pest control training

Are in class/online courses like Purdue pest control adequate training to go into field work. It would be hard to find anyone around to apprentice with consider I would be competition.

I am considering adding this service in two years

I am certainly not a Master Pest Controller but most of the stuff we do is not exactly rocket science. Everyone is so litigation

happy nowadays that the suppliers and manufacturers seem to go out of their way to make sure you use their products safely and

correctly.

I realize there is good residual money in pest control however after working with orkin for a year in 2011 i have absolutely, positively NO desire to do anything with bugs

Why not Trapper?

I'm looking at it from a business standpoint, not necessarily what would be enjoyable.

That's the nice part about being your own boss. You do what you want to do, not what you have to do. In our case it only makes sense

for our technicians to be diversified. You're at the customer's house anyway; Why not make them happy and get a larger paycheck all

at the same time.

Paul you are a genius!!!

I can't help it. When you're stuck with a first name like mine, it happens automatically.

Joshua, if you would have stayed, you could probably be wearing a Critter Control shirt and driving a little yellow truck right now.

It's not so much something I personally would want to be doing, but if I can give a tech a few more hours and add to my,bottom line, while staying in the same industry, it makes sense. Unfortunately, as a boss sometimes,you DO have to do what you don't want. No chef running a restaraunt wants to do dishes and scrub floors, but sometimes the dishes get dirty, and that cordon bleu needs a clean plate

Start doing pest control and you are probably going to lose a large portion of your referral base, which is fine if thats what you want (and if the pest control generates more $$ than the refferals). Because of the ability to sell long term contracts and have residual income with pest control, the longer you are in business the more you become a pest control company that does wildlife.

Start with asking your Dept of Ag or state chemist (whoever regulates pest control) and see if anything besides "apprenticeship" qualifies for testing. Years ago I was told that even if I moved to California I would still need to apprentice for 3 years before I could take the test even though I was already licensed in Ohio for chemical application in 5 categories with more than 3 years of experience.

It's almost a must to have some sort of pesticide license in this business, or any business that "disinfects" anything. Talking to the state chemist, the little old lady that cleans houses on the side would need a pesticide endorsement to use practically any product to clean a kitchen counter.

No way paul...even tho cc colors are hawkeye colors aint no way i would hop back into a franchise....

I absolutely love going to work every day....pest control would prob help my bottom line be bigger but i wouldnt enjoy it in the least....why screw up something i love doing?

Me doin pests would be like those pest companies tryin to do wildlife...most aint worth a darn....i stick to what i know...do it very well and enjoy working for a living

Now I know this is Wisconsin and not your normal state but doing pest control has actually strengthened our animal removal business.

We still have wildlife listed first ( Advanced Wildlife and Pest Control ) and just like Joshua, I'm sure most of us prefer doing

animals. The pest control test is not a sure thing like the trapping license but we all have passed it. Like many of you have said a

thousand times before, "Pest guys do not necessarily make good wildlife techs, but ADC guys are usually fantastic pest controllers."

This is why it would be at least 2 years.

Throw Back,

Here in NM you need either 2 years under someone or one of the approved university courses like Purdue and others offer.

I took the IPM from Purdue, great information, solid textbook of course, but ultimately while I'm sure you could head out and
do the work, working under someone for this seems sound.

Personally I did this because I couldn't find pest controllers willing to sub as many others have successfully done.

I haven't gone ahead with the license as I co-op with too many of them in that industry and honestly I'd rather send them their
work and keep my work strictly wildlife.

On the course though, solid info, I took the final at a local extension office where they "proctored" it to assure no cheating...



For the money it was educational, if you use it as a manual along with the product directions and instructions as Wink said, plus
do CEU's with your local pest control supplier (Univar etc...) I'm sure you can do this as many have.

I like learning on the job, but also realize many can't take an indentured position even paid due to constraints, which is why the other
academic options are available.

I have an applicator's license and do stinging insect and rats/mice. That's all I'm gonna do in bug work. I consider PC to be boring and don't like having chemicals all over me.

Dave, I know it doesn't specifically mention this on the bottles but you're not supposed to apply any chemical while you are naked.

( For one thing, it doesn't work as well if the insects are laughing )

Hahahahahahaha

I definitely wouldn't do it if I had to apprentice for 2 years. I just don't have the time for that. If I did I would try to get my c2 contractors license instead.

Bob, I didn't really think about the part that it may force the shift to being a pest control that does wildlife, that's not what I want. But maybe the small niche market will help prevent that?

I believe that would be the case. Dont know for a fact. Maybe some of the guys on here that do both could provide some insight.

Everything comes down to the market area, and now that you point it out you would be 100% right in my area.

We have a few wildlife calls a week, but we have a few bug guys doing very very well.

We have been doing Pest Control as an add on to our wildlife services for many years now. I got certified by accident in the sense I tested to be certified to use rodenticides for mice, rats and voles but the testing agent gave me the wrong category that was for general household insect treatments.

Well I passed the test but questioned the testing agent as to why the testing information I was given didn't appear relevant to the category I was to test for. When they checked the test they realized they had given me the test the fella behind me was to get. So he got mine and I got his.

Long story short, at a later date I was given the right test in my office as I made them come to my place since it was a good drive to go to the testing center in our area. Now we are certified in 3 categories.

Pest control is a good add on for our work.

Here's a question for someone like HD. Why do some states feel it is so important that they make guys apprentice for a lousy pest

control license? Our state will take a complete moron and if he or she has the money to take the course, practically guarantee that

they will pass the test. And I can see their point; we don't have pest controllers making headlines by poisoning pets or making kids

sick. If you can't read labels or use a measuring cup, you don't want to work in the field anyway. You won't make a decent living. I

realize that when you use our mosquito spray truck, you do have the opportunity to cause harm to bodies of water, so that test is a

lot harder but you still don't need an apprenticeship.