Resolvit owner Paul Corkin dusting for ants and cockroaches. Photo / George Novak
Resolvit owner Paul Corkin dusting for ants and cockroaches. Photo / George Novak
It has been a hot and dry summer, and several Tauranga pest controllers have been feeling the heat and noticing a few changes.
Resolvit owner Paul Corkin said they had been busy with a huge number of calls this summer.
"Things like ants and cockroaches coming inside looking for water.
"We are getting a lot of calls for problems with wasps, and still getting calls for rodents which is unusual at this time of year, but we are getting calls every day for rodents."
He said in this hot summer weather getting fully kitted up in the protective gear was quite warm, and they had to try to time when they went into roofs.
Corkin said cleanliness was a huge thing with minimising pests coming into the home.
Resolvit owner Paul Corkin. Photo / George Novak
"Clean up spillages, keep patios clean and clean out barbecues. We are getting lots of cockroaches and rats in barbecues eating the fat off the grills."
He said to also try, where possible, not to leave water outside, because it would attract rats and other pests.
Pestworks Tauranga owner Patrick Allen with rat traps. Photo / File
Pestworks Tauranga owner Patrick Allen said it was always busy in summer with spiders, cockroaches and other general pests.
"We're doing a lot German wasp nests. German wasps are very aggressive."
He said he had gone to Te Puna on Thursday and treated a wasp nest of nearly a metre long.
"There are a lot of calls for this and ants seem to be a big problem as well."
He recommended people call a professional to deal with German wasp nests.
"We've come across a lot of clients trying to tackle the nests themselves and getting stung."
Allen said there had also been a lot of calls from people finding pests such as ants in the shower and toilet bowls - maybe looking for water because it was so dry outside.
"One thing that's certain is we are not getting many calls for flies. Normally in summer there are a lot of complaints about flies but maybe because it is so dry we are not."
The highest temperature recorded by MetService at Tauranga Airport in December was 26.8C and in January 32.2c. The historical average for December is 26.3C and for January 28.1C.
The rainfall recorded by MetService at Tauranga Airport in December was 60.8mm and in January 19.4mm. The historical average for December is 95.6mm and for January 67.8mm.
The highest recorded temperature in February so far is 33.6C and the rain total in the past 30 days is 0.8mm.
