Checked back five pages and didn't see any recent pest control posts.

Anyone handle pest control themselves w/o hiring an exterminator? We're in the Charlotte area and paid a national company approx. $275 today for a 1x spray since we hadn't sprayed yet this year and the heat is bringing out all kinds of bugs. Trying to determine the cost/benefit analysis of self-spraying, or do you have to bother with insecticide licenses and other issues that make it not worthwhile? We don't have any specific issues other than your standard ant/spiders/earwigs, but we back right up to a decent sized forest so there will always be a need for some type of pest control.

[Edited on June 17, 2015 at 3:39 PM. Reason : ...]

6/17/2015 3:35:18 PM

you need a license to get ahold of any decent stuff (legally). could possibly find someone with a license who will get it for you. the license is not particularly difficult to get.

the homeowner grade stuff doesn't do a whole lot, in my experience.

6/17/2015 8:45:32 PM

Exile, yeah. I suspect you are probably right. I've replaced a few cartridges. They are very easy. Might try it.

6/18/2015 2:54:44 PM

Quote :

"Anyone handle pest control themselves w/o hiring an exterminator? We're in the Charlotte area and paid a national company approx. $275 today for a 1x spray since we hadn't sprayed yet this year and the heat is bringing out all kinds of bugs. Trying to determine the cost/benefit analysis of self-spraying, or do you have to bother with insecticide licenses and other issues that make it not worthwhile? We don't have any specific issues other than your standard ant/spiders/earwigs, but we back right up to a decent sized forest so there will always be a need for some type of pest control."

The majority of the products that pest control companies use do not require a license in NC. (Products are registered individually by state so a product might be restricted use in one state, but not in the ones surrounding it. As a general rule, NY, CT, an MA are the most restrictive)

You can purchase a quart of an insecticide concentrate for ~$40 that will yield anywhere from 16-190 gallons of finished solution. The mixing concentration will vary depending on what you are trying to kill, the type of application, and the application site. It's definitely something you can DIY, just keep in mind that any application is only as good as the person making it, and that you aren't going to get any kind of warranty because there is no way to guarantee the application was done correctly.

Source: I work for a pesticide manufacturer who caters almost entirely to professionals and have been involved in both the state and federal pesticide registration process.

6/19/2015 12:59:06 AM

^ Thanks. So does your average box store like Lowes carry insecticide concentrate or do I need to purchase online or at a specialty store? I've seen pest control guys spray baseboards and under sinks, etc. while at my house a number of times, so if I were to DIY would this basic application 2-3 times a year be enough to minimize most common pests?

6/19/2015 9:24:39 AM

You aren't going to be able to buy any pro-grade stuff at Lowes. Some nursery/garden/greenhouse stores might carry a few products, but they are generally outdoor only products or more plant focused. Cost tends to be higher at brick and mortar places as well.

There are a ton of online DIY pest control stores, including one that I setup for my company. I can give you a discount code for our store and some product recommendations if that's something that you're interested in, just PM me. I also have no problem recommending some competitor products and websites as well. (Trying to avoid the whole BUY AN AD thing)

For most people doing their own pest control, I recommend sticking to water-based suspension concentrate products (SCs). These are generally the most "user friendly" in that they mix easily, are low odor, and don't run the risk of staining. Best bang for the buck is probably going to be one of the 7.9% bifenthrin SCs in that the products have broad site (indoor, outdoor, perimeter, turf, etc ) and pest (75+ different insects) use labels. For the absolute "best" control, one of the dual active ingredient products is the way to go, but they are generally overkill for most situations with significantly higher cost. (~$36 for a quart of single active vs ~$120 per quart for some of the dual-actives). A quart of just about any concentrate should be enough product to make at least 15 applications, with many being good for 50+ (depending on the mixing rate, application site, pests, and treatment area)

Application frequency really depends on the current pest situation, the types of insects you are trying to get under control, etc. I generally spray my house every 2-3 months, more often in the summer, and less often in the winter. I also spray the yard for mosquitos which usually requires an application every month or two during mosquito season to keep them at bay. Every product is a little bit different.

PM me if you have any specific questions.

6/19/2015 12:25:23 PM

Welp, just closed on my first house Friday, and it's been a hell of a weekend. We're replacing the carpets Wednesday, but I couldn't stand the smell anymore and pulled them up myself. Holy shit. There were some obvious spots in the carpet, but I would have never imagined how soiled it really was. The guy had 2 dogs that I would venture to guess he left alone in the house for days on end. More yellow piss stains in the carpets than clear areas. I'm planning on spot treating the subfloor (plywood) as much as I can with an enzymatic cleaner, light sanding in really bad areas, then laying down some Kilz on top of that. Anyone else have any experience here? Does my approach sound good? Overkill?

[Edited on June 22, 2015 at 11:03 AM. Reason : .]

6/22/2015 11:00:26 AM

congrats! we looked at a house recently that had some crazy dog piss smells in there too. it wouldn't happen to be a house by north hills would it? it was a beautiful house, and we would have put an offer on it, but the dog smell and the fact that there were multiple offers steered us away.

closing on our house in exactly one week!!!!

6/22/2015 11:41:51 AM

Quote :

"light sanding in really bad areas, then laying down some Kilz on top of that."

This is really the only way to go in my experience. Unless the whole subfloor is soaked completely through, it works well.

had an inspection on a house last week. The last owners built a deck over the septic and the tank pump didn't work, so I pretty much paid $300 for the septic inspectors to tell me there wasn't really anything they could inspect On top of that, the garage has termites and the crawl space has a major moisture problem and has mold.

Soooo, this one's looking like a no go unless the seller agrees to sink 10s of thousands of dollars into repairs...And I'm out a few grand

6/22/2015 1:48:34 PM

We got our Clear to Close notice today!!! Final walk-through in 5 days, 6 more days till move-in!

6/23/2015 2:35:50 PM

the bad: A/C went out last night...Woke up to an 84 degree house
the good: Warranty on the unit runs thru 6/28/15...usually this type of thing happens a few days after, not a few days before.

My laymen diagnosis is the blower motor went out. The unit still appears to cool properly, but doesn't circulate through the house...Upon inspection, the blower motor seems to be getting power (can hear the low hum to the unit) and spins freely, it just won't kick on (even in fan only mode). Repair guy likely won't be out until tomorrow, so probably another night of sweaty sleep.

6/24/2015 10:17:21 AM

^nice! ours went out and we had the motor replaced. was definitely better cost-wise than replacing the whole unit.

6/24/2015 3:01:41 PM

My HOA at Hunters Creek has been notified multiple times over the past 10 years about drainage problems behind my unit. In the last 12 months the inside of the kitchen has been flooded twice during torrential rain because they will not fix the grade & gutter problems that are dumping water right at the back door.

6/25/2015 2:44:06 PM

maybe spray paint SCREWED BY HUNTER'S CREEK HOA on front of the place

6/25/2015 4:47:41 PM

I sent a nastygram today pointing out that if the HOA fails to make a necessary repair that is under its purview they can be held responsible for any further damage caused by their failure to make the repair.

The manager says they are going use buried corrugated piping to divert all water away from the unit. Hopefully they do not do a half assed job.

6/25/2015 5:37:15 PM

Hello inefficient and more difficult to install pipe.

6/25/2015 6:46:35 PM

^x6: Layman diagnosis, correct. New blower motor 3 days before warranty expiration.



^^Don't let those bastards off easy...In the rare occurrences when an HOA is actually beneficial to the homeowner, hold them to it.

6/25/2015 6:51:53 PM

Does your a.c. warranty cover labor? Because that's what actually cost the most, not the part itself.

6/26/2015 9:50:42 AM

Not in this case. Apparently lennox now uses some kind of proprietary ecm motor in their blowers. labor was around $200 (with the bs diagnostic charge ). New motor would have been around $400.

6/26/2015 11:13:50 AM

Washing machine went out. Couple of youtube videos and a 4 dollar part later, replaced the motor coupler (link between motor and transmission for the tub to spin) and its working.

Now to take it back apart this afternoon and grease said thing, as its squealing like crazy.

6/27/2015 1:01:37 PM

We've got some pretty severe rot on the outside of our house. I imagine it's the kind of thing and a handyman can't handle. Any recommendations for affordable repair/treatment in North Raleigh (capital outside 540)?

6/28/2015 9:35:19 PM

ok yall. Simple question.

I have WAY too many flies coming round the house and its essentially OCD spots. The trash can has been moved outside but they are still around my door entrance. I bought and tried every single "trick" people told me...how the hell do I get rid of them for good and stay gone. I HATE FLIES with a PASSION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6/29/2015 10:00:12 PM

i grew up on a chicken farm. not like a dozen laying hens in the back yard coop. a full blown commercial chicken farm. flies were something you learned to live with, but these did seem to help:

http://www.statelinetack.com/item/country-vet-equine-mosquito-and-fly-control-kit/SLT901009/?srccode=GPSLT&gclid=CjwKEAjw2cOsBRD3xNbRp5eQxzYSJADZGYbzhCahwvFCLfRC4UQfR4tbNTD8Dq6smSiGdyAvCy7pLxoCLn3w_wcB&kwid=productads-plaid^69291819361-sku^123210-adType^PLA-device^c-adid^40184736948

6/29/2015 10:07:53 PM

yay!!! we closed yesterday!

cleaning the house has definitely been a large task, especially the kitchen...but we're persevering. loving the new crib already!

we should be fully moved in by the end of the week.

6/30/2015 11:11:01 AM

Finally got a renter for my NC house!

I've been eating the mortgage on that fucker since January, during which time I was unemployed for several months, which double-sucked. Lately it's been slowing me down on all the stuff I put on hold until after I got a job. Now it's finally full-speed ahead again!

6/30/2015 9:40:53 PM

Came in here to post about pests and saw several at the top of the page.

We just moved earlier this year, and good lord the bugs are bad out here. We have a playhouse for my 4 year old daughter, and I have to check that thing daily. Spiders, wasps, yellow jackets, even killed a black widow the other day (!!!!).

Going to call a pest service to come out and give me an estimate on what they can do about treating the whole area around my fence and house. I'm sure it would cost $texas, but man it's bad. I don't know what else to do.

We have some trees (I think they are poplar maybe? They drop the gumballs) right near the fence and I think that may be part of the problem. But I don't know, I've never had a problem like this before.

7/6/2015 9:13:21 PM

^ DM dubcaps - he provided me some excellent feedback.

7/7/2015 12:36:28 PM

Quote :

"I'm sure it would cost $texas, but man it's bad. I don't know what else to do."

Have you tried treating it at all yourself?

7/7/2015 12:41:26 PM

This would be a huge woe: http://www.wral.com/-it-was-a-nightmare-man-warns-nc-homeowners-about-little-known-land-rule/14753042/

7/7/2015 12:42:41 PM

Interesting. Seems like he should have sought a hardship exception since he didn't knowingly exceed the impervious limit, but I'm not familiar with the specific rules in Wake Co.

I am a new member of my town's Board of Adjustment and this is a very common issue - pretty much all I've dealt with so far are "density averaging certificates" where one homeowner seeks to exceed their impervious requirement (bc they want a pool, extended deck, etc.) but must find another property to exchange impervious square footage with first. The property "giving" sq. footage then has a notation made on their deed so any future buyer would be limited.

Definitely an issue your average homeowner is not aware of though.

7/7/2015 1:24:22 PM

May have been mentioned in here before, but does anyone have any recommendations for someone to put in a backyard fence? (This is not a woe, yet)

7/8/2015 4:23:50 PM

I'm pretty sure his issue was with the buyers mortgage company, not with Wake county. The buyer must have had a VA or FHA loan with more stringent requirements. Most mortgages don't even require surveys. Wake county isn't going to bother anyone after the fact. Being over your allotment would just prevent you from getting a permit to add impervious surfaces.

I think the article was misleading in implying that he was forced to make changes. I don't think he was forced, he just decided it was worth it to close the deal. From everything I have heard, when selling a house, its best to avoid VA, FHA, etc loans.

I ran into this when I was looking into adding on a screened in porch. We discovered we were over the limit by about 500 sq ft. The surveyor said it happens a lot where the approved plans comply but the as built exceeds the limit. It seems the enforcement is all on the plans and nobody is checking what actually gets built.

7/11/2015 5:12:38 PM

GoldieO: Out of curiosity, how are people getting others to give them impervious surface allotments? I assume they are buying them? Have you been privy to the going rate for such a thing? I've been considering going that route, but I've been hesitant to approach people about it, b/c they are unaware they have such an asset and would be clueless for what value to attach to it.

7/11/2015 5:16:13 PM

The Board only meets if there's a controversy so I've only dealt with two density averaging certificates during my first few months as a Board member. The first was between two parties and I was curious about exactly what you asked - what consideration, if any, was exchanged for the impervious rights. I was the only Board member to question the parties and the going rate for this exchange was $5/sq. foot - so a total of $3,500 for 700 sq. ft. The second case involved two parcels owned by the same individual so they took sq. footage from their rental property to use at their residence.

I am not quite sure how the first two individuals came together and I thought about this after the hearing so I wasn't able to question them. My guess is town planning staff may have assisted in linking the parties, but I can't say for sure. Like you said, most people wouldn't have any idea there was even a market for these exchanges - I would have never known but for being appointed to the Board of Adjustment.

Not sure if this answers your question.

[Edited on July 11, 2015 at 9:28 PM. Reason : ...]

7/11/2015 9:27:38 PM

fascinating! Yes, thanks for the info.

7/11/2015 9:32:41 PM

Have an empty flag bracket on the side of the house that needs to be put to good use. Was thinking that an NC State flag would be of best use, so anyone have any recommendations on where to look?

7/12/2015 4:20:05 PM

not sure if serious but maybe Amazon.com or http://shop.gopack.com/ or http://www.redandwhiteshop.com/

7/14/2015 10:44:17 AM

So. Update, since my last post was a couple of pages back. Closing was supposed to be 6/5...that didn't happen due to a variety of factors. Then it was supposed to be 6/12, but the appraisal was up in the air. Then the next week. Except that the first appraisal got rejected completely due to the comps not being quite comparable. So we had to wait for a second appraisal, which then proceeded to come back $34k below the first one, and $28k below the sale price. Which was a problem.

Bank wasn't budging. Seller dropped the price, but refused to come all the way down to appraised value. We considered walking away, but we wanted the house, and I thought the second appraisal was low (as did our realtor). So we agreed to meet his final offer, which was $13k over appraised value. A bad decision financially? Perhaps. But we're not close to upside down, and we didn't want to start the process all over again. As it stood, we closed on 7/1, and we had to be out of our apartment the day before, so the seller actually let us move our stuff in two days before closing. But it's *done* and we are officially homeowners.

So, as if on cue, I have an official woe. We went out of town overnight last Thursday, and came back to 85 degrees upstairs. My amateur diagnosis is failed capacitor (the "stick test" will start the fan and it will stay running, though we have to cut it off before it gets to temp to avoid overheating.) We have a home warranty, so this is the time to use it, I think. The repair guy shows up at 8:30 this morning, and we walk back to the unit, and I see yellow jackets. The yellow jackets are coming from--guess where--under the fucking A/C unit.

So the A/C guy refuses to work on it and leaves, and we're stuck with a $75 service fee when no work was done. So we call Orkin. Exterminator comes out, looks at it, and sprays under the pad, but refuses to spray on/in the unit itself for fear of damaging something. WTF...the AC guy won't repair the unit because of the yellow jackets. The exterminator won't exterminate the yellow jackets because of the AC unit. Catch-22 anyone????

As one of my co-workers remarked when I was telling them my tale, "welcome to home ownership!"

7/15/2015 1:13:23 AM

^ how was that not caught during the home inspection?

7/15/2015 9:15:00 AM

^ yellow jackets? I assume they can build a nest fairly quickly...might not have been there during inspection which was probably at least over a month ago.

7/15/2015 10:40:35 AM

I'd say spray the yellow jackets yourself and have the AC guy come and fix the unit. If the spray damages the unit, well...he's there to fix it anyways right?

good luck!

7/15/2015 11:42:51 AM

^^Yeah, I guess that's possible. When I bought mine, the inspection found multiple wasp nests under the deck, and we had the seller hire an exterminator to clear them out before we went to closing.

7/15/2015 1:37:32 PM

The inspection was actually almost two months ago at that point. So, no, the nest wasn't there at the time. It may not have even been there when we moved in--first yellow jacket I saw was one that stung me when I was mowing on the 5th. Wasn't sure where it came from, made a mental note to find the nest before I mowed the back yard the next time, and hadn't gotten to mow the back again before the A/C guy came out yesterday. Just bad luck on where the nest turned out to be...

Plus yellow jacket nests aren't quite as obvious as wasp nests, as they tend to be underground. Or underhvac in this case.

We've sprayed under the unit vigorously and put out glue traps, plus the powder that the orkin guy applied to the surrounding area. There are definitely less of them, but we'll have to wait a few days to see if the colony is wiped out or not.

[Edited on July 15, 2015 at 9:29 PM. Reason : bzzz]

7/15/2015 9:28:24 PM

I think we've got a caterpillar infestation. Found at least 5 or 6 caterpillars on our walls yesterday. Fucking weird.

7/17/2015 11:28:01 AM

I'm going to be moving into a house next month with a 3 acre yard and about a half acre garden. I'm thinking about getting a subcompact tractor for cutting the grass, plowing snow, and managing the garden. Anyone have any recommendations? I'm currently looking at a Kubota BX series tractor, but wasn't sure if anyone in here has experience with them.

7/18/2015 6:28:39 PM

^^^ugh i was mowing the lback yard yesterday and i mowed right over an underground yellowjacket nest. those fuckers swarmed me and it hurt like a sumbitch. I'm not going to lie and pretend to be macho about it... i screamed like a little girl and ran around to the front of the house... a cloud of them followed me. in my mind i was picturing them synchronized flying in the shape of a giant yellow jacket. I ran to the front door but my wife wouldn't let me in! so I stripped off my clothes (down to boxers), went and got the hose and sprayed myself down and that at least got rid of the buggers.

I would have guessed at least 25-30 of them stung me. once i got inside and counted the stings it was only 11, but i started feeling like my chest/throat was starting to close up... it didn't help that i watched My Girl earlier in the week with my daughter. it didn't progress to anaphylaxis, but i went to the store and got/took some benadryl just in case. I also got a bottle of bee/wasp/yj killer and found the hole they came out of. the ensuing massacre was sweet, sweet revenge.

7/18/2015 10:39:05 PM

So half my front yard has been overrun by this invasive grass. I finally figured out what it is and read about it.

Fuck me. It's this stuff called torpedograss. I think it would probably grow and thrive on the moon, in a pool of Round Up. It's like kudzu's grassy cousin. It ran under the fucking sidewalk, and they say it can grow a half inch per day. I don't doubt that at all. The runners are tough as shit and go underground. Apparently there's no real "cure" other than excavating the top foot or two of soil, or maaaaybe burning (which I can't do, living in a subdivision).

There are large parts of the front yard where it has completely choked out my centipede and is more or less the only grass there now. I've been planting St Augustine in areas where the centipede struggles, and it does a lot better...I may just nuke half of my front yard with several successive applications of Round Up next spring, then sod that area with St Aug's. There will probably still be some residual torpedo grass that will survive and pop up, but I guess then I can pull it out before it takes over again.

7/19/2015 12:01:58 AM

I'm gonna go make an offer on what I hope will be my first house today

7/19/2015 8:04:58 AM

^Good Luck!

7/19/2015 11:55:41 AM

done and done

and now we wait...

7/19/2015 12:48:18 PM