Regular Service Program

What happens at a visit?

Most of the work happens outside: around the foundation, doors, and windows, up under the eaves, and around porches and decks. We knock down wasp nests and spider webs on the house and treat the spots where bugs get in. Inside, we spot treat when something calls for it. Spraying the baseboards is our last step, not our first; we'd rather stop bugs outside.

Is it the same as quarterly pest control?

Pretty close. It works out to about four visits a year, but we time them to the seasons instead of the calendar, and what we do changes with whatever's active. In the spring we go after wasp nests while they're still small. Late summer is spider season, and it's when the big cockroaches start wandering in from outside. In the fall it's stink bugs and lady beetles. A lot of our ant work happens in the winter, when the colonies are small and easier to knock out.

The timing even shifts across town. Up on Signal Mountain, the season runs a week or two behind the valley, and we schedule around that.

What does it cover?

The common stuff around a house, like ants, wasps, and the bigger cockroaches that wander in from outside. Spider webs on the house and porches get knocked down too; the ones out in the yard we leave alone, since they aren't hurting anybody.

A few things are separate services with their own visits: termites, mice and rats, German cockroaches, bed bugs, and mosquitoes. Termite protection can be added to Regular Service, and it costs a little less bundled than on its own.

What should I expect when we start?

For two or three weeks after the first treatment, you'll probably see more dead and dying bugs than usual. That's normal, and things settle down after that. If something unusual is going on, like a leak or a moisture problem, it can take a couple of months of troubleshooting visits to get a population under control. Those visits are included.

Regular Service keeps the common bugs down. It doesn't mean you'll never see one, and we won't promise that.

Do I need to be home?

For the first visit, yes. It's an inspection, and we'd like to walk around the house with you; the first treatment often happens that same day. After that, most visits are outside, so as long as the gate's unlocked and the pets are in, you don't need to be there. We'll ask you to keep kids and pets inside for about an hour after an outside treatment, so the spray has time to dry.

How does billing work?

Regular Service is billed by monthly autopay instead of an invoice for every visit. It's simpler for everybody, and it lets us schedule visits when the timing makes sense instead of by the calendar. Most homes pay $40 to $50 a month, and depending on the house, there may be a one-time start-up charge on the first month. We set your exact price after we look at the house.

Is there a contract?

There's a service agreement, mostly to keep our state regulators happy. Regular Service has a 100-day commitment, which gives us time to troubleshoot and get through a change of season. It's not a multi-year contract, and after that you can cancel any time with 30 days' notice.