Pest Management Professional, March 2010

ADVERTORIAL Avian Plus is the Scentsible Solution for Large Areas Dealing with sparrows starlings and pigeons in a home improvement warehouse distribution center can be a daunting task especially when the facility is 240000 sq ft Netting just wasnt an economically viable option says Matt Stueve commercial sales representative and installer for ProGuard Columbus Ohio During the bid process we proposed misting for the birds but by the time everything was approved we realized that Avian Plus was available We thought the facility was a perfect candidate for trying it out Avian Plus distributed by Bird B Gone Mission Viejo Calif is a bird hazing system that uses natural scents to deter pest birds from enclosed and semi enclosed areas A total of six Avian Plus units were installed in locations around the warehouse facility to protect merchandise from bird dropping damage I discussed the account with Rich Martin and Ian Rowsby at Bird B Gone and they helped me decide how many units to use placement etc Stueve explains It turned out to be a great and successful installation Stueve and his team determined the air current patterns in the warehouse facility as well as in the clients 4000 sq ft forklift maintenance shop office building where the bird pressure was actually even more intense In both buildings Stueve says birds were roosting in the steelwork and conduit and pipe areas The volume of droppings was not only a potential health hazard to employees he says but was ruining pallets of merchandise and thus disrupting business flow for the client To this customer one or two birds flying around was not a big deal he says But it was the sheer numbers of birds roosting that caused the trouble EASY INSTALLATION The ProGuard team installed six Avian Plus units in the facility and one unit in the maintenance shop We set them up high enough so the mist reaches the ceiling but that they can still be accessed with a stepladder Stueve says noting that the units are about 8 to 10 ft from the approximately 25 ft ceilings At these heights there should be no concern over damage from a forklift or other equipment The control settings are similar to setting a digital alarm clock Stueve says so it was an easy learning curve for the clients employees With the initial install were going back every other week to adjust the settings but soon this will become a semi annual account he says The clients will be able to change out the scent cartridges and adjust the settings as needed and then our visits will be more Each unit features an easy to replace cartridge and is as simple to program as a digital alarm clock about quality assurance changing an air filter and simple calibration Best of all unlike sight or noise deterrents birds will never become acclimated to the scent This fresh linen fragrance is pleasant to humans notes Stueve but horrible for birds Theres no chemical odor about it Stueve adds its like a candle or air freshener When we first installed it in the warehouse we started it at a low level and gradually brought it up to clear out the birds Now that the population has decreased we can keep it down to a level that is hardly noticeable For the maintenance shop he notes the bird problem was so intense that employees requested the unit be turned up to high levels from the start to crash the population quickly They were willing to work with a strong level of the scent for a day or two and then we were able to taper it off to more normal levels after the bird problem was under control Stueve says The workers actually like the scent Bottom line Ninety perent of the pest birds have been moved out of the facility and the customer loves it 800 392 6915 Bird B Gone com www mypmp net MARCH 2010 PEST MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONAL BG9