UK Pest Information: Guide to Common Invaders

If you’re looking for pest information for the UK, you’ve come to the right place! At Pest Stop Boys, we’ve seen it all: from pesky pigeons to worrisome wasps, we’re well aware of how much distress pests can cause.

Read on to learn more about the most common UK pests, the risks they pose, how to prevent them and when to call out professional pest control services.

Common pests in the UK

Common UK pests tend to fall under four different categories:

• Rodents: These include rats, mice and squirrels – all of which can damage your property, spread disease and cause distress to the building’s occupants. They can also breed quickly, making them hard to eliminate. 
• Birds: Pigeons, gulls, sparrows, swallows…many UK birds can be classed as pests due to their nesting habits, noise pollution and property damage. They can also attract other pests and spread disease.
• Insects: Swarms of ants, infestations of bed bugs, fleas brought in by other wildlife, clothes moths destroying wardrobe contents…insect infestations can be hard to tackle – and particularly unpleasant for a building’s residents.
• Bees & Wasps: Bee and wasp nests can appear in the most unlikely of places during the summer months – and tackling them alone is unwise!

Some of these are easy to identify – either by sight or through the damage or droppings they leave. Others can be more of a challenge…but we’re here to help.

Discovering pests in your property can be upsetting – and could potentially lead to the need for expensive repairs. However, there’s also the health and safety element to consider.

Different pests can carry all sorts of diseases, bacteria, parasites and viruses. In extreme cases, these can result in serious illnesses like lyme disease, rabies, allergic reactions and microbial diseases. If you own a commercial property that employs staff or has public visitors, these can spread quickly – and business owners can be fined or imprisoned as a result.

Whether at home or at work, everyone should be entitled to a safe environment – and that includes dealing with infestations as soon as they’re discovered. Pest control – including both prevention and elimination – will help to guard you against disease, property damage and potentially even legal action.

Pest Prevention Strategies

We’re here if you need help with pest control. We’re also here if you want advice on avoiding infestations in the first place. While nothing’s guaranteed, these measures will help prevent problems before they begin:

• Keep things clean. The smallest of spillages and food scraps can entice a single pest…and they’ll tell their friends.
• Secure access points. Check window and door seals, as well as cracks in doors, walls and floors.
• Control your rubbish. Rubbish should be in lidded bins: birds and rodents can easily tear through bin bags.
• Discourage nesting. As well as removing materials that pests could use to build nests, consider cutting back any branches that overhang the property as well as climbing plants. This will limit access to your property.
• Consider pets. We’re by no means suggesting you get rid of your pets. Cleaning up dropped food and faeces and staying up to date with flea and worm treatments (where appropriate), though, can minimise some infestation risks.
• Be vigilant. Clean under furniture and in rarely used spaces to make them less appealing to pests, and keep your eyes peeled for any sign of pests.

There are various ways to work out whether you have a problem with pests in your residential or commercial property – such as:

• Droppings: These could be the size of a pinhead and red (bedbugs), small and dark and in cupboards or around skirting boards (mice or rats), or an inch long and oblong-shaped (squirrels). Lots of guano (bird droppings) around your property could also signify a bird infestation. 
• Damage: Rats and mice can gnaw on skirting boards, as well as through soft furnishings. Large holes in clothes or curtains can signal the presence of clothes moths, while many pests can also damage the structure of your building. Nesting birds can damage solar panels, rodents can chew through wires, wasp nests in your loft can weaken roof beams. In food businesses, various pests can also eat their way into food storage containers and spoil the business’ stock.
• Bodies: Whether it’s live animals or the remains or casings of particular pests, you may sometimes spot the cause of the infestation yourself – although this is easier with some pests than others.
• Smells: Musty smells can sometimes be caused by pests. Bedbugs can smell sweet, while rat and mouse urine leaves an ammonia smell. Bird droppings can leave a nasty scent, while dead and decomposing animals will also cause unpleasant odours. If you’re sure that any bad smells in your property aren’t coming from the plumbing, damp or mould issues or rubbish that hasn’t been dealt with, you may have an infestation on your hands.
• Noise: You’ll know if something you hear is out of the ordinary. If that humming noise isn’t from your fridge, could it be a bee or wasp nest? Are there scratching, nibbling, squeaking or scampering sounds that could be rodents? Are there flapping sounds from your attic space that could be a mother bird flying back and forth to feed her new babies?

Some pests can be easy to identify from signs like these. If you’re not sure exactly what’s causing the problems, though, professional pest control services like ours can advise.

You don’t always need to call a professional. If you spot just one or two mice or a small number of ants, you may find that you can buy a solution either online or in a supermarket.

Sometimes, though, you’ll need professional pest control services to get the job done.

If you’ve tried the DIY route and the pests are still there – or have come back – give us a call on +44 1273 634 826.

If you run a business and need pests removed, get in touch.

If the infestation is severe, we’re here to help.

If you have a bee or wasp nest, never try to remove it yourself – that’s why we’re here.

When you hire pest control experts you know that the company you choose has the products, processes and ethos needed to meet industry standards. At Pest Stop Boys we’re discreet, we’re accredited and we’ll be able to resolve the issue quickly, giving you total peace of mind.

We know you don’t want your potential pest problems to be the talk of the town. That’s why our pest control experts will always arrive in an unbranded van – leaving nosy neighbours none the wiser.

Sustainable Pest Management

Toxic chemicals aren’t always the answer. At Pest Stop Boys we pride ourselves on our environmentally-conscious pest control approaches.

We use non-toxic solutions where possible – and when it’s not, we try to use low-toxicity products. We can also use an Ultra Low Volume (ULV) fogging treatment on certain pests.

We work in line with Integrated Pest Management (IPM) principles and practices. Rather than go straight for the chemicals, we focus on pests’ lifecycles and how they interact with their environments to both prevent and remove pests of all types. This includes solutions like bird spikes to prevent nesting behaviour, as well as advising on entry points that could be sealed to prevent access by pests of various types.

For more pest information – or to find out how we can help with your residential or commercial property – get in touch.