Do I have to leave the house during pest treatment?
The short answer
It depends on the product and the method, not on the pest. Targeted crack-and-crevice work and baiting usually require nothing more than staying out of the room while it is done. Broadcast spraying, fogging and fumigation are a different matter, and fumigation requires the building to be vacated entirely.
The question to ask, in these words
"What is the re-entry interval for what you are applying, and where does it apply?" The re-entry interval is on the product label, it is specific, and it is the answer. A technician who says "it is fine" without reference to the label is giving you an opinion rather than the information.
What tends to need the building empty
- Fumigation, which requires full vacancy for a defined period and a clearance before re-entry.
- Whole-room heat treatment, because of the temperatures involved.
- Any broad space spray or fogging, for the period stated on the label.
Modern pest work in occupied homes trends the other way: targeted placement in the voids and harbourages where the insects actually are, rather than coating the surfaces people touch. If a company's plan for a kitchen is to spray every surface, that is worth a question in itself.
Also asked
- What about babies and pregnancy?
- Say so before the visit. It reasonably affects product choice, placement and timing, and any competent company will adjust the approach rather than treat it as an obstacle.
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General information about pest problems and about hiring, not advice about your specific property. Pest control licensing, wildlife protection and landlord and tenant law are all set state by state and province by province across the United States and Canada, so your own regulator is the current answer. How we read the data.