Solving Tough Pest Problems
A Step by Step Approach
In pest control, not every infestation is solved with one treatment or a textbook approach. Some situations are stubborn, recurring, or made worse by structural or environmental conditions. As a technician, it’s your job to dig deeper and apply strategic thinking when standard methods don’t cut it. Here’s how to approach and solve difficult pest problems in the field.
1. Go Back to Basics: Reinspect Everything
When a pest problem won’t go away, it usually means something has been missed.
Reinspect the Site Thoroughly: Don’t rely on memory or old notes. Walk the site fresh, looking in hidden or less obvious areas (drop ceilings, wall voids, rooflines, drains).
Look for New Clues: Droppings, rub marks, nesting materials, or damaged goods may have appeared since the last visit.
Check Entry Points and Exclusion Gaps: Rodents and insects often exploit cracks, door gaps, utility breaches, or roof vents that weren’t visible before.
2. Verify Pest Identification
Treating the wrong pest — or misjudging the life stage — is a top reason control efforts fail.
Double-Check the Pest ID: Use traps, samples, or field guides. For example, you may think you’re dealing with fruit flies, but it could be phorid flies or moth flies.
Understand the Biology: Knowing a pest's habits, feeding times, nesting preferences, and breeding sites gives you the edge. If you are usure of the biology do some research or talk with a more experienced technician.
3. Reevaluate Your Treatment Strategy
Sometimes, the product or method you're using just isn’t right for the situation.
Check for Resistance: Cockroaches and bed bugs can develop resistance to certain active ingredients. Make sure you are rotating your chemical groups.
Rotate Products or Delivery Methods: Switch bait formulations (gel vs. granular), try different active ingredients, or use physical controls like vacuuming or heat.
Combine Methods: Integrate mechanical (traps), cultural (sanitation), and chemical (sprays, dusts, baits) controls for a more aggressive approach.
4. Focus on Sanitation and Conducive Conditions
Many persistent infestations are sustained by food, water, or shelter.
Identify and Document Problem Areas: Grease buildup, standing water, clutter, cardboard, or spilled food all make control harder.
Work With the Client: Recommend realistic improvements and explain how they directly impact pest activity.
Follow Up: Recheck these areas regularly — especially in commercial kitchens, warehouses, and garbage rooms.
5. Use Monitoring to Pinpoint the Problem
When the source isn’t obvious, monitoring helps narrow it down.
Place Traps Strategically: Use glue boards, pheromone traps, insect light traps (ILTs), or rodent monitors to track where pests are active.
Date and Map the Devices: This helps track trends and confirms if your treatment is working.
Be Patient and Persistent: It can take a few visits to collect enough data.
6. Communicate and Document Everything
Clear communication builds trust and ensures accountability.
Explain What’s Being Done and Why: Let the client know this is a more advanced case that requires multiple steps.
Document Your Findings and Adjustments: This helps you stay organized and gives your team or manager a clear record to support ongoing efforts.
Schedule Follow-Ups: Don’t leave a difficult case without a plan in place for review.
7. Know When to Escalate
Sometimes, additional support or special equipment is needed.
Bring in a Supervisor or QA Tech: A second set of eyes often helps spot what’s being missed.
Consider Specialty Services: For example, fumigation for severe stored product pests or heat treatment for bed bugs.
Coordinate with the Client’s Staff: Their cleaning, maintenance, or operations team may need to assist in solving the root issue.
Final Thoughts Tough pest problems test your skills, but they also offer an opportunity to shine as a technician. The best technicians don’t give up—they slow down, dig deeper, and solve the problem with a smart, layered approach.
Every tough situation is a chance to sharpen your skills, build credibility, and deliver the kind of service that sets you apart in the field.
Corinne Down is a Technical Support Auditor with Abell Pest Control and brings nearly two decades of experience in the pest management industry. She holds a Bachelor of Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo and a Technical Diploma in Ecosystem Management. In 2017, she earned her Associate Certified Entomologist (ACE-I) designation and later completed Purdue University’s Advanced Urban/Industrial IPM program.