In honor of our 50th Birthday, All-American Pest has committed to raise $5000 to help stomp out cancer in our community! Why? Because CANCER BUGS US!  From now until November 12th (our actual birthday), you can help us reach our goal of $5000 by…

1. LIKE us on Facebook and we’ll donate $1 toward our goal

2. Sign up for our emails and we’ll donate another $1

3. Start a new service and we’ll donate $25. You can request a Free Home Evaluation here or call 615-883-8526.

All funds raised will support cancer research or local women undergoing breast cancer treatments in our community through the Tennessee Breast Cancer Coalition and the American Cancer Society.

Nashville's First LEED Platinum Home "Little House Nashville"

Jane Hardy and Rod Kochtitzky’s historic home is the first recipient of a LEED Platinum Certified Home in Nashville, Tennessee. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certifications are awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

E3 Innovate served as the consultant and verifier for this remodeled historic garage and servant’s quarters built in 1920.

All-American Pest Control is proud to protect The Little House Nashville from termites. The Little House earned LEED points by choosing a non-toxic, non-chemical approach for termite protection with the Sentricon Termite Colony Elimination System.

The Sentricon System utilizes only grams of bait (about the sie of a sugar packet) to collapse and eliminate entire termite colonies. The Sentricon System is the most effective termite protection available today. Like the Little House Nashville, Sentricon is also an award winner. Sentricon is the recipient of the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge award presented by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Thousands of Middle TN families trust All-American Pest Control to protect their home with the Sentricon System.

Say congrats to Jane and Rod and thank them for their leadership in sustainability in the comments below.  If it had been over 1 year since your home has been evaluated, click here to request a Free Home Evaluation.

Our fearless and funny leader, Al Foster, is competing at the National Pest Management Association’s Academy this weekend. I got the word that they were putting together a Flash Mob. I sent out word that a Reward would be given to the first person that could send me video!  What a sport!  If you like this video, go to the yellow team’s facebook page and LIKE them. They are in a competition for the most likes. Search for Hex-Pro on Facebook. Their actual page name is Y.P.M and Hex-Pro. SEND AL SOME FACEBOOK LOVE!!!

Here are some best practices to keep mosquitoes from invading your family and backyard.

• Keep grass cut short and shrubbery well trimmed around the house where adult mosquitoes may rest.
• Clean deris from rain gutters to allow proper drainage
• Fill in drain low places to prevent puddles and ruts in the yard
• Keep drains, ditches and culverts clean of weeds and trash so water can flow properly
• Cover trash containers to keep out rain water
• Check around outdoor faucets and air conditioner units and repair leaks or puddles
• Empty plastic wading pools at least once per week and store indoors when not in use
• Make sure your backyard pool is properly cared for when away from the home
• Fill in tree holes and hollow stumps that hold water with sand or concrete
• Change teh water in bird baths, plant pots or drip trays at least once per week
• Dispose of old tires, tin cans, buckets, drums, bottles, plastic sheeting or any water holding containers
• Irrigate lawns and gardens carefully to prevent water from standing
• Eliminate seepage from cisterns, cesspools and septic tanks
• Stock ornamental pools with top feeding predacious minnow
• Check windows and door screens on the home. Be sure they are in good working condition to seal out mosquitoes
• Wear light colored clothing, plus long sleeve shirts and long pants for extra protection
• Use repellents on skin and clothing

These above tips will also help to get rid of mosquitoes. If you need additional help to reduce the populations, All-American Pest Control offers a mosquito reduction service. Unitl July 31, All-American Pest Control, The Dave Ramsey Show and Super Talk 99.7 have teamed up to offer the Dave Rasmey Super Talk Super Special. This special bundle includes quarterly Perimeter Pest Control- plus- spider web removal (where we can reach) each quarter -plus- one annual mosquito service for only $99.70 per quarter.

Reach out to learn more by calling our office at 883-8526. Or request a Free Home Evaluation. A Free Home Evaluation consists of a thorough look from a trained professional inside, under and around your home. We’re looking for visible termite activity, potential termite damage, moisture/water concerns, pest activity and the overall condition of your home. We share our findings and make recommendations.

NAHB Announces National Green Building Award Winners.

SALT LAKE CITY, May 3– Thirteen builders, remodelers and other home building industry professionals were honored today as winners of National Green Building Awards by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) at the 13th annual National Green Building Conference in Salt Lake City.

“These awards recognize and celebrate the most forward-thinking builders and remodelers in green building,” said Bob Jones, immediate past chairman of NAHB and a builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. “These award winners are pushing the envelope of what we can achieve with energy and resource efficiency.”

The Home Builders Association of Middle Tennessee’s Green Building Council and Habitat for Humanity of Williamson County were recipients of the Advocate of the year award for their partnership on the Affordable & Green Home Tour and Education Fair which highlighted easy and inexpensive ways to be green.

The event, which was held in October of 2010, included a tour of two Habitat homes on Alex Drive in Spring Hill, built to the National Green Building-Silver Certification level.  Both homes were still in progress, at different levels of completion, so tour participants could see improvements done at various stages in the construction.

“It’s a popular misconception that it costs a lot of money to build green. But, we are able to build green without seeing an increase in costs.  It’s a win-win situation for our affiliate and our homeowners who are able to save in maintenance costs,” says John Besser, Executive Director for Habitat for Humanity of Williamson County.

Erin Richardson with All-American Pest Control, President of the Green Building Council, said “This award represents a major step forward in educating the public on green building practices.  We are thankful for our partnership with Habitat for Humanity of Williamson County and all the green building professionals that helped make this event come to life.”

To learn more about Habitat for Humanity of Williamson County, visit www.habitatwilliamson.org.

To learn more about the Green Building Council of the Home Builders Association of Middle Tennessee, visit www.hbamt.net/green.htm.

Too learn more about All-American Pest Control, visit www.allamericanpestcontrol.com.

Green Building Advocacy Awards

Five awards were given to individuals or organizations for their efforts in green building advocacy:

• Addison Homes of Greer, S.C., as Advocate of the Year in the Builder category.
• Philip Beere of Green Street Development in Scottsdale, Ariz., as Remodeler Advocate of the Year.
• Dr. Jennifer Languell of Fort Myers, Fla., as Individual Advocate of the Year.
• The Home Builders Association of Greater Tulsa, Okla., as Home Builders Association Advocate of the Year.
• The Home Builders Association of Middle Tennessee’s Green Building Council and Habitat for Humanity of Williamson County, Tenn., as Advocate of the Year  in the Group category.

Additional information about the National Green Building Awards can be found at www.nahb.org/greenbuildingawards.

ABOUT NAHB: The National Association of Home Builders is a Washington-based trade association representing more than 160,000 members involved in home building, remodeling, multifamily construction, property management, subcontracting, design, housing finance, building product manufacturing and other aspects of residential and light commercial construction. NAHB is affiliated with 800 state and local home builders associations around the country.  NAHB’s builder members will construct about 80 percent of the new housing units projected for this year.

Follow NAHB on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NAHBMedia.

If you think you may have bed bugs…call a professional today. Whether it's All-American Pest or someone else. It doesn't matter… what matters is early detection and action. Currently, the industry offers very few effective bed bug monitoring options. Many creative, problem sloving, sleuths are out there trying to invent or develop an effective solution for bed bug prevention, monitoring and control, and I'm hoping some game changing products or devices or on the horizon.

Our freinds at Cooper Pest Solutions and Bed Bug Central, have spent hours of research to determine which monitoring options actually help to detect bed bug infestations at ultra low level infestations. Most all bed bug monitoring and detection devices work when there are 100 bugs. The question is which bed bug monitoring device works when there are only 5 bugs and the occupant is still unaware there is a problem.

We have found three physical devices to be particularly helpful in detecting the low level infestations. We define levels of bed bug infestations in three categories. A low level infestation is 1-20 bed bugs, a moderate level infestation is 21-100 bed bugs, and a high level infestation is over 100 bed bugs.

Mattress and Box Spring Encasements

Mattress and Box Spring Encasements are essential for bed bug control and monitoring. We recommend Protect-A-Bed mattress and box spring encasements with BugLock. Mattress encasements protect your bed and box springs from future infestations and drastically reduce future bed bug inspection/detection time. Not all encasements are created equal, it is important that you use Protect-a-Bed and/or MattressSafe encasements.

 Interceptor Devices

An interceptor device is a very simple device that can play a very important role in the battle against bed bugs. We recommend ClimbUPs. The device is a pitfall trap that is placed under the legs of a bed or furniture used for sleeping or resting. Bugs in other parts of the home or dwelling will travel in search of a blood meal and can be intercepted and trapped as they attempt to gain access to the beds or other furniture that is used for sleeping. For interector devices to work, remove bed skirts and blankets that touch the ground and pull you bed at least 3 inches from the walls.

NightWatch Bed Bug Monitor

NightWatch is an active bed bug monitor that is intended to detect bed bug infestations early. The device employs three distinct bed bug attractants, emitting both heat and CO2 to mimic a sleeping host as well as a chemical attractant that is effective with both immature and mature host-seeking bed bugs. This monitoring device is particularly helpful in vacant dwellings, pre-move  inspections, and environments where hosts are not sleeping on a regular basis. The crew at Bed Bug Central tested this device extensively, and it is essential to run the device for a minimum of 4 consecutive nights.

A visual bed bug inspection by a person is often not cost effective and sometime near impossible when hunting for an ultra low level bed bug infestation. Bed Bug Dog Inspectors is another option and a musch more viable option for ultra low levels than a human visual inspection. Dogs and handler teams have their drawback as well.

If you want a proactive approach to bed bug detection and/or you think you may have a problem, call today! 615-883-8526 We'll be glad to come out and help you to determine your risk level, prevent options, early detection options and/or develop an elimination plan, if needed.

The fear of spiders is the third most common fear… just behind death and public speaking. Here in Middle Tennessee we find 6 very common spiders. These spiders include the House Spider, Hobo Spider, Wolf Spider, Cellar Spider, Jumping Spider, Black Widow Spider and Brown Recluse Spider.

Our customers find that our Perimeter Pest Control program and/or our Green Choice Pest Control program are effective treatments to get rid of spiders. With both program, you get superior exterior treatments to stop spiders before they get inside your home. We create an invisible barrier by treating the foundation of your home, window sills we can reach, splash blocks, garbage cans, garage door openings, and door openings. Both the Perimeter Pest Control and Green Choice Pest Control program, provide you with additional protection for up to 47 different Middle TN pests including…

• Ants
• Crickets
• Firebrats
• Earwigs
• Silverfish
• Flies
• Roaches
• Fleas
• Wasps
• Clovermites
• Pillbugs
• Sowbugs
• Millipedes
• Centipedes
• Mice
• Rats
• Food Infesting Pests
• Beetles
• Weevils
• Fungus Gnats
• Spring Tails
• Lady Bugs
• Moths
• Boxelder Bugs and
• Carpenter Bees

Due to the nature of Brown Recluse Spiders, we recommend a bit more thorough process to reduce brown recluse spider populations. The process starts with a 2 week evaluation period to determine best treatment approach for your home and level of brown recluse activity.

If you need services for general spiders and/or brown recluse spiders, connect with us by phone, email or by filling out our Home Evaluation Form on our website.

There are many aspects to maintaining a healthy, safe, well-maintained home. It's not an easy job to keep the air filters changed, HVAC system checked twice per year, windows cleaned, lawn mowed, etc. I hate to add another item to your long to-do list… but it is important to have your home inspected by well trained professionals for pests and termites. Reach out and we'll coordinate a time that's convenient for you for a no-obligation, free home evaluation.

A Free Home Evaluation consists of a thorough look from a trained professional under, around, and inside your home. We're looking for visible termite activity, termite damage, water and moisture damage, evidence of pests, conditions conducive for future problems, and the condition of vents and ductwork.We provide a written report and upon request we'll provide an estimate for termite protection, pest control, mole control, mosquitoes, and fire ant yard treatments.

It is still amazing the reactions I get when people find out that our company can in fact help with the small creatures that make big havoc of their yard. Moles are a hug nuisance in Middle Tennessee, especially to those folks battling to keep their lawn just right.

If moles are enough, we also deal with Voles! Voles, also known as field mice, are small rodents approximately 5 to 7 inches long. Their coats can be various colors from brown to gray and they have short tails, short legs and a thick furry coat. Unlike moles, voles create both above ground and underground passageways in the soil and they reproduce in large numbers. :Recently, we have found massive amounts of vole activity in Brentwood, Tennessee. Voles feed on vegetation, gnaw at your shrubbery, and cause damage to your grass and gardens.

Your solution to vole damage is quite simple. We will first come out for a no-obligation, free home evaluation. A trained professional will take a look at your yard to first identify and confirm the culprit. With voles confirmed, the treatment process included a two trips to bait.  Voles can return,,, our recommendation is that you bundle vole control treatments with either an on-going Mole Control Program and/or Perimeter Pest Control for general household pests.

Brown Recluse Spiders are not agressive and most bites occur in response to pressure when a spider becomes trapped against bare skin. For this reason, bites are rare even in homes with severe infestations.

What can I do to avoid being biten?

• Keep items such as clothing, bedding, etc off the floor
• Shake out shoes and clothing before getting dressed
• Remove bed skirts and inspect bedding before going to bed
• If you store clothing, shoes, papers, etc use air tight containers and seal them with tape
• Reduce clutter and vacuum regularly under furniture
• Inspect and clean children's rooms often and keep toys in airtight storage containers
• Don't handle live spiders (not even glue board monitors)
• If you purchase a large item inspect it as carefully as possible before bringing it into your home
• If you will be using storage facilities have the unit treated before bringing items back into your homeI

If you believe that you have brown recluse spiders in your home or office, call us for an evaluation. We will come out to identify the spider, place 2-3 monitoring devices in each room, and return 2 weeks later to gather the results. Based on these finds we will customize a plan for your specific home or business. the plan will take into account type of construction, attic condition and use, number of spiders found, inaccessible areas, spider hiding spots, exterior type. While no one can guarantee elimination, All-American does promise that we will be very thorough and provide the best possible treatment to reduce the spider population.

For more information, reach out to us by phone or email.