When you book a general pest spray with us, there is one choice to make. Inside and out, or outside only?
Inside and out covers the whole home. Outside only keeps everyone at home. Plenty of families book the outside only treatment for exactly that reason. Nobody has to leave the house.
Here is how the two treatments compare, and how to work out which one suits your home.
What Does an Outside Pest Control Treatment Cover?
An outside treatment covers the outside of the house, the garden, the fence line and the washing line area. We treat the places pests sit and travel: the eaves, the window and door frames from the outside, the outside walls, the alfresco area and along the fence.
It is a surface treatment. Anything that walks across a treated area picks it up. That is why it goes where spiders build their webs and where crawling insects make their way towards the house.
And a lot of what ends up inside starts outside. Webbing spiders live on the eaves and around the windows. White tails come inside hunting them. Deal with the spiders on the outside of the house and you take away a big part of the reason the white tails came in.
What an Outside Treatment Does Not Cover
Outside only means outside only. The rooms inside, the roof cavity and the inside of the garage are not treated.
So if the pests are already living inside, an outside treatment will not reach them. Silverfish along the skirting, earwigs in the bathroom, daddy long legs in the ceiling corners. Those need the inside treated.
What Does an Inside and Outside Pest Treatment Cover?
Everything the outside treatment covers, plus the inside of the home, the roof cavity and the inside of the garage.
A general pest treatment deals with webbing spiders, cockroaches, silverfish, earwigs and the rest of the crawling insects that come into a house. Inside, it goes where they hide and travel, such as along the skirting and around the window and door frames.
Leaving the House for Four Hours After an Inside Pest Treatment
If we treat inside, the house needs to be empty for four hours afterwards. That gives the treatment time to dry. Pets go with you, because dogs and cats walk on all fours and groom themselves, and we do not want them doing that while the treatment is wet.
If anyone in the house has allergies or breathing problems, they may need to stay out for longer. Tell us when you book.
Why Families With Pets and Young Children Choose Outside Pest Control
Four hours out of the house is easy for some households and hard work for others.
Think of a baby who needs their nap at home. A dog who hates the car. Someone working from home with calls all afternoon. A shift worker who is asleep during the day. For those homes, packing everyone up and finding somewhere to be for four hours is a big ask.
That is why so many families with pets and young children book the outside only treatment. Everyone stays inside, pets included. The kids keep their routine, and the outside of the house still gets treated properly.
Choosing outside only is about who is at home on the day. It is not about doing less of a job. We are pet safe and family safe, and deadly for pests, whichever treatment you pick.
When Outside Pest Control Is Usually Enough
If your main problem is spiders around the outside of the house, outside only is often the right call. Webbing on the eaves, cobwebs around the windows, spiders along the fence and the pergola. That is where they live, and that is what the outside treatment covers.
It also suits homes where the inside is clear and you want to keep pests at the edge of the property. If you are not finding anything in the kitchen, the bathroom or the bedrooms, there may be nothing inside that needs treating.
Spiders are often the reason people pick up the phone. If you are booking because of spiders, you can read more about how we treat them on our spider control page.
When You Need an Inside Pest Treatment Too
If you are seeing pests inside, they are living inside. Silverfish in the bathroom. Earwigs coming in under the doors. Webs in the ceiling corners that come back after you clear them. In those homes, an outside treatment alone will leave the problem where it is.
Inside and out is also the better choice when the roof cavity or the garage is part of the problem, because neither is covered by an outside only treatment.
German Cockroaches Are a Separate Job
The cockroaches a general treatment deals with are the ones that wander in from the garden. Small tan cockroaches with two dark stripes behind the head, in the kitchen, are usually German cockroaches. Neither general treatment is the answer for them. They need their own targeted treatment, and they may need several treatments to clear properly. If that sounds like your kitchen, tell us when you ring so we can book the right job. Our cockroach control page explains more.
How Often Should a Home Have a General Pest Treatment?
Most homes have one or two general pest treatments a year, whether that is inside and out or outside only. Heading into the warmer months is a good time to book, when spiders are most active.
If one particular pest has really taken hold, that is a separate targeted treatment, and your technician will look at what is going on and set the course of action.
Outside Pest Control Questions
Do We Need to Leave the House for an Outside Pest Treatment?
No. Everyone can stay inside, pets included. The four hours out of the house only applies when we treat inside.
Can I Book Outside Pest Control for a Unit or Townhouse?
Yes. Our pricing page lists an outside only option for units and townhouses, as well as for single and double storey homes.
Will Outside Pest Control Deal With the Spiders Inside My House?
It deals with the spiders on the outside of the house, which is where a lot of the ones inside come from. Spiders already living inside, in the ceiling corners or behind the curtains, need the inside treated as well.
Booking Outside Pest Control or a Full Treatment in Melbourne
Both options are listed for each size of home on our pest control prices page, from units and townhouses through to double storey homes.
When you book, let us know:
- Pets: what you have and where they usually spend the day.
- Young children: so we can plan the treatment around them.
- Allergies or breathing problems: anyone in the house who may need to stay out for longer.
- What you have been seeing: spiders outside, or pests inside as well.
Not sure which one you need? Tell us what you are finding and where, and we can talk it through. Call us on 1300 737 821 or send us a message.
SOS Pest Control is a family owned Melbourne pest control business, operating since 2003, with licensed technicians treating homes and businesses across Melbourne, from Brighton, Sandringham and Mentone to Camberwell, Hawthorn and Toorak.
