deBugged

Some debate around a story doing the rounds over last couple of weeks, when our PR Agency released numbers calculated on a hypothetical worst case scenario, which were presented as “average” or “typical”.

I thought it might be helpful to explain how we arrived at the numbers and where things went so wrong.

We had tested our new Entotherm technology on a bus and various buildings during the last three years of its development. So, when asked for a worst case scenario situation, we based our hypothesis on:

• A bus, or anything else, being left by itself in an isolated place
• With no external factors to affect the mortality rate (so the population would be left unchecked)
• Then we assumed that there is a perfect male to female ratio that allows optimal breeding numbers
• That the environment would be controlled to a constant temperature, with no extremes
• Finally, there would be a plentiful food supply to support the numbers of insects

On the above totally theoretical basis it’s possible that very high numbers of cockroaches and bed bugs/fleas could survive, although it’s clearly a worst case scenario.

Now, obviously real life is not a hypothetical model. There are loads of contributing factors that would affect any insect infestation. For example regular cleaning, people unwittingly stepping on insects and, as in real life, there is not a perfect male to female ratio! All of which means that, in our experience, it is very rare to find heavily infested buses, trains or other forms of transport in the UK. Standards will vary around the world but UK standards are very high.

The point of the story was about a new process we launched – and are very excited about – to combat bed bugs and cockroaches.

We’re really sorry that the numbers that appeared in the media were wrong and misleading and we’ve put in place a number of measures to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

If you are interested, the original press release can be viewed here.

Insect pests such as bedbugs and cockroaches are not only unpleasant but are difficult to eliminate as they can hide in the deepest recesses. Chemical treatments have historically been the main method for controlling infestations. However recent bedbug research in the US, lead by Dr Mike Potter, has shown genetic mutations in bedbugs which is making them increasingly resistant to insecticides.

Rentokil now offers a new chemical free pest control process called Entotherm which can be used across various industries as described by Savvas Othon. This chemical free treatment is quick, efficient and reaches all areas of an infestation. It can eliminate insects, mould and pathogens (and others including wood-boring insects) through the application of dry heat.

The Entotherm heat treatment eliminates all lifecycle stages of an insect including eggs, larvae and adults. The heat kills insects by denaturing the proteins within their bodies and disrupting the waxy outside layers of the insects, causing them to dehydrate. As Entotherm requires only a single application, it causes minimal disruption to a business. The chemical free process also allows treated areas to be re-used immediately with no residual side effects.

The process works by heating an infested area to a predetermined temperature using strategically placed heat exchangers. Heat probes and thermal imaging technology are then used to confirm all targeted insect pests have been effectively eradicated.

As is the case every Olympics (Winter or otherwise), I am in awe of what the human body can achieve.  The years of dedication, of training, of success and of triumph that Olympians endure deserves our respect.

But in watching the 2010 Olympics, it occurred to me that humans have nothing over most pests when it comes to amazing physical abilities and there and some pretty amazing unbelievable truths too.   Now, as I said, I have complete respect for all human Olympians.   But just think about the events we could hold at The Pest Olympics and what amazing pest feats you might see:

The High/Long Jump: Mice have a 12 inch vertical jump while rats have a 36 inch vertical jump and a 48 inch horizontal jump. Some fleas can jump 150 times their own length. That compares to a human jumping 1,000 feet!  (One flea actually broke a world record and won a gold medal for jumping 4 feet!)

The Tight Squeeze: Rats can fit through openings that are as small as 1/2 inch in diameter and can climb the inside of vertical pipes that are 1 1/2 to 4 inches in diameter.  (Fortunately, a proessional pest control comany can advise on how best to close these gaps!)

The Long Distance Shuffle: Bedbugs are capable of traveling as far as 100 feet to feed.  That may not sound like much until you consider that we’re talking about an animal that is 1/8 inch long.

The Speed Demon: If a man could run as fast for his size as an ant can, he could run as fast as a racehorse.

The Weight Lifting Event: Remember the Rubber Tree Plant song?!  Ants can lift 20 times their own body weight.

The Rodent Free Fall: Did you know a mouse can jump down 12 feet and a rat can drop down 50 feet without injury?

The Slam Dunk: A single brown bat can catch around 1,200 mosquito-size insects in one hour.

Survivor at Sea: Rats can swim 1/2 mile in open sea and tread water for 3 days. They can dive 100 feet underwater and hold their breath for as long as 15 minutes.

Everybody travels to beautiful locations these days. Everybody has beautiful photographs of his/her trip. Everybody has beautiful stories to tell. Yes, I agree on that. However, I have noticed that stories of having seen a certain place of touristic value will not really draw your listeners from the woodwork. BUT as soon as you start telling stories about nasties, such as waking and being crawled over by bedbugs, well, then you really get the audiences undivided attention.

Since travel guide books always give you an extensive list of places to see and things to do (which let’s face it thousands of other people will also see and do), I thought it would be a novel idea to give you my top 5 list of pests to see or experience (not a trip for the faint hearted though if you see them all at once) to make your holiday an unforgettable event.

Trust me, your audience at home will appreciate the extra effort in making the photo-reviewing evenings more interesting by adding some horror to paradise. And yes, I am sharing my first hand experiences with you, and yes they involved a lot of pain and itching.

Maybe a cliché, but listening to travelers it always seems there is an endless collection of horror stories with only one lead role: Cockroaches. I am sure your holiday would be much more peaceful without them (and your risk of food poisoning and other diseases as well). On the other hand there would be less opportunity to scare people at home without them. At best you can create the image of you being a fearless adventurer, because out of the whole group YOU were the only person who took the shoe and killed the offender.

You will be able to discover the local varieties of mosquitoes almost anywhere. But be aware, as with all wild animals there is a need to be alert: Some of these critters might be able to transmit some nasty diseases, such as Malaria, Dengue or Chikungunya. So my advice would be to skip searching for this pest. Anyway, you won’t have much searching to do, as they will for sure find you. In this case though, my advice would be that having almost died of a mosquito-borne disease is too much effort for making your holiday stories more interesting.

Everywhere else known as peaceful pollinators and producers of honey, the local variety of bees (Rock bees), build large nests, preferably on high trees, or on buildings, where they create a lot of trouble for people living on the other side of the windows. They should not be considered as general pests, but definitely do their part in troubling people on the higher levels of buildings.

The urban legends of the giant sewer rat will become truth once you lay your eyes on the secretive, yet common, Bandicoot rat. Best chances to see them are within human settlements and especially at night. Be aware though, they are fierce attackers if cornered (see my first post). Another similar “nice” surprise is the local roof-rats, who can scare you out of your wits with their noises inside a jungle hut at night.

For those of you who think bed bugs are some myth from ancient times, well here is the “good” news, they are still alive and kicking. Try for some very low budget hotel, or travel a lot with overnight busses, and you might be able to spot some of these elusive animals. However, most pest experts will assure you that you have a higher likeability of getting bitten than actually seeing them, which makes actual sightings an exciting photo opportunity to show friends at home. However, due to unknown reasons this pest has managed to increase its geographical reach over the last few years, which might depreciate their value as a holiday experience. And if you are not careful enough, who knows maybe they will travel in your luggage.

Ah, and then there are always fleas, ticks, pigeons and numerous other pests, but the ones I mentioned above should be enough to start with. If you want to go pro, check the pest guides and I am sure you will find more interesting pests.

I have to admit though, that working for Rentokil and the knowledge that all these pests can be controlled, really reduced my fears of involuntarily introducing these pests to my home after some extensive travelling.

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Take a look at these other deBugged lists:
Top 10 unbelievable truths
Top 10 pest urban myths
9 lessons I learnt putting together a blog
Top 5 movies Rentokil would have ruined because its infestation not entertainment

There’s something about a peaceful lakeside vacation that makes you a bit more reflective about the mundane.  Every day me and my colleagues think about pests in some form or another as part of our jobs – pests in homes, bedbugs in hotels, stinging insects at a picnic, the list goes on and on.  But as I watched my friends and family nurse mosquito bites we had received while fishing at dusk, I really started to think about how pervasive pests are.

Pests are not limited by season.  Sure, here in the Northeast, pests are more visible during the spring and summer.  Ants scurry in endless search of food; termites are busy caring for their colony queen, and millipedes are doing whatever millipedes do. In the early fall, we try to avoid stinging insects and survive October’s boxelder bugs that seem to appear out of nowhere.  Even in the dead of winter, we’re mouse-proofing our homes while others battle the cockroach.

Pests are not limited by location or social class.  They’re in the cleanest of homes and the dirtiest.  They’re in budget motels and the swankiest of restaurants. Pests are not limited by economic health.  In the words of our now-retired CEO, “The bugs don’t k know whether we’re in a recession or not.”  When the economy is good, pests are there.  When the economy is bad, pests are still there.

And pests, as I was reminded this week, are not limited by going on vacation.  Pests are the ultimate worker, always efficient and never on vacation.