Getting rid of pests from your home by buying a chemical spray is not a hard task, but the procedure takes patience and caution.
'While buying the chemical spray, make sure none of the people living in the house is allergic to the ingredients,' says George Chow, chief operating officer at Rentokil Initial Hong Kong's pest control division.
'Before you start spraying the chemicals in your home, remember to get children and pets out of the house. And when you spray your home, make sure you wear a mask and gloves.'
All people and pets should leave the house for at least half a day after the spraying process and, when tenants get back, they should use a cloth and wipe all furniture to prevent young children and pets from inhaling chemical residues.
Although there is often squealing when people see a rodent or cockroach running around their homes, the mentality of people towards this problem has changed over the years. 'In the past, people treated pests as a big problem, but now they have become 'just a pest' and people aren't making as big a deal out of it,' Chow says.
Pests can slide, crawl and fly, but the most common in Hong Kong are cockroaches, rats, flies, mosquitoes and termites.
The usual factor that triggers pests to appear is bad hygiene. For example, rubbish lying around attracts rodents and cockroaches, while water leakages draw termites and mosquitoes.