Arrow Exterminating in Lynbrook, N.Y., needed another tool in its toolbox to battle bed bugs. Arrow, a family-run business started in 1947, was hired to treat a 400-room assisted living complex on Long Island that was plagued by bed bugs for years. Managers of the complex tried to eradicate the bed bugs themselves by using a heat chamber, but they were unsuccessful. “They couldn’t get a handle on the situation, especially in the rooms,” says Mike Deutsch, Arrow’s chief entomologist. “They reached out to several companies, and we pitched our protocols, and they liked us. We said, ‘We have a new product we’d like to use,’ and they said yes. “CimeXa is an outstanding product,” Deutsch adds. “Originally, I didn’t have too much faith in it. I thought, ‘Here comes another product.’ I tried many other products — some worked, and some didn’t. I thought this was another me-too product. I was wrong. It turned out to be phenomenal.

“Before using CimeXa at the assisted living complex, Arrow, which has 150 employees, tested it in the field in isolated areas, including in commercial buildings. When Arrow’s technicians inspected the assisted living complex, they determined the previous pest management company chased the bed bugs up into the suspended ceiling. So Arrow took ceiling tiles down and applied a liquid solution of CimeXa, an insecticide dust, around the walls above the drop ceiling. “We were there every day,” Deutsch says. “We wanted to see how the material performed.” Within four days, Deutsch and the technicians found dead bed bugs, as well as living bugs climbing up the walls, but not past where CimeXa was applied. They applied CimeXa in the infested rooms for 30 days. “It really did the job,” says Deutsch, who’s been in the industry 40 years. “We’ve gone back once a week and haven’t seen any bed bugs. Now, our techs won’t go out to a bed bug job unless they have CimeXa.” Deutsch heard about CimeXa through Rockwell Labs’ Pat Ryan, who visits Arrow regularly. “I bought samples, and we discussed it,” Deutsch says. “The silica gel that mixes with water piqued my interest. We gave it a try, and next thing I know, we’re ordering cases. I didn’t know how much we would need on the assisted living job, so we bought dozens of cases, which we’re still using.”

Mosquito Work, Too Arrow, which has revenue of $10 million annually, has added another tool in its toolbox — EcoVia EC. Last year, the company decided to get into the mosquito control business. Before treating mosquitoes, Arrow is required to notify every adjacent property. But because EcoVia EC is a Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) 25(b) exempt insecticide, the company didn’t have to notify adjacent properties. Arrow’s techs use the product in gas-powered mist blowers. The company has had hardly any callbacks as a result, and EcoVia EC, which contains botanical oils, reduced the mosquito population in the residential area Arrow treated. The company’s techs have also used EcoVia EC on Pennsylvania wood cockroaches (Parcoblatta pensylvanica). This primarily outdoor cockroach species has been increasingly turning up in structures on Long Island. “It works well, has a good formulation and fits into our protocol,” Deutsch says.

Better Baiting For years, Arrow used a particular bait it liked to control American cockroaches (Periplaneta americana). “It always worked great, but the manufacturer didn’t renew the registration, so we were looking for a product to replace it,” Deutsch says. That product turned out to be InVict Xpress, a granular bait with imidacloprid. “I tried it around my house to control camel crickets, and in two days, they were gone,” Deutsch says. “I was sold on the product.” Outside Deutsch’s personal experience with InVict Xpress, Arrow techs used the bait on a few commercial accounts, and now they’re asking for it this season. “We’re going to expand its use because it worked so well,” Deutsch says. “These three products — CimeXa, EcoVia and InVict Xpress — are a permanent part of our toolbox.”