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Page 20 — Property Management Quarterly — May 2015
A n ounce of prevention is
worth a pound of cure. No
truer words can be spoken
when it comes to advising
property managers on how
to keep unwanted pests out of the
facilities they are entrusted with
maintaining.
Commercial properties in Colo-
rado run the gamut in size and pur-
pose. From retail
shopping centers
and office build-
ings, to apartment
and high-rise con-
dominiums, these
facilities are home
to businesses and
residents 24 hours
a day, 365 days a
year.
These properties
also are home to
tenants that have
not paid rent and
have no intention
of doing so anytime soon. Who are
these tenants? They are pests.
Pests are known for their abil-
ity to adapt to various environ-
ments and for their aggressiveness
when searching for food, water and
shelter. By their nature, commer-
cial facilities are ideal targets for
pests seeking the above-mentioned
essentials.
For example, a “lifestyle” retail,
office and residential center has
restaurants, grocery stores, loading
docks, home and commercial kitch-
ens, and transient guests and resi-
dents eating, bringing in packages
and generating waste.
Property managers need to think
big picture when it comes to treat-
ing for pests in their building or
complex. That is why hiring a pest
management professional who can
view the situation through a wider
lens and design and deliver an
appropriate pest management pro-
gram is a solid investment.
The lens pest management pro-
fessionals view commercial proper-
ties through when conducting an
initial inspection typically is divided
into three zones.
Zone 1. The property around a
facility including the landscape (i.e.,
trees, shrubs), adjacent properties,
water features, etc. These are areas
where pests live. Properly maintain-
ing these areas by regularly cutting
grass, trimming trees and bushes,
removing debris and eliminating
excess moisture will reduce pest
activity and access to a structure.
A common pest hot spot in com-
mercial properties is the dumpster
storage area. With an abundance of
leftover food scraps, moisture and
other pest-attractant waste, dump-
sters are a magnet for rodents,
flies and stinging insects. In order
to keep pests under control, check
dumpster areas, remember to keep
lids closed, have the dumpster emp-
tied frequently, and regularly clean
the interior and concrete surface
beneath the dumpster to eliminate
spillage and waste build up that can
attract pests.
Zone 2. The immediate area
around a structure is a key battle-
ground for denying pests access. A
5-foot buffer zone of gravel or stone,
free of plants and organic mate-
rial, around the building is recom-
mended to eliminate pest harbor-
age areas.
Property managers also should
pay close attention to basic struc-
tural repairs including caulking
openings or cracks in the founda-
tion and around window and door
frames, replacing window and
ventilation screens, installing door
sweeps, and changing exterior light-
ing to sodium vapor bulbs to reduce
the attractiveness to pests.
Zone 3. The final zone is the interi-
or of a facility, the area you want to
keep pests from accessing. Tenant
education on what they should do if
they spot a pest, being mindful not
to accidently carry pests into build-
ings on packages or deliveries, and
eliminating pest-conducive condi-
tions are good preventive actions.
Remember, removing a pest infesta-
tion once it has been established
inside your facility is far more dif-
ficult and costly than taking the
necessary steps to deny pests in the
first place.
It’s Not One and Done With Pests
One of the most common mis-
takes property managers make is to
have a pest management company
service just the unit – whether resi-
dential or commercial – where the
pests were seen. Pests are extreme-
ly mobile and constantly in search
of food, water and shelter. They can
maneuver between floors and units
with relative ease.
Treating only one unit usually will
not solve the problem. You need
to look at the entire building and
identify where pests can enter and
establish a base of operations, and
consider how easily the pests can
travel between units in heating and
air-conditioning ducts, water and
sewer pipes, elevator and garbage
shafts, and on tenants, residents,
shoppers, guests and their belong-
ings.
What pests do property manag-
ers need to be concerned with? As
Colorado heads into the spring and
summer seasons, ants, spiders and
stinging insects top the list of pests
property managers want to “lock
out” before they establish nesting
locations. Following are locations
each type of pest is most likely to
be found in a commercial property:
• Ants – Found in kitchens and
bathrooms near water and food
sources, like spilled soda (sugar is a
major attractant) or syrup; they also
can be brought in on interior plants.
• Bed bugs – Can be found in mat-
tress and bed frames, furniture,
luggage, clothing, bedding, picture
frames and on people.
• Birds – Nuisance birds can be
found on top of light poles, electri-
cal signage, exposed beams, land-
scaping and trees, heating and air-
conditioning units, and rooftops.
• Cockroaches – Often found in
food preparation areas, near water
pipes under sinks in the kitchens,
bathrooms and service rooms.
• Rodents – Mice typically are
found in furnace, garbage and cus-
todial rooms, food service areas,
in shipping boxes and in kitchen
areas. Rats are usually found on the
exterior near dumpsters, sewers,
pools and in landscapes.
• Spiders – Spiders like dark plac-
es to hide, so look under the kitch-
en sink, in closets and storerooms.
• Stinging insects – Can be found
in trees, and in eaves and over-
hangs of buildings. For your safety,
leave the removal of nests to a pro-
fessional.
Another pest that doesn’t gain a
lot of notoriety in Colorado but is
one that property managers need
be mindful of is the termite. Accord-
ing to the National Pest Manage-
ment Associations, termites cause
more than $5 billion annually in
damage to structures in the U.S.
and often do so without ever being
seen.
Aggressive subterranean termites
attack the wood in structures from
the soil and, if left untreated, can
cause significant damage in a rela-
tively short period of time. Signs of
a termite infestation include:
• Mud tubes (used by termites to
reach a food source) on the exterior
of the structure.
• Soft wood that sounds hollow
when tapped.
• Darkening or blistering of wood
structures, and cracked or bubbling
paint.
• Small piles of feces that resem-
ble sawdust near a termite nest.
• Discarded wings near doors or
on windowsills, indicating swarm-
ers have entered the building, or
swarmers themselves, which often
are mistaken for flying ants.
In closing, the two keys to main-
taining a pest-free environment in
your property are to establish and
follow good sanitation protocols
and stop pests before they can gain
access to your facility. If you can
achieve these items, your chances
of avoiding pest issues increases.s
Management
Ken Andersen
National account
representative,
Sprague Pest
Solutions, Denver Photos courtesy Sprague Pest Solutions
Mice typically are found in furnace, garbage and custodial rooms, food service areas, in
shipping boxes and in kitchen areas.
Stinging insects, like yellowjackets, can be found in trees and overhangs of buildings.
1. Regularly inspect the exte-
rior grounds of your property
and remove conditions condu-
cive to pest harborage, includ-
ing debris, overgrown grass,
trees and shrubs, and areas of
excessive moisture.
2. Make sure the exterior of
your facility is well maintained
and pest-exclusion practices
are in place, including sealing
in openings in the foundation,
screening in windows, main-
taining heating, ventilating and
air-conditioning openings, mak-
ing sure exterior lighting is not
attracting pests, and installing
door sweeps on loading dock
and entry doors.
3. Establish good sanitation
protocols that are followed by
tenants and residents.
4. Develop a partnership with
a local pest management com-
pany and take advantage of its
professional knowledge and
resources.
4 steps to successful
pest prevention