Common Issues

Keeping your living space clean, dry, and free of clutter will make it less welcoming to pests, and more welcoming for you! Avoid accumulation of papers, cardboard, trash, and dirty laundry. Don’t overwater house plants if you have them. Specific measures for kitchen and bathroom are listed below.

KITCHEN:

• Wash dishes nightly, rinse after each meal
• Clean the counters (including under dish drainer) and sinks nightly
• Clean floor/walls/counter around stove where grease can accumulate from cooking
• Store food in airtight containers, especially products in large quantities
• Do not place trash can under sink
• Limit the number of grocery/paper bags that you store
• Change shelf paper often (if you have it)
• Clean place mats before storing
• Run your garbage disposal regularly to clear it out. You can further clean it by throwing ice cubes down the disposal, then pouring a cup of white vinegar or bleach down the drain.

BATHROOMS:

• Close toothpaste and wipe off excess paste on tube
• Keep shelves in medicine cabinets clean
• Have all leaks and drips repaired by submitting a work order request

Follow these steps for ants, silverfish, flies, gnats, spiders, roaches, bed bugs, and mice)

• Submit a Work Order Request Housing Operations staff will come out and inspect the space as the first step in the pest response protocol recommended by the university -contracted pest control company. Follow-up inspection by the pest control vendor will be conducted, if needed.
• If you observe any leaks in faucets or pipes, report them as well, as they may be contributing to pest issues.
• Following the inspection, you will be provided with instructions for any planned treatments to address the pest issue.

If you observe spiders in your living space, try spraying a window cleaning solution like WINDEX on them to kill them. Unfortunately, there is no effective process for preventing occasional spiders from entering, but if your space is infested with many spiders, submit a Work Order Request for inspection and possible treatment.

Pest treatment is regulated by the California Structural Pest Control Board and the Environmental Protection Agency. Innovative Pest Solution services Housing facilities and is only allowed to treat for the pests that can be visually verified.

Our pest control vendor uses non-toxic, environmentally friendly options whenever possible. When technicians visit your space, you can expect them to check, and treat if necessary, affected areas, including:

• Baseboards
• Entryways
• Cracks and crevices
• Gaps between walls and cabinets, appliances (e.g., stoves), or other furniture

If no pests are found, bug traps will be placed in the space to identify pests that might be present. Follow up inspection of these traps will take place no later than 5 business days after they have been placed.

If pests are found, treatment will be applied and may include:

1. Heat treatment of the entire space augmented with chemical treatment.
2. Full chemical treatment.
3. The identification and treatment of Bed Bugs will be followed by a K9 inspection. This may include instructions to residents to launder clothes, bedding and linens. Residents in self-furnished apartments may be advised to remove mattresses or furniture.

Treatment is performed around building foundations and trash enclosures monthly, as well as an annual treatment that is applied in the spring during April or May.

Placement of bait treatments aims to eliminate any pests that are present and prevent them from moving to surrounding untreated spaces.

Once pests have been identified in a space, treatment is required (unless an exception is made for a documented health-related issue). Please see the following sections of the Student Housing Agreement for more information:

Undergraduate Student Contract:

• SECTION IV, Item B.
• SECTION IX, Item F.

Graduate Student Contract:

• SECTION 20 & 29.

Kitchen sink clogs are a result of what we put down the drains. To prevent clogging your kitchen sink drain, NEVER put the following items down your kitchen drain, even if you have a garbage disposal.

• Coffee grounds
• Butter or margarine
• Cooking Oil
• Pasta
• Rice
• Flour
• Potato peels
• Eggshells
• Seafood Shells
• Medications

All of these foods can cling to pipes and lead to clogs. While soft foods and clear liquids are generally okay to dispose of in your kitchen sink, but keep sticky, starchy, oils and oily foods away from the drain! Keep a compost bin in your kitchen to properly dispose of food waste.

Most sink and bathtub/shower drain clogs are caused by hair. Remove hair from shaving or shampooing instead of washing down the drain. And avoid toilet clogs by never putting anything but toilet paper in the toilet.