Pest Control in Oakland Park, FL for Mid-Century Homes and Rentals

Oakland Park sits just north of Fort Lauderdale, with many mid-century ranch homes and bungalows, duplexes and small apartment buildings, along with a growing restaurant scene along Dixie Highway. Neighbors gather for events at Jaco Pastorius Park, and the side streets are lined with big shade trees, carports and backyard gardens.

Older homes often have worn door sweeps, aging screens and gaps around plumbing that let palmetto bugs and ants in. Mature trees give roof rats a path to the attic, and nearby restaurants and dumpsters add rodent and roach pressure. Pro-Spray is a family-run, Licensed & Insured South Florida company. We treat homes and rentals carefully, with kids and pets in mind, and explain what we find. Call or text 833-845-9284 for a FREE inspection and $50 off your first service.

Palmetto bugs in older plumbing

Older cast-iron drain lines can crack, and floor drains in laundry rooms and bathrooms can dry out, which gives palmetto bugs a direct route up from the sewer. They also live in the mulch, leaf litter and tree holes of shady Oakland Park yards, and they come inside after heavy rain or on hot nights. Run water in seldom-used drains every week, keep stoppers in at night and pull mulch a few inches away from the walls. We treat the exterior, the drains and gaps they use and the inside spots where they appear.

Roof rats in the shade trees

Oakland Park's mature oaks, mangoes, avocados and palms are beautiful, and they're a highway for roof rats. Rats run along branches and power lines, drop onto the roof and squeeze through gaps at the soffits, gable vents and plumbing stacks. In homes with carports, they also nest in stored boxes and climb into the attic from the carport ceiling.

Common signs include scratching overhead at night, droppings in the attic or storage room, chewed fruit on the ground and gnawed wires. Our rodent service finds the entry points, uses traps and tamper-resistant bait stations placed out of reach of kids and pets, seals the openings we find and follows up. Trimming branches back several feet from the roof is one of the best things you can do. See rodent control.

Carports, storage rooms and utility closets

Instead of a closed garage, many Oakland Park homes have a carport with a small storage room or laundry room at the back. Those rooms are often unfinished, with open block walls, a gap under the door and a water heater or washer that adds warmth and moisture. Paint cans, tools, holiday decorations and cardboard boxes pile up. To a palmetto bug, a mouse or a brown widow, that room is ideal.

We include carport storage rooms in every inspection. A tight-fitting door sweep, plastic bins with lids instead of cardboard, and a clear path along the walls go a long way. We treat the perimeter of the room and the gaps where pests come in, and we check for rodent droppings and gnaw marks on stored items. If the washer or water heater has a slow leak, fixing it removes the moisture that keeps roaches and silverfish around.

Backyard gardens and fruit trees

Many Oakland Park residents grow vegetables, herbs and fruit in the backyard. Gardens are great, but compost bins, fallen fruit and rain barrels can attract rats, roaches and mosquitoes. Use a closed compost bin, pick up fallen fruit every few days, and screen or cover rain barrels. When we treat, we keep products away from your vegetable beds and fruit trees and focus on the house, the foundation and the pest harborage areas around it. If you keep chickens or feed birds, store the feed in a metal can with a lid, because spilled seed is one of the most common reasons rats settle into a backyard.

Spiders, silverfish and damp closets

Older homes with original windows and limited insulation can be damp, and moisture invites silverfish, booklice and springtails in closets, bathrooms and stored paper. Spiders follow the insects, building webs in carports, window corners and under eaves. Most are harmless house spiders, but brown widows are common under patio furniture and in carport storage. Our general pest service covers these, and running a dehumidifier or fixing a leak often solves the root cause.

Pets, fleas and carports

Dogs and cats bring cat fleas home, and fleas develop fast in carpets, pet beds and the shaded corners of carports and patios. Stray cats that sleep under carports or porches can start a flea problem even if you don't have pets. We treat inside the home and the shaded yard areas where fleas develop, and pets need a vet-approved flea product at the same time.

Pests we see most in Oakland Park

• Palmetto bugs: from older drains, mulch and tree holes.
• German cockroaches: in duplex and apartment kitchens.
• Roof rats: in attics reached through big shade trees and carports.
• Ants: white-footed, ghost, crazy and fire ants.
• Mosquitoes: in shady yards with bromeliads and containers.
• Silverfish, spiders and fleas: in damp closets, carports and pet areas.

Our services in Oakland Park

• General pest control for roaches, ants and spiders
• Mosquito control with a backpack fogger and larvicide
• Rodent control for roof rats and mice
• Bed bug treatment
• Commercial pest control for restaurants and shops
• Plans and pricing

Nearby, we also serve Wilton Manors, Fort Lauderdale and Lauderdale Lakes.