Tipping and Tossing is Job No. 1

According to the 2024 PCT State of the Mosquito Control Market survey, the most commonly offered mosquito control services involved regular, targeted applications via mister-blower or sprayer (92 percent), special event services (67 percent) and larval control (66 percent).

Products used in these services typically were liquid adulticides (77 percent), insect growth regulators or IGRs (66 percent) and larvicide (58 percent).

But the most essential activity, said PMPs in follow-up interviews, was eliminating the places where mosquitoes breed on the property.

“If all you do is walk around the house and do a mister blower treatment, it’s not going to solve it,” said Adam Woodard, J&J Exterminating, of a customer’s mosquito problem.

PMPs said they instruct technicians when walking the property to pour out and turn over containers that hold water and to educate customers to do so as well. This step is key to successful treatment and to reduce reservices.

“We’re always looking to break the breeding cycle,” explained Denis Logan, Mosquito Joe of North Phoenix. “We will tip and toss any standing water.” He then may apply BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis) or an IGR, followed by an application of adulticide using a mister blower.

Finding the breeding source isn’t always obvious because mosquitoes don’t need much water in which to lay eggs.

At Purcor Pest Solutions, technicians have found that metal fire pits, which are hugely popular at the moment, are often the culprit. They fill up with water, with or without wood and ash inside them, sitting for weeks between use. “That little fire pit over time can hold a lot of mosquito larva,” said David Joles.

For Vic Palermo, Ultra Safe Pest Management, “the biggest thing is the gutters. They’re backed up, full of leaves. That’s a big driver of mosquitoes that people don’t focus enough on.” Standing water in gutters can lead to tens of thousands of mosquitoes hatching, he said. His technicians use pole cameras to evaluate gutter conditions.

Palermo previously offered gutter cleaning service, but his technicians didn’t like doing it. Still, he thinks it could be an attractive add-on if provided by a stand-alone gutter team. “I can see how that could be a good combination for cross selling.”

It also pays to be weather aware and somewhat flexible when it comes to scheduling mosquito treatments.

Brian Gibson, Backwoods Pest Control, often has to adjust the schedule when it’s time to apply his combination of adulticide and IGR to knock down mosquito populations.

“We really pay attention to our weather. If it’s projected to rain, we don’t apply. We make sure we have a 24-hour period after a service. We will not reservice within 21 days unless we have a torrential downpour,” said Gibson.

“Playing the weather game” can be difficult in spring, he noted. It’s a reason why he incorporated mosquito traps into his service. More than one-third (36 percent) of pest control company locations used mosquito traps in their control programs, found the PCT survey.

The average callback rate for mosquito control service was 5.3 percent.