Commercial properties are not immune to many of the pest issues that bug homeowners. Your property is home to your business. So don't let uninvited pests make it their home, where they can annoy your customers, guests, and employees.
Flies are a commonly encountered pest in and around commercial properties. This should not come as a shock, considering there are more than 16,000 species of flies in North America. Aside from being a nuisance, flies can spell trouble for commercial properties, especially those properties involved in food processing and service, hospitality, and healthcare.
Flies present a significant public health threat because of the harmful bacteria – E. coli and Salmonella – that flies can transmit to food and food preparation, storage, and cooking surfaces.
Warm weather is fly weather
During the warmer spring and summer months, the rate of decomposition increases for the food sources flies like to feed. From fresh produce to garbage, compost, and animal feces, the quicker it spoils and breaks down, the more flies love it.
Property managers and business owners play an important role in an effective fly prevention and control plan. Having good cleaning and sanitation protocols in place, and working closely with your pest management service provider to identify conditions conducive to fly infestations, will go a long way toward keeping your commercial property or facility fly free.
Sanitation is critical
Good sanitation practices in and around your facility are critical to keeping flies from gaining a foothold. When you consider that a single garbage can, not emptied, can provide a breeding ground for up to 30,000 flies, you’ll think twice about waiting to take out the trash.
- In restaurant kitchens and other food preparation or production areas, keep trash pails, drains, and drain traps clean. Counter spaces and chopping blocks should be wiped down regularly.
- Empty dumpsters regularly, and keep them away from exterior doors.
- Food should remain refrigerated when it is not being used.
Correct fly identification
Correctly identifying the fly species infesting your facility is the first step toward gaining the upper hand. Proper identification allows pest management professionals to determine possible causes and locations for the infestation, so they can design a targeted control plan. An incorrect identification can lead you on a wild goose chase, wasting valuable time and resources.
Eliminating the attraction
What is attracting the flies to your facility in the first place? Is this fly breeding in your facility or coming in from the outside? Is it a sanitation issue or is there structural failure (e.g., backed-up drains, missing screens, negative air flow, faulty air doors)?
Keeping doors closed and windows properly screened will deny access to flies. For fly species that breed inside, cleaning floor drains, waste cans, and wet spills will get rid of the necessities that flies need to breed.
Installing air curtains over doorways can help reduce fly access, and strategically placed insect light traps will help measure the effectiveness of your sanitation and other fly prevention efforts.
If you remove the source of the attraction, you’ll likely remove the flies.
If you are looking for a pest management partner that understands your business and can help your company create a pest-free environment inside and out, call Clark Pest Control at (800) 936-3339.