What's included
- Standard Residential Treatment Visit — 10 steps
- Initial Inspection — New Customer — 8 steps
- Chemical Safety and Handling Protocol — 8 steps
- Rodent Exclusion Procedure — 7 steps
Standard Residential Treatment Visit
The complete procedure for a routine quarterly or monthly pest control service.
- Review the customer's service history before arriving. Note: pest types previously treated, products used, any areas of concern from the last visit, and any customer-reported activity.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Knock and introduce yourself. Ask the customer: have you seen any pest activity since the last service? Any new concerns? Pets or children to be aware of during treatment?Notes: _______________________________________________
- Conduct an interior inspection before treating. Check known problem areas: kitchen, bathrooms, utility rooms, garage entry points. Look for droppings, webbing, trails, or live pests. Note findings.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Treat interior per the service plan. Apply product at label rates — never exceed manufacturer specifications. Focus on cracks, crevices, entry points, and areas where activity was found.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Move to exterior. Inspect the foundation perimeter, eaves, window frames, door frames, and utility penetrations for entry points, webbing, nests, or conducive conditions (standing water, mulch against foundation, wood-to-soil contact).Notes: _______________________________________________
- Apply exterior barrier treatment along the foundation perimeter. Treat up and out per label directions. Address eaves, window frames, and any identified entry points.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Inspect and service bait stations and monitoring devices. Replace bait as needed. Record consumption levels — increased consumption may indicate a population change that needs attention.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Document everything: products used, application rates, areas treated, pest activity observed, conditions noted, and recommendations for the customer. This is both a quality standard and a regulatory requirement.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Brief the customer: what you found, what you treated, any conditions they should address (sealing gaps, fixing leaks, moving firewood away from the house), and when to expect results.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Leave the service report with the customer. Confirm the next scheduled visit date.Notes: _______________________________________________
Initial Inspection — New Customer
Thorough first-visit inspection that determines the treatment plan.
- Ask the customer what prompted the call. Get specifics: what are they seeing, where, how often, and how long has it been going on? This focuses your inspection.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Interior inspection — work room by room. Start with the area the customer reported activity. Check: under sinks, behind appliances, inside cabinets, along baseboards, around plumbing penetrations, and in storage areas.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Identify the pest species. This determines the treatment approach. If you're unsure, collect a sample or take a clear photo for identification. Don't guess — wrong ID means wrong treatment.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Check for conducive conditions: moisture problems, food sources (open containers, pet food left out, crumbs), clutter providing harborage, and entry points.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Exterior inspection: walk the full perimeter. Check foundation for cracks, gaps around pipes and wires, damaged weather stripping, vent screens, weep holes, and crawl space access. Note landscaping conditions — mulch depth, vegetation touching the structure, standing water.Notes: _______________________________________________
- If accessible, inspect the attic and crawl space. Look for rodent droppings, nesting material, insulation damage, and moisture issues.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Based on findings, develop the treatment plan: target pests, products to be used, application methods, frequency, and any exclusion work recommended.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Present the plan and pricing to the customer in plain language. Explain what you found, why the recommended treatment will work, and what results they should expect and when.Notes: _______________________________________________
Chemical Safety and Handling Protocol
Non-negotiable safety procedure for every technician, every product, every application.
- Read the product label before every use — even products you've used a hundred times. Application rates, required PPE, and re-entry intervals may vary by target pest and application site.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Wear the PPE specified on the label for that application method. Minimum for most residential applications: chemical-resistant gloves, long sleeves, closed-toe shoes. Eye protection and respirator when the label requires it.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Mix products in a ventilated area. Measure precisely — use calibrated equipment, not estimates. Document the mix ratio on the service ticket.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Never apply product above the label rate. "More" does not mean "better" — it means a violation. If the standard rate isn't working, adjust the approach, not the concentration.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Keep customers, children, and pets out of the treatment area during application and for the re-entry interval specified on the label. Communicate this clearly before you start.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Store all products in the truck's locked chemical compartment. Products must be in original labeled containers. No transferring to unmarked bottles — ever.Notes: _______________________________________________
- In case of spill: contain immediately, absorb with appropriate material, dispose per label instructions. Report any spill to the office. Keep spill cleanup supplies in the truck at all times.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Wash hands and exposed skin after every application. Change clothes if product contacted your clothing. Don't eat, drink, or smoke until you've washed up.Notes: _______________________________________________
Rodent Exclusion Procedure
Inspection and sealing workflow for mouse and rat exclusion services.
- Conduct a full perimeter inspection. Mark every potential entry point with a grease pencil or flag. Mice can fit through a gap the size of a dime — check every penetration, seam, and gap.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Common entry points to check: where utility lines enter the structure, gaps under doors, damaged vent screens, weep holes without covers, cracks in the foundation, gaps where siding meets the foundation, and roof-soffit intersections.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Interior: check behind appliances, around plumbing under sinks, where pipes penetrate walls, around the water heater and furnace, and in the garage where the door meets the frame.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Photograph all identified entry points before sealing. The customer sees what you found and what you fixed.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Seal small gaps (under 1/2 inch) with copper mesh stuffed tight, then covered with exterior-grade sealant. Seal larger gaps with hardware cloth, metal flashing, or concrete patch as appropriate for the material.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Install door sweeps where gaps exist under exterior doors. Check garage door seal and adjust or replace if daylight is visible.Notes: _______________________________________________
- Set monitoring traps inside to verify no rodents remain after exclusion. Schedule a 2-week follow-up to check traps and confirm the exclusion is holding.Notes: _______________________________________________
Want your crew to run these on their phone?
Import these checklists into WithoutMe. Your crew checks off each step at the job site. You see who finished what.
Start with Pest Control procedures — free No signup required.Common questions
What checklists does a pest control business need?
Every pest control business needs at minimum: standard residential treatment visit, initial inspection — new customer, chemical safety and handling protocol, and rodent exclusion procedure. Start with the one your crew asks about most often or the one that leads to the most complaints and callbacks.
How do I get my pest control crew to actually use a checklist?
Print it and hand it to them. A checklist in a binder nobody opens is worthless. Keep it short, make the steps specific to how your company does the job, and check that it's being followed for the first two weeks. If you want them to use it digitally, share a link they can pull up on their phone at the job site.
How many steps should a pest control checklist have?
Keep it under 15 steps. A checklist with 30 steps won't get used because it takes too long to follow on a live job. Focus on the steps that matter most: the ones your crew skips, forgets, or does inconsistently. You can always add detail later.