Steve’s Pest Control | ID Your Pest

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Where do termites come from? Subterranean termites come from colonies 3 to 12 feet deep beneath the ground. The colony is comprised of a king and queen, workers, soldiers, reproductives, and nymphs. The queen can live for 20 to 30 years and can lay an egg every 15 seconds! A well-established colony can have over 1,000,000 members. The majority of the members are workers. Workers live between 4 and 5 years and without rest or hibernation forage 24 hours a day for food for their colony. Termite food is anything that is cellulose: dead trees, roots, fallen tree limbs, woodpile, mulch, form boards, buried wood scraps, all lumber, drywall paper, cardboard boxes, etc. Worker termites forage their environment (300–400 foot radius around the colony) for cellulose material, consume it, then return and regurgitate it to the colony.

Q: Can my home really be “pest-free”? Absolutely! We have developed a program that will eliminate any exisiting pest infestation and prevent future insect & rodent problems from re-entering your home. Our program is calle the Five Star Service Plan. The Five Star Service Plan is first designed to eliminate pest and rodents inside your home and to maintain this “pest-free” environment by stopping them on the outside before the come in. There is a 100% year around guarantee with just 5 regular treatments. Please call or e-mail us for additional information and pricing.

Q: How often do I need my home sprayed? This depends on the type of pest and the length of time you want to be pest free. Some pest problems may only require a couple of treatments, while others may need a regular service program. Depending on your particular pest problem and the results you desire (long-term or short-term), we can tailor a program to fit your needs.

Q: Why are pests living around my house and trying to come in? Common pests like ants, spiders, roaches, chrickets, Asian lady bugs, mice, and other “seasonal invaders” require certain elements to survive. They need food, water, and shelter. Most homes have an abundance of these elements inside and out.

Q: What is the best way to get rid of and help prevent pests in and around my home? The first thing is to try to eliminate any conducive conditions that promote pest infestation followed by a professional pest control treatment on the inside and outside of your home. Some preventative measures include:

  1. Making sure all outside doors are well sealed. If you can see light around or beneath a door, insects or mice may also be able to come in!
  2. Plumbing leaks or moisture areas – eliminate all moisture sources in or around your home. This creates an environment crucial to pest survival. Fix leaks, seal cracks and crevices, and provide proper water drainage.
  3. Eliminate unnecessary clutter – around the home and in attics, closets, and basements. Keep stored items in a sealed container or taped up cardboard box.
  4. Good screening on gabled attic vents, crawl space vents, windows, and doors.
  5. Keep opened food in storage containers.
  6. Thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables that are not kept refrigerated (this will help control fruit flies).
  7. Don’t leave dirty dishes out overnight; keep the kitchen and dining areas clean.
  8. Seal gaps around conduit and pipes that come in from the outside.
  9. Remove accumulated leaves and debris from the gutters, roof, and foundation perimeter.
  10. Keep garage doors closed. Make sure the weather stripping is in good shape for a tight seal.
  11. Keep debris, clutter, scraps, and woodpiles sway from your home’s foundation.
  12. Keep excess vegetation trimmed away from your home’s roof, eaves, windows, and siding. This vegetation creates easy access into your home.


Q: Is it necessary to treat the interior of a home for head lice? In most cases, a professional extermination is not necessary. Prescribed shampoo treatments and/or over the counter products containing insecticides are the normal procedures for treatment of head lice. Since not all eggs and nits may be killed with one application, two or more treatments may be needed to obtain total control. Please read and follow the label directions for the use of these products. It is also important to wash and dry clothing and bedding on the “hot” setting of your machine.

Q: What are the options available to treat for termites? First, we highly recommend that this is something that requires a professional service and strongly suggest not trying to do this yourself.
Simply put, there is a permanent and a temporary option available. The permanent solution is to eliminate the entire termite colony not just individual termites. Total colony elimination is achieved with the Sentricon Termite Colony Elimination System manufactured by Dow AgroSciences. This is the only system proven to eliminate Eastern Subterranean Termite colonies and is supported by research from 18 independent universities and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Sentricon System has been on the market for over 12 years and has protected nearly two million structures, including the Statue of Liberty, the White House, the Alamo, and other national treasures. Colony elimination is achieved through a monitoring and baiting process that requires no concrete drilling, uprooting of landscape, and no pesticide application. Monitoring stations are strategically installed around the structure and are monitored frequently. When termite activity is found, IGR bait is administered. Termites consume the bait, take it back to the colony, and share it with the others. Once consumed, termites can no longer molt and will suffocate and die. Each bait tube contains 1 gram of active ingredient and can eliminate 10 to 12 million termites! Once termites start feeding on the baited material it usually takes 1 to 3 months to confirm total colony elimination. The Sentricon System delivers constant protection by the continued monitoring for new colonies. Steve’s Pest Control, Inc. has been an Authorized Sentricon Operator for over 11 years. We are so confident in the performance of the Sentricon System that we offer a full $250,000 damage warranty when we install this system!
The second option is to provide temporary control by injecting a liquid termiticide material around the foundation of an infested structure. This method will kill termites if they forage into the “treated zone” and depending on the material used may have the ability to also affect others by contact (not more than 20% of the actual colony). This method is much more intrusive and requires concrete drilling, trenching and possible landscape disruption, and the use of sometimes hundreds of gallons of pesticides. Realistic length of control time is between 3 to 5 years. A re-treatment guarantee is available followed by an annual termite inspection.

Q: Is my home at risk of a termite attack? Unfortunately, yes! Missouri is known as a heavily infested part of the country. It is said that homes are literally built on an ocean of termites and that it is not a question of if you’re going to get them, but when. Worker termites are actively foraging 24 hours a day all 12 months of the year. They constantly search a 300–400 foot radius around their colony for food (wood). There can be in excess of over 1,000,000 workers in one colony and up to 20 colonies in one acre of ground. Termites can forage up to 30 feet in depth and gain access through a crack 1/32 of an inch. Once a colony has been established 3 to 5 years, the queen will produce reproductive members nicknamed “swarmers.” These swarmers are actually new kings and queens of a future colony that they are trying to establish.

Q: If I choose to have the Five Star Service Plan, do I need to have the inside treated with each service? No, in fact, most pest problems start on the outside. If there is an existing problem inside, we will eliminate it with a thorough crack and crevice treatment and perimeter application. Maintaining a peat-free environment will then focus on the outside. With our exterior power spray service, we will treat the exterior of your home including the eaves, gutter line, overhangs, siding, around windows, doors, and all entry points, foundation, deck, sidewalks, mulch, vegetation, and an approximate 5-foot radius around the perimeter. We will eliminate pests on the outside before they have a chance to enter the house!

Q: How much damage can termites cause? An active infestation from a well-established colony can consume 20–30 board feet per year! They’ll eat any kind of wood material, from a home’s wood structure to its furniture. Each year, termites attack about four million homes in the United States and cause over $5 billion in property damage! Termites cause more damage annually than all storms, fires, and earthquakes combined, and it is rarely covered by homeowner’s insurance.

Q: What is a termite swarm? A phenomenon that annually occurs when a mature termite colony produces reproductive members for developing additional colonies. Most termite swarms occur in the spring, March through May, when the temperature and humidity is right for the colony. “Swarmers” leave the colony, follow the underground trails made by the workers, and emerge from an area where there is an active infestation. Swarmers are usually black with two pairs of long wings (equal in length) which are about twice as long as their body. They are not strong fliers and when swarming outside will ride the wind as they disperse from the origin of the swarm site. Upon landing, they shed their wings, search for a suitable mate, and dig themselves into the ground to start a new colony. A termite swarm can consist of thousands at one time and a large colony may swarm several times in a single season. If you experience a termite swarm, you have an active infestation from a mature colony. Call Steve’s Pest Control, Inc. for a no-charge termite inspection and estimate.

Q: How can I tell the difference between a swarmer and a winged ant? It's very easy to identify an ant from a termite if you know what to look for:

  1. Termites have two pairs of wings that are equal in length. Ants have two pairs of wings but they are unequal in length.
  2. Termite wings are about twice as long as their body. Ant wings are just a little bit longer than their body.
  3. Termites have an unsegmented body. Ants have a segmented body (“pinched waist”) with a head, thorax, and abdomen.
  4. Termites have curved antenna. Ants have elbowed antenna.


Q: What are the options available to treat for termites? First, we highly recommend that this is something that requires a professional service and strongly suggest not trying to do this yourself.

 Simply put, there is a permanent and a temporary option available. The permanent solution is to eliminate the entire termite colony not just individual termites. Total colony elimination is achieved with the Sentricon Termite Colony Elimination System manufactured by Dow AgroSciences. This is the only system proven to eliminate Eastern Subterranean Termite colonies and is supported by research from 18 independent universities and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Sentricon System has been on the market for over 12 years and has protected nearly two million structures, including the Statue of Liberty, the White House, the Alamo, and other national treasures. Colony elimination is achieved through a monitoring and baiting process that requires no concrete drilling, uprooting of landscape, and no pesticide application. Monitoring stations are strategically installed around the structure and are monitored frequently. When termite activity is found, IGR bait is administered. Termites consume the bait, take it back to the colony, and share it with the others. Once consumed, termites can no longer molt and will suffocate and die. Each bait tube contains 1 gram of active ingredient and can eliminate 10 to 12 million termites! Once termites start feeding on the baited material it usually takes 1 to 3 months to confirm total colony elimination. The Sentricon System delivers constant protection by the continued monitoring for new colonies. Steve’s Pest Control, Inc. has been an Authorized Sentricon Operator for over 11 years. We are so confident in the performance of the Sentricon System that we offer a full $250,000 damage warranty when we install this system!

The second option is to provide temporary control by injecting a liquid termiticide material around the foundation of an infested structure. This method will kill termites if they forage into the “treated zone” and depending on the material used may have the ability to also affect others by contact (not more than 20% of the actual colony). This method is much more intrusive and requires concrete drilling, trenching and possible landscape disruption, and the use of sometimes hundreds of gallons of pesticides. Realistic length of control time is between 3 to 5 years. A re-treatment guarantee is available followed by an annual termite inspection.