Before & After Photos

Recently, I was sent to treat and remove a paper wasp nest for a homeowner in Oakhurst, NJ.  

Paper wasps have that typical appearance we associate with wasps — a slender waist and long legs. They are called “paper” wasps because of how they build their nests. These wasps gather fibers from plant material and mix it with their saliva to make a brown or grey papery material for nest-building. They will build a small paper nest with a single tier of open cells to lay their eggs and rear their young. The nest has no external covering and looks like an umbrella, (that’s why paper wasps are sometimes called umbrella wasps). These nests are commonly attached to the underside of some structure by a short stalk.  

Paper wasps, like any social insect, live in large colonies with a queen and the supporting workers that keep the colony thriving. Other social wasps that we regularly receive calls for are hornets, and yellow jackets. Although paper wasps are considered less aggressive than these other wasps that’s of little consolidation to anyone stung by one of these guys! Any wasp will aggressively defend its nest if it perceives someone as a threat, so a wasp nest that’s in an area where people are regularly walking to and from is a potential hazard that must be removed. If a nest is located somewhere on the property where it’s out of the way and not likely to be disturbed, I recommend to just leave it alone. Wasps can be beneficial insects by reducing other insect populations on the property.

For this nest, I used a quick knock-down aerosol and then removed the nest. These stinging insect jobs are particularly rewarding to me because I know that I likely prevented some awfully painful stings. 

This homeowner in West Long Branch, NJ installed a store-bought dehumidifier for his basement. As most homeowners soon realize, these humidifiers simply aren’t enough for the damp, challenging environment of crawl spaces. In these areas of the home, dehumidifiers must work overtime to keep down humidity to acceptable levels where mold can’t grow. Also, generic dehumidifiers aren’t very powerful. At most, they can cover 500 square feet. This crawl space was almost triple that size. This homeowner realized that he would need to buy something else that actually works. These types of machines aren’t generally available in the big box stores, and after doing the research, he contacted Cowleys. A two-person team came out to install a commercial-grade SaniDry Sedona dehumidifier. We set it up to drain directly into the sump pump. This fully automatic dehumidifier is specifically designed to work in crawl spaces and basements. It, is maintenance-free with no water pan to empty or worry about overflowing. Also, these machines work in spaces as large as 3000 square feet, far more than the footprint of most homes.

Proper dehumidification is essential to prevent mold growth in basements and crawl spaces. Mold will thrive if the moisture content in the air is too high. You don’t need a major water intrusion like a leaky pipe for mold to form. High indoor humidity can trigger dangerous mold growth, and humidity levels are probably the most frequent causes of mold formation that we come across with Jersey Shore homes.

This dehumidifier keeps basements and crawl space below 55% relative humidity. At low humidity levels, mold can’t grow. As an added benefit, dust mites die off. Perhaps the only thing worse than mold spores floating around in your home is dust mite fecal matter. No wonder indoor allergies are so common! We have gotten great homeowner feedback from these Sedonas. They noticeably improve a home’s indoor air quality and help get rid of those stinky musty smells from crawl spaces and basements that waft into the living areas of the home.

A raccoon decided to turn this customers attic in West Long Branch, NJ into it's new home, without the consent of the homeowner! So she called Little Rascals and we were sent out. Once we arrived and started inspecting the home, we knew exactly where the raccoon had entered, through the gable vent! It practically ripped it right off! So we installed a one-way device over the opening and temporarily installed hardware cloth over the entire gable vent. We also placed several baited devices nearby.

The one-way will allow the raccoon to safely leave the attic, but prevent it from getting back in. A short while later, we successfully and safely retrieved the raccoon and then took it to a new, humane location. We then disinfected the entire attic, installed a new gable vent, and then installed a louvered vent guard over the newly installed gable vent. The louvered vent guard is made out of heavy-duty Galvannealed steel. It won't rust, is customized to accommodate vents of all shapes and sizes, and properly secures the gable vents from not just raccoons, but birds, bats, and all nuisance wildlife!

Homeowners in Rumson, NJ, had a bat infestation in their attic. Bats are often attracted to homes for maternity and nesting roosts. The species of bats found in New Jersey have adapted well to using the walls and attic spaces of homes. They make great places to hibernate or raise their young. A wildlife technician had already completed the bat exclusion and sealed their access points into the attic. But more work needed to be done. As often happens, whenever wildlife, especially bats, raccoons, or squirrels, take up residence in attics, they are rude houseguests, and that’s putting it mildly.   

Wildlife can cause a significant amount of damage in a short period of time from their activities. They can cause all sorts of problems such as chewing through wiring, which is a serious fire hazard. A major problem of any wildlife infestation is their urine and often prodigious quantities of droppings. A colony of bats can produce a significant amount of dripping, smelly guano (poop). One of the most common casualties of a wildlife infestation is ruined contaminated attic insulation. Also, from a health standpoint, bat droppings can contain the histoplasmosis fungus and other pathogens. Bat guano, like all wildlife droppings, should be treated as a toxic health hazard. Never enter an enclosed area with wildlife droppings without proper protective equipment. 

A Cowleys home improvement crew was brought in to handle this clean-up. We removed the soiled insulation, sanitized and deodorized the space, and installed 10” of our blown-in cellulose insulation. After it is installed and settles, this dense fire-retardant thermal blanket does an amazing job holding in heat in the winter and conditioned air in the summer. It is an energy-efficient money-saver for homeowners. Also, unlike fiberglass rolls, the coverage of blown insulation is complete and comprehensive. We can fill in all of those hard-to-fit spaces that roll often miss. This insulation also helps with sound and noise dampening. Finally, it even has an effective pest control component. A specialized form of borate is added to the paper fibers. If an insect comes into contact with borate particles will ingest it as part of its grooming, and soon thereafter it’s “game over.”  It’s important to mention that borates are only lethal to insects. It’s completely safe and non-toxic for humans and, for that matter, any other mammal. 

After we were done with our cleanup, you would have never guessed that this attic was once used as a dirty bat cave. Now, this sanitized and deodorized guano-free attic, with its fresh insulation, looked great, smelled great, and was safe, clean, and sanitary.

Recently, I was sent to a home in Rumson, NJ to resolve a troublesome mouse infestation. The homeowner had observed mouse activity in the garage and utility room, and contacted Cowleys before they found their way inside the living areas of the home. Here, the back wall of the utility room directly abutted the garage. Garages are common entry points for mice and I inspected the area to determine how they could be gaining access inside. There was no shortage of entry points. The mice had numerous ways to get inside the garage. I showed the homeowner what needed to be done to stop the mice from gaining access. Both the garage door and side door had openings that needed to be fixed. Often, weather stripping can deteriorate leaving openings and garage doors do not close all the way down. If you can see daylight coming in, assume a mouse can as well. 

I went to work plugging the the hole in the wall into the utility room from the garage with a chew-proof copper mesh. I also installed three RTU (Ready-to-Use) bait stations. These stations have a special key needed to open up the boxes to apply the bait cannot be accessed by non-target animals. These stations also allow me to monitor the level of rodent activity when replenishing the bait. After finishing up with the garage, I plugged up the holes in the utility room and installed two more RTU bait stations there. The homeowner did the right thing by contacting Cowleys at the first sign of rodent trouble. It is far easier to deal with an infestation before they gain access in the kitchen and other living areas of the home.