CREJ - Property Management Quarterly - May 2015
An 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 Colorado run the gamut in size and purpose. From retail shopping centers and office buildings, to apartment and high-rise condominiums, 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 ability to adapt to various environments and for their aggressiveness when searching for food, water and shelter. By their nature, commercial 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 kitchens, and transient guests and residents eating, bringing in packages and generating waste. Property managers need to think big picture when it comes to treating 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 program is a solid investment. The lens pest management professionals view commercial properties 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 maintaining 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 commercial properties is the dumpster storage area. With an abundance of leftover food scraps, moisture and other pest-attractant waste, dumpsters 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 emptied 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 battleground for denying pests access. A 5-foot buffer zone of gravel or stone, free of plants and organic material, around the building is recommended to eliminate pest harborage areas. Property managers also should pay close attention to basic structural repairs including caulking openings or cracks in the foundation and around window and door frames, replacing window and ventilation screens, installing door sweeps, and changing exterior lighting to sodium vapor bulbs to reduce the attractiveness to pests. Zone 3. The final zone is the interior 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 buildings on packages or deliveries, and eliminating pest-conducive conditions are good preventive actions. Remember, removing a pest infestation once it has been established inside your facility is far more difficult and costly than taking the necessary steps to deny pests in the first place.
One of the most common mistakes property managers make is to have a pest management company service just the unit – whether residential or commercial – where the pests were seen. Pests are extremely 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 belongings. What pests do property managers 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 mattress and bed frames, furniture, luggage, clothing, bedding, picture frames and on people. • Birds – Nuisance birds can be found on top of light poles, electrical signage, exposed beams, landscaping and trees, heating and airconditioning 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 custodial 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 places to hide, so look under the kitchen sink, in closets and storerooms. • Stinging insects – Can be found in trees, and in eaves and overhangs of buildings. For your safety, leave the removal of nests to a professional. 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. According to the National Pest Management 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 relatively 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 resemble sawdust near a termite nest. • Discarded wings near doors or on windowsills, indicating swarmers have entered the building, or swarmers themselves, which often are mistaken for flying ants. In closing, the two keys to maintaining 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.