My Christmas Wish

My Christmas wish is to get this blog started. I have no idea how to do this, but I’m willing to give it a try. Maybe by my birthday, next week, I’ll have some more of this figured out.

I needed a place to share my random thoughts, ideas, feelings about my daily pest control adventures. I have decided to share them with all of you, in this format. I’m more of a writer than a speaker, so this is probably where I’ll do best.

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For my first post, I’d like to talk about the 18 inch sanitation line in food plants.

These 18in lines are designed to give us- the pest control technician- accessibility to the multi catch traps, pheromones, ILT’s and the like. It also helps make cleaning easier. Some 3rd party auditing firms have this in the requirements.

I have repeatedly asked and told my customers that product can’t be blocking these devices. I need to be able to reach them. I don’t want to go more than the contracted service interval to inspect these devices. I think I have said something like “I’m not as skinny as I used to be”, to which I got a reply – “None of us are”.

Pests left in traps can lead to more pests. Some dermestids can feed on decaying rodents and other insects. It can also become a sanitation issue in itself. Potential contamination of product can occur.

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A customer of mine had warehouse staff that repeatedly pushed pallets too close to the wall. The forklift drivers have smashed a few devices. They have gotten better at leaving me space, but that damn #15 is still inaccessible after a month. I am curious what I might find when I am able to inspect it.

Looks like Santa can’t do anything about that, but maybe Baby New Year can help me out.

Merry Christmas, Melisa Arnold, A.C.E.