicians operate and everything Truly Nolen can do for you.
Online service
Truly Nolen is the only disinfestation company with the ability to purchase services online. You can do this by telephone contact or via a form on the website. At this stage, you are asked for some data, such as name, address, location, telephone contact and type of pest.
1st technical visit
Once the visit of the disinfestation technician has been scheduled, a free inspection is made. The specialist will ascertain the seriousness of the situation and provide further information about the pest to be combated, actions to be taken, area of intervention, corrective measures, recommendations and safety interval. An action plan is proposed and, if the client agrees, bait stations and traps are placed in strategic locations.
2nd Disinfestation Visit
On the second visit, the technician checks the results obtained by the bait stations. Then, he disinfects the spaces by spraying the appropriate products. This procedure aims to eliminate the existing pest(s) and must be carried out in the whole affected area: whether it is a house, shop or restaurant, including kitchen and bathrooms; in the garden, terrace or balcony, if there is one; in the condominium or other infested locations.
Service Guarantee
After this intervention, if the pest problem is not resolved, the customer has a guarantee period starting from the date of consolidation (30 or 90 days, depending on what was purchased). During this period he/she must contact Truly Nolen to check the location and solve the problem.
Disinfestation work is not for everyone. It takes a good dose of physical resistance, an adventurous spirit and organizational skills to deal with pests every day. Moisés Ventura confesses that "at first, in the first few services, it made a bit of an impression to see the larger cockroaches sticking out of manhole covers and crawling up clothes". But once he got used to it, seeing scenarios like this became routine. With a few years of experience as a disinfestation technician and a salesman, he can cold analyse and deal with any type of pest, wherever it appears, while clearing up customer queries.
From pests in municipalities to schools and nurseries, from offices to homes, from wasps to rats, cockroaches, fleas and ants, the disinfestation technician has seen it all and is prepared to deal with any situation.
According to Moisés Ventura, there are several factors that influence the method of disinfestation:
- Type of pest - Often, the customer has already identified the species to be eliminated. But it is advisable that the specialist in disinfestation analyse the traces left by the animals, such as dirt, excrement, fur, eggs, destruction of furniture or skirting boards. Only by correctly determining the gravity of the pest to be combated will the products and methods to be used be defined.
- Origin - Pests can originate in food (for example, weevils in cereal or spice packs), in objects (such as bed bugs in moving boxes or fleas in carpets), or enter through doors, windows, plumbing drains or cracks in the floor. Sometimes a quick intervention is enough to eliminate the species; other times it is necessary to maintain an ongoing pest control programme.
- Location - dwellings near food stores, restaurants, etc. are more likely to be pest infested. Historic areas, densely populated and with older buildings are also a prime target for certain types of insects. This is the case with termites, which like old wood; ants, which are always present in gardens and terraces; or fleas, which appear when there is proximity to animals.
- Organisation - A house with a lot of furniture always takes longer to disinfect, as it forces all the obstacles to be moved in order to apply the products. The type of house itself is different, which conditions the disinfestation process. Generally, the technician starts spraying in one room and proceeds to the front door. If the origin of the pest has already been detected, that is the place to start treatment.
- Cleaning - The regular and thorough cleaning habits of a space help to prevent the appearance of pests. A disinfestation technician always finds it more difficult to work in a dirty environment, especially when dirt is a food source.
- Climate - It is more common to see rats and cockroaches in the summer, near rubbish bins and manhole covers. But many other species can remain dormant for months or even a year when it's cold, and then infest a place without warning when the temperature rises. "It's like bedbugs, which don't hibernate, but have a period of dormancy," explains Moisés Ventura. "They can go without feeding for up to three months, in the case of nymphs, or from six months to a year if they are adults."
