Purpose
To provide guidance and to establish procedures for Pest Technicians as they perform an initial or 1x Wasp or Yellowjacket service for clients of Good Earth Pest Company.
Safety and Health
Read and understand the current label of each pesticide or material being applied, paying special attention to label restrictions, and required personal protective equipment (PPE). Also, utilize your protective bee suit to protect vital areas around the head/neck and to reduce the likelihood of getting stung.
Materials and Equipment
- Backpack sprayer,
- web mop pole, as well as
- any other material that you may need.
Procedure
- Park onsite and confirm the street address to make sure that you are servicing the correct building(s).
- Clock in and review all documents (field sheet, tech notes, and service agreement) from the bid.
- Greet the client, introduce yourself, and gather as much information from them as you can.
- Before you can complete the service, first locate the problem area(s) and identify what kind of wasps/hornets are causing the issue.
- European Wasps (continue to step 5)
- Yellowjackets/Hornets on or within the structure (continue to step 9)
- Yellowjackets/Hornets in the ground or off the structure (continue to step 11)
- European Wasps on the structure: Your bee suit should be utilized to reduce the likelihood of being stung. To service, use your backpack sprayer and make an application directly to the open paper nest using a repellant. For a quicker knock down, some materials can be synergized (mixed) with another product with a faster kill rate, such as Exciter. Consult both labels before mixing materials.
- Double check all surrounding eaves of the structure. Other nests may be located near bye and should also be serviced in the same fashion.
- For nests that are in taller locations, you may have to utilize an extended “birch” pole with the help from a second technician.
- Once serviced, the nest can be knocked down using your web pole if you can safely do so.
- Yellowjackets/Hornets on or within the structure: Your bee suit should be utilized to reduce the likelihood of being stung. To perform the service, first observe the nest area to identify the entry points. For these more aggressive species like Bald Face Hornets or Yellow Jackets, nests located on or within a structure can be serviced using Termidor SC. The nest entrance should be serviced, getting as much material as you can inside per the label. The transfer effect of the non-repellant getting on the wasps when they land will take more time but is highly effective.
- In some instances, Termidor SC may not be used because of the nest location on the structure. Contact your manager or a seasoned technician for alternative treatment strategies.
- Yellowjackets/Hornets in the ground or off the structure: Your bee suit should be utilized to reduce the likelihood of being stung. Hornet and Yellow Jacket nests off the structure can be difficult. Termidor is not labeled for use on nests located off structures, and so it cannot be used. There are several different treatment strategies to utilize depending on the situation:
- PT Wasp Freeze aerosol has a fast knock down and can be used on ariel nests effectively but has no residual effect. It is also labeled for ground nests but can be difficult to use in such situations. You must get material on the nest structure, which can be difficult to confirm with ground nesting Yellow Jackets. You may be treating the soil around the nest and not the nest itself.
- A backpack sprayer with a mixture of Demand with Exciter can be effective on both types of nests. The Exciter has a fast knock down while the Demand provides a lasting residual effect, dispatching any wasps that land on it later.
- For difficult nests or for a retreatment of a nest, dust insecticides are a viable option. Within the constraints of the label, make application into the nest entrance using a hand or power duster.
- Return to your vehicle when done and secure all equipment and make it is safe to travel.
- Reconvene with the client and report all your findings, including the measures you took to address them. Also, make sure to set expectations for the improvement in activity that they can anticipate. If the client is not home and you need to communicate with them, please call or send them a text. Make sure to leave a door hanger so the client can confirm that you were onsite.
- Enter all required information on the material applied into PestPac Mobile. Also, enter notes on the service provided today as well as any client concerns, observations you made, or necessary environmental changes (see PS.102 Entering material information and notes into PestPac Mobile). You are the first tech to be servicing at this account, be sure that you update the location instructions with any pertinent information that the regular tech should know. Remember: Clients have access to your notes so they should always be professional and appropriate.
- If it was a particularly pleasant interaction be sure to send a review invite via the Podium app (see PS.150 Sending a review invite using Podium Mobile).
- Check off the account on your service route log.
Created
December 12, 2021
Revised
July 15, 2022
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