• Arrow Exterminating

  Broadway, Lynbrook, N.Y. 212-223-4220; 516-593-7770; 631-654-0110

  Some exterminators can be pretty cavalier about the poison pellets they toss behind the radiator and the noxious gases they inject into your walls. But any fears of human annihilation are assuaged by Arrow’s careful approach. They make an inventory of a home’s residents before they start a job (no matter what others tell you, some substances aren’t kid- and pet-friendly), deploy nature-based methods when appropriate, and, when not, use pesticides judiciously to keep customers safe. Best of all, they rely on real science to get the job done: A board-certified staff entomologist teaches workers how bugs behave so they can devise tactics that actually work. Behavioral science? No wonder the city’s Department of Transportation relies on them to keep the Queensboro Bridge pigeon-free.

From the 2007 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine