Blog

Winter so often serves as a reprieve from the relentless summer heat, but while the mercury may fall, not every irritation disappears during the final months of the year. Consider pests, for instance. Many homeowners and business managers believe that they won’t have to deal with common house bugs in winter since they don’t see mosquitoes buzzing around during December. But did you know that winter remains an active time for many kinds of pests? PestWorld notes that cockroaches can survive below-freezing temperatures and that multiple kinds of rodents will invade over 20 million residences each and every winter. If you’re wondering if pest control is necessary in the winter, then look no further than those statistics.  Read More »

Termites are working 24/7 365 days a year. Fortunately for you, so is our termite protection!

Termite Awareness Week runs from March 6-12, 2022. During this time, experts at The Professional Pest Management Alliance are encouraging members of the pest control industry to get the word out about the risks and prevention of residential termite infestations.

Learn more about Termite Awareness Week at PCT Online Read More »

The Pale King, David Foster Wallace’s posthumously published book about IRS auditors, contains the simultaneously pithy and profound line: “Insects all business all the time.” Knowing Wallace, he doubtlessly intended a deeply imaginative and metaphorical meaning for these words, but they also do a good job just generally describing how the world of bugs works. Insects don’t really take coffee breaks, go on vacation, or enjoy an early retirement. Their every action is somehow related to their ongoing survival and propagation — and that is just as true with winter bugs and winter pests as it is with irritants encountered any other time of the year. Read More »

Bees and wasps, bedbugs and mosquitoes, cockroaches and ants: Summer pests can sure prove a pain, can’t they? Fortunately, winter serves as a welcome reprieve for homeowners and business owners, the cold sends creepy crawlies and irritating rodents into dormancy — right? Well, not quite. Yes, it’s true that many types of pest problems improve during the winter. For instance, most pest control companies notice a dip in bed-bug activity during the winter, which may owe as much to fewer people traveling as it does a change in the insects themselves. But winter pests are real, and few can afford to ignore them entirely when the mercury begins to fall. In this post, we will explain why cold weather doesn’t drive away every kind of pest, why the cold months can put your home at greater risk, and why winter pest control should become part of your sanitation protocol. Read More »

Were one to only pay attention to popular presentations about the importance of bees, you could be forgiven for thinking these little yellow-and-black insects did nothing but good for the world. As one advocacy group puts it, “Honeybees — wild and domestic — perform about 80 percent of all pollination worldwide. A single bee colony can pollinate 300 million flowers each day. Grains are primarily pollinated by the wind, but fruits, nuts and vegetables are pollinated by bees. Seventy out of the top 100 human food crops — which supply about 90 percent of the world’s nutrition — are pollinated by bees.” Read More »

We are happy to announce that we have recently acquired Terre Haute, Indiana-based Pioneer Pest Control, a family-owned and operated business since 1982. We will continue to service existing and new residential and commercial customers throughout Chicagoland and the Midwest.

We are confident that Pioneer Pest Control’s existing clientele will be pleased with the recent merger. Customers can be certain they will continue to receive the highest levels of service and support they’re accustomed to. Pioneer Pest Control shares the same eco-conscious values and goals as our team and we are excited to welcome them to the Smithereen family.

This recent merger will allow Smithereen Pest Management to continue to grow and provide thorough, effective and environmentally sensitive pest control services throughout the Midwest. Contact us today at (847) 647-010 to learn more about our services.

According to the National Restaurant Association, 2020 saw restaurant revenues reach $659 billion, a decline of more than 25 percent from expected amounts. But as the COVID-19 pandemic starts to wane, consumer demand has begun to ramp up — and the need for pest control services for restaurants is also increasing. Everyone understands that no restaurant customer wants to encounter a skittering cockroach and that cooks would cringe if they found rat droppings. But pest control regulations for restaurants mean that restaurateurs risk more than their reputations if they run a dirty establishment. They could also get shut down. Read More »

Homeowners face plenty of situations that make their blood pressure spike. The constant pressure of making mortgage and insurance payments. The sudden need for unexpected repairs. The threat of natural disasters such as floods, blizzards, mudslides, windstorms, and wildfires. But despite the challenges posed by these alternately normal and extraordinary challenges, they don’t normally cause as much damage as a little thing that gets no larger than three-eighths of an inch: an ordinary flying termite. Read More »

When it comes to terrifying insects, homeowners generally agree that termites rank near the top of the list. They may not have the irritating sting of mosquitoes, the painful bite of ants, or the ick factor of cockroaches, but termites do something that’s even more troubling: Termites can wreck untold damage on structures — structures that cost a pretty penny and are typically difficult to repair. According to the USDA, the desert subterranean termite “causes an estimated $1.5 billion in losses each year.” And that’s just one subspecies! Read More »

Pest control may not be the most glamorous industry in the world, but it’s one of the most essential — and one that leaves a substantial economic footprint. According to Fortune Business Insights, the global pest control market is worth roughly $20 billion, and it’s expected to grow at a brisk 6 percent clip year over year. And that growth doesn’t just owe to slick marketing. The National Pest Management Association offers some truly startling statistics, and the numbers help the industry’s aggressive expansion make much more sense. For instance, did you know that approximately one-fifth of all worldwide foods gets consumed or spoiled by rodents? What about the fact that “99.6% of pest professionals have treated for bed bugs in the past year”? Or what about how termites cause a whopping $5 billion in property damage each and every year? Read More »