I recently bought my first house, one in the east Valley, after living in central Phoenix for three years. In Phoenix I never saw a single scorpion--in fact, the only places I'd ever seen one were in zoos!
I saw a couple dead ones in the spring after using a different exterminator company; however, that company just wasn't particularly responsive and didn't strike me as thorough. I had to do a lot of my own homework, I was so terrified of scorpions. The last straw was when they were supposed to come for a regular spray when I was out of town (they didn't come).
After reading Guaranteed Pest Control's Yelp reviews and checking out their website, I gave Trey a call. Much to my delight, he was able to make time to come out later that day. He spent time with me on the phone and at my house patiently answering my never-ending, stream-of-scorpion-consciousness, ridiculous litany of questions. He sprayed inside my home, outside my home, and around the perimeter on my block fence. He even took the time to go all the way around my house, on the side where it gets into my neighbor's side yard. (I don't think the previous exterminator did this.)
On the next trip he's even going to humor my anxiety by fogging the attic, though based on my descriptions he doesn't think it's needed (hey, I'm happy to pay for it if it makes me feel better!).
Things have improved since Trey's been here. I make sure to have a good exterminator like Trey because what he does also kills other pests and bugs, which are scorpion food. If you aren't doing that, you may as well be ringing the scorpion dinner bell.
Here's what I've done:
Cinder block walls are scorpion hotels!! Close 'em up!!
-- if you have a block wall encircling your yard (most of us do), caulk up ALL the gaps. This means the vertical gaps between each cinder block, as well as the bigger gaps on the I blocks. This is not difficult...it took me a few tubes of caulk and a couple hours after work.
-- paint your block wall. I bought 4 gallons of paint, grabbed a 1 nap roller and paint extension pole. This took me one afternoon.
Remove debris in your yard
--Scorpions love any little thing they can hide under. Scour your yard for extra wood, tiles, junk, anything they could possibly hide under or in.
Seal your house
--Talk to Trey about sealing your house for scorpions. We're talking stem wall, exhaust fans, under your kitchen/bathroom sinks, etc.
--Have your exterior doors weather-stripped really well, and install good sweeps on the bottom.
Scorpions just want food and water: don't let 'em have it!
--If you have plants, be sure to water them only the amount they need and no more. No extra water standing around in your yard!
--Don't feed the scorpions! Hire Trey as your exterminator to kill the scorpions and what they eat.
Now I just have to figure out a way to tell my neighbors about Guaranteed Pest Control!!
His pricing is better than the other company I was using, and I feel like I'm getting MUCH better service. If you need an exterminator, give Trey a call!!