A private medical clinic in Chambly, on the South Shore, contacted us after staff reported the presence of snakes in the waiting room and the hallway adjacent to the mechanical room. The clinic, housed in a 1990s commercial building, had undergone major interior renovations two years earlier, during which several partitions were moved and new plumbing lines were installed. It is common for this work to unintentionally create new infiltration routes for pests, as construction contractors do not specialize in pest waterproofing. A diagnostic smoke test was ordered to accurately map all flaws before starting the sealing, so as not to disrupt the clinic’s operations through poorly targeted work.
Specific issues in a health care environment
A healthcare facility imposes additional constraints during inspection and work: consultation rooms must remain functional as much as possible, the products used must be odor-free and residue-free, and interventions must be coordinated with the patient’s appointment schedule. The technicians at our exterminator in Chambly planned the smoke test in two phases: a first one carried out in the evening after the clinic closed to cover the mechanical room and technical spaces, and a second on Saturday morning for the consultation rooms and waiting room. This approach allowed normal clinical activities to be maintained from Monday to Friday without interruption or discomfort for patients or staff.
The results of the test revealed leaks in three places directly related to the recent renovations. First, the new plumbing pipe running through the foundation wall between the sterilization room and the outdoor space had an insufficient joint, leaving a gap of about eight millimetres around the pipe. Secondly, the gap between the new partition and the existing floor in the care corridor had not been properly sealed during the work, creating a continuous passage along the entire corridor. Finally, the entry of the alarm system wiring into the control box left sufficient passage for a young snake. These three defects, completely invisible to the naked eye without detection equipment, had all been created during renovations two years earlier.
Precise and discreet sealing work
The corrections were made using low-emission materials approved for healthcare settings, with no unpleasant odors for patients. The joint around the foundation pipe was redone with a solvent-free epoxy mortar, laid in two coats to ensure maximum durability. The junction between the new partition and the floor has been fitted with a low-pressure polyurethane acoustic seal, ensuring both pest sealing and sound insulation between the consultation rooms. The alarm wiring entrance has been protected by a centripetal compression rubber grommet, which is easy to disassemble in future updates to the alarm system. The complete caulking of the envelope was complemented by a systematic check of all other bushings, even those showing no leaks during the test, to prevent future problems.
A second smoke test carried out a week after the work confirmed that the clinic was completely watertight. Management has not reported any new snakes since the intervention. For examples of other complex mandates carried out in the Chambly region and on the South Shore, see our smoke test in a rental building as well as our smoke test case study in a commercial building.
Prevention of infiltration after renovation
This mandate illustrates the importance of systematically carrying out a smoke test after any renovation project involving plumbing, electrical or partition work. Construction contractors are typically not trained to detect or prevent pest infiltration, and their work unintentionally creates new holes in the envelope on almost every jobsite. Our certified extermination company systematically recommends a post-renovation smoke test for any commercial or institutional building that has undergone structural modifications, particularly in cities on the South Shore such as Chambly, Carignan or Richelieu, where harsh winters and local reptiles promote seasonal intrusions in search of warmth.