Our Customers' Positive Reviews of our Pest Control Services

If you have been to our website you have probably seen the link we have on our main page to view our customer reviews. (As seen on the left of this column.) These reviews are all authentic from real customers that live in the Des Moines area. They have all chosen to take time out of their day to write these reviews. We are very grateful to these customers and are honored by the positive reviews. We have not filtered these reviews and have not offered customers any incentives beyond the good feelings that come with helping a local company build their reputation and helping Des Moines residents select good pest control company. These reviews are evidence of our dedication to quality service. We we do all that we can to provide the best possible service at the best possible price.

Many pest control companies are in the business first and foremost to make a profit. There is nothing wrong with this as that is the purpose of any business. But at Downs Pest Control we are first and foremost dedicated to helping people solve their problems. We love helping people and we get so much satisfaction from solving the pest problems that people may have. That is why we are dedicated to focusing on the needs of our customers and designing services that meet their needs.

I hope that you when searching for a high quality pest control company you will choose Downs Pest Control. Visit our website for more information about our services. Thank you!

Pest of the Week- Bed Bugs!

Bed bugs have been around for a very long, long, long, long, long time. These creatures are nasty, but they are not dangerous. They were nearly extinct in America around 40 years ago, but in the past decade they have made a dramatic comeback causing an epidemic throughout America. 


Bed Bugs are parasites that feed on human blood. Because they feed on human blood at night they make their homes in beds. A mattress is a perfect hiding place for a bed bug and provides them with a good source of food every night. They hide in the seams of mattresses, cracks in bed frame, under chairs, couches, under rugs, edges of carpets, baseboards, and almost anywhere else.

Bed Bugs find their way into your home by hitching a ride in a suitcase or on your clothing. Infestations of Bed Bugs are on the rise and have been on the rise in large cities such as New York, Cincinnati, Chicago, and Des Moines for the past few years. Bed bugs were irradiated by the use of pesticides such as DDT but have returned most likely thanks to the banning of those pesticides and to worldwide travel.

Can I Get Rid of Bedbugs?

Bed bugs are extremely difficult to eradicate because of how well they hide and how resilient they are. There are some steps that can be taken though to eradicate and prevent infestations. But, due to the difficulty it is often best to call a pest professional.

How to Get Rid of Bedbugs without an Exterminator?

Removing mattresses and furniture from property, vacuuming and scrubbing infested areas thoroughly, washing laundry in hot water are all steps that can be taken to eliminate bedbugs. The longer you wait to take action the more difficult it is to get rid of bedbugs. They reproduce quickly and each night they will feed in hopes to reproduce. A few bedbugs and quickly turn in to an extreme nightmare each night. But, without knowledge of bedbugs and pest control products it is best to leave the use of chemicals to the pest professionals. Visit Get Rid of Your Bedbugs for more info.

What Will A Pest Professional Do To Get Rid Of My Bedbugs?

There is a wide variety of ways that pest control operators eradicate bedbugs. Chemical, heat, cold, steam, mechanical, and even dogs are used to sniff out the location.

Chemicals are applied to locations were the pests hide; in cracks and crevices, in the seams of mattresses, in bed frames, in walls, on baseboards. To be effective often multiple chemical treatments are needed. These are the most risky because a lot of chemical is often applied in the living space. Most often however these chemicals used are a type of pyrethrins which has extremely low toxicity to mammals.

Heat treatments have become a fad in large cities such as New York, Chicago, Las Angeles, and Des Moines.  These treatments can cost thousands of dollars but they are very effective. They are often best if used in large apartment complexes where chemical treatments have proven to be unsuccessful. The chemicals are often unsuccessful in large apartments because once an apartment is treated they run to the next.

Cold treatments are used by a large pest control company that claims the treatments kill the adult bedbugs, nymphs, and even the eggs. Not much information on how effective this method is though.

Our favorite tool in eliminating bedbugs is the bedbug dogs. These dogs are able to sniff out bedbugs and find them. This helps pest control operators locate the bedbugs and kill them. Finding bedbugs is almost the entire battle in eliminating bedbugs.

Overall, the best way to get rid of bedbugs is to contact a pest professional who has proven the ability to get rid of bedbugs and integrate some of the other steps we have mentioned that will help you get rid of your bugs.  


Visit our bedbug site. 

Stay Clean!

Today I just wanted to emphasize the importance of keeping your home clean of clutter and food. The main reason why bugs enter your home is to find food and water. Most insects that enter your home are actually called Accidental Invaders. Accidental invaders do not puropsely try to enter your home, they just accidentally end up there. They need to scour the area to find food, and what better place to find food than in your home or trash.

The best way to keep bugs from coming in your home is to keep your home free of food and debris. Ants are notorious in finding foods and bringing in more of their friends. They release a pheromone in a trail that leads the rest to the food source. If you see ants, then that means you have a good food source for them to be there. Keeping the area clean will help prevent them from wanting to be there. Remember that even the smallest crumb can feed multiple insects.

The next thing you might want to to is limit the hiding places for the insects. Insects love tiny cracks and crevices. They will find anywhere that is tight to protect them from dangerous creatures. If you have lots of clutter on the floor or in the basement, this is just a ample place for bugs to live. It is difficult to spray within our limits if where the bugs are hiding are in your boxes of food or clothes. The best thing we recommend is organzing what you need to keep into plastic sealed containers. This will help keep the bugs from hiding in the boxes and allow us to get a safer, better spray in your home.

Just remember that food and hiding places are the main reason why bugs come into your home. Keeping your home free of food crumbs and clutter will limit the number of bugs and the ability for them to survive.

Benefits of Bats

In a recent Science Magazine a study was revealed that bats, not the bats you can swing, can save over $3 billion in funds for the national pest control. This is good news for farmers or other areas that need to get rid of bugs.

Don't Worry Vampire Bats are not in the USA
Click here to get Images & Vampire Bat Pictures - Pictures

“This analysis suggests that bats are saving us big bucks by gobbling up insects that eat or damage our crops. It is obviously beneficial that insectivorous bats are patrolling the skies at night above our fields and forests – these bats deserve help,” says one of the study’s authors.

Yes there are downfalls with bats, like rabies or other diseases, but I believe the benefits greatly outweigh the downfalls. Less than 1% of all bat species actually carry the rabies disease, and less than 40 people have ever gotten rabies from bats in the past 40 years. Insect eating bats, which makes up about 70% of the US bat population, can eat over 1,200 insects in one hour. Multiply that by 4-5 hours of feeding by thousands and thousands of bats, and you get a lot of insects eaten every night.

I would like to place bats in the group with spiders for being one of the most underrated pest control species in the world. They get a bad rep because of the way they look. This just goes to show you, do not judge a book by its cover. You just may never know the benefits it may have.

So the next time a bat gets into your attic or home, DON'T KILL IT! Hire a professional to capture it and release it humanely. A bat's life will save everyone money on pest control.

Downs Pest Control is family owned and operated pest control company that serves Des Moines and surrounding areas. We are dedicated to helping residents and businesses in Altoona, Ankeny, Bondurant, Carlisle, Clive, Grimes, Johnston, Norwalk, Perry, Urbandale, Waukee, West Des Moines, and Windsor Heights prevent and remove pest infestations. We are dedicated to safety and high quality customer service. Downs Pest Control 50309, 50310, 50311, 50312, 50313, 50314, 50315, 50316, 50317, 50318, 50319, 50320, 50321, 50327, 50391, and 50392

Why Choose Us?

Downs Pest Control

Downs Pest Control is a Des Moines, Iowa company dedicated to helping you live pest free. We are a company that strives to put their customers first. We try and work with you and your budget on what you really need. We love helping people, and we can never imagine taking advantage of you. Downs Pest Control is a family owned company. We offer very competitive and affordable prices.

Family Owned, Family Care

There are different levels of tolerance for bugs outside the home, but Downs Pest Control is out to help everyone live without bugs inside the home and around the home. No one should have to worry about invasions of pests. There are so many nasty little critters out there that are searching constantly for food, shelter,and water. Your home provides all three of those for you, and little critters will try to stay at your place without paying rent. Downs Pest Control specializes in ants, bedbugs, beetles, centipedes, cockroaches, crickets, fleas, mice, rats, silverfish, spider mites, ticks, and wasps.

Downs Pest Control serves the Des Moines area and is the delivers the most value of any exterminator in the Des Moines area. We pride ourselves in providing affordable high quality pest control services. We are very prompt and take pride in satisfying our customers. We believe that our customers work hard for their money and deserve the best service possible. We are locally owned and operated and are proud to serve Des Moines, Iowa and the Central Iowa area. We serve a fifty mile radius around the Des Moines, Iowa area.

Lawn Care

We just don't control bugs from getting into your home, we take care of your lawn. We have a lawn treatment program that includes, fertilizing, weed control, grub control, mowing, and aerating. So protect your home, and all of your property with one company, Downs Pest Control.

Choosing a Pest Control Company

Choosing the right pest control company can be difficult and time consuming. One thing you do not want to do is spend a lot time trying to decide which company to choose. You also do not want to pick a bad company. Whether you have ants, bedbugs, fleas, ticks, mice, rats, spiders, or cockroaches you want to get rid of them as quickly as possible. There are a few simple things you can do to ensure that you have chosen a good company when trying to get rid of these common pests.

1. Understand the Industry - Basic pest control (ants, cockroaches, fleas, spiders, millipedes, etc,) does not require a lot of start up costs or overhead. This is good because it keeps competition strong which leads to a better service at a lower price. It is bad because and guy off the street can say he has a pest control company. There are also many companies in the industry that are actually sales companies disguised as exterminators. They focus on sales and profits more than the quality of service they provide. This is a very good business model but from a consumer standpoint you end up paying more for less with these types of companies. You pay for the increased cost of a sales force and you  receive services that may not be necessary.

2. Know what you want before you choose your exterminator. There are many options when choosing a pest control company. You can have your exterminator come monthly, bimonthly, quarterly, or just one time. The more often you have your property treated by an exterminator the lower the price you will pay for pest control services. This is very good if you have pest problems that you see all the time. If you typically do not have pest problems or you only  have problems at certain times of the year you must ask yourself how often do I want my home treated? You must decide this on an individual basis because when you pay for a pest control service you are not only paying for the materials, the labor, and the overhead you are also paying for a bug free environment and peace of mind. You must decide what is necessary for you to be satisfied and what you are willing to pay.

3. Know the price of the pest control treatments. The price of pest control treatments can tell a lot about an exterminator. Typical an exterminator that charges low prices for pest control services sacrifices quality. At the same time in the pest control industry additional cost does not always translate into better quality. Try to find the right price.

4. Get to know your company. This may sound difficult but when you call for a quote pay attention to how you are treated and how they act. Someone from the exterminator you choose will come to your home and it is important that this person can be trusted. If the person you talk to over the phone is polite and answers your questions well there is a good chance the exterminator provides good services. If the company is slow to give you a quote over the phone,  they give you the run around, do not return calls, reschedule appointments, or act shady in anyway they probably are not a company you want to deal with.

5. Check them out on the internet. There are many places to look at on the web. Check out their website, look at reviews, check out the BBB website or even look for certifications that their company may have.

6. Ask a friend. This is the most reliable method. If a friend you know has had a good experience with an exterminator do not hesitate to go with them. Also if a friend had a bad experience with an exterminator do not go with them.


Overall the goal is to find the company that fits you. You should be able call local exterminators and get a quote fairly quickly. Most exterminators will be able to come out the same day if necessary. So do not spend too much time finding one though. If they cannot work with your schedule find the company that will.

We hope that you will be able to find a company that you can trust that will help you overcome your pest problems. Of course this article may be bias because at Downs Pest Control we try to work with our customers as partners in eliminating pests. We are in the business to help you live pest free. We pride ourselves in providing timely, efficient, affordable, and high quality services. We hope that we can help you live pest free!


Downs Pest Control is family owned and operated pest control company that serves Des Moines and surrounding areas. We are dedicated to helping residents and businesses in Altoona, Ankeny, Bondurant, Carlisle, Clive, Grimes, Johnston, Norwalk, Perry, Urbandale, Waukee, West Des Moines, and Windsor Heights prevent and remove pest infestations. We are dedicated to safety and high quality customer service. Downs Pest Control