The importance of good pest control for your hotel
The presence of pests can be a big turnoff for guests when it comes to selecting their hotel. With increased use of social media and Trip Advisor a negative guest experience can very quickly be shared worldwide.
Unfortunately, no matter how careful you might be, there is still the possibility of pest finding a home in your hotel!
You’ll all no doubt be aware of both the cost implications and inconvenience a pest infestation can cause. The risks you face include loss of revenue from having bedrooms out of use, prosecution by the local health authorities and not to mention damage to your reputation.
For these reasons it is important to have a pest management system in place at all times.
What pests am I most likely at risk of?
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that bed bugs are one of the most commonly reported pest problems in hotels. According to research, hotels are the third most likely place you’ll encounter a bed bug infestation.
Not only can bed bugs be unpleasant but they are extremely resilient and difficult to locate and eradicate. If not treated effectively and quickly, bed bug infestations will rapidly spread within your hotel, and the cost implications can be significant. It is therefore important to ensure housekeeping staff know how to spot the signs of bed bugs and report these straight away.
Terminix have a unique method of treating bed bugs that involve minimum use of pesticide and allows treated rooms to be occupied within hours of treatment. We also employ trained dog handlers and sniffer dogs that can locate a live bed bug within a hotel room within seconds!
Did you know Bed Bugs could lay up to 500 eggs per month and can live up to 50 days?
Is there anything else I should be aware of?
Rodents and cockroaches are also common pests found within the hospitality industry and when left untreated can cause significant damage to property, wiring and fixtures within your hotel. Aside from this, they also carry diseases which can pose a serious threat to human health such as Toxoplasmosis, Lyme disease, Weil’s disease, Leptospirosis, and Salmonellosis.
On the exterior of buildings and roof tops avian pests (most commonly feral pigeons) can also cause problems including damage to building and be a breeding ground for textile pests. Thankfully, in an era where we’re constantly embracing new technology, it allows us to find roof pests in a much safer and quicker way, through the use of drones. Drones are becoming increasingly popular to enable pest controllers to perform inspections on high rise buildings and roofs that are otherwise difficult to reach.
The new technology also allows easy viewing of pest entry points and roosting areas that may not be viewable from below without the cost of hiring expensive access equipment.
Comprehensive pest management solutions are necessary to ensure you maximise revenue per average room rates, occupancy levels and reduce the risk of costly “book outs.”
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