Pests are one of the greatest threats to your home and health. If left to thrive, this common household menace could wreak havoc on your properties, costing you thousands of dollars in repair costs. Plus, they could also spread diseases in the home, affecting your quality of life.
To ensure that you defend your home from ravaging pests, we interviewed a few pest control experts. They provided us with useful tips to help protect your home from pests. Here are a few of them.
1. Reduce plants and mulch
Go around your home. If you notice any tree branches or shrubbery touching your home, cut them. Many rodents use these extended branches as a pathway to your home. By cutting the “bridges,” you’ll make it hard for pests to infiltrate your home.
Also, the mulch in your garden beds can shelter pests like mice and rats. Furthermore, insects like snow bugs, termites, pillbugs, earwigs, millipedes, and some ants are usually attracted to organic mulches. So rather than laying mulches in places close to your foundation, use a pest-resistant alternative like rocks.
2. Contact pest control
If your pest control efforts aren’t yielding any results, or you feel like you aren’t up to the task, contact pest control service for help. These professionals have the tools and experience needed to not only spot entry points of pests, including sources and contributing factors of pest infection in your home but rid them from your home.
And if you think pest damage is overrated or an issue that isn’t worth your effort, then you should take a cue from US homeowners who spend around 5 billion dollars each year on termite damage.
3. Cover doors and windows
Do you know what makes pests effective intruders? They are small. Their minuscule size helps them wiggle through the tiniest cracks in our homes. Some of these cracks could be on your windows or doors.
Should you notice any of these cracks, gaps, or holes in your windows or doors, close them. You can do that with a mesh which can be purchased at home and hardware stores near you.
4. Use appropriate light bulbs.
There is nothing as spooky as having a huge flying black ant chasing you in your home. Many of these ants are attracted by the light bulbs in and outside your home. They have positive phototaxis, meaning they move toward light sources.
Not all light sources attract insects. For instance, many insects are attracted to standard mercury vapor lights with high-pressure sodium or halogen lights. Conversely, these insects are least attracted to bulbs with yellow, orange, or pink tints.
In addition to changing your light bulbs, consider changing the position of your light. While it’s common to install light bulbs on exterior walls close to doors, you should position them away from your house, probably on a pole. This will restrict insects’ movement around the pole, ensuring they don’t come close to your home. Just ensure the light isn’t far from your door, so it can still illuminate it for security reasons.
5. Inspect your home for cracks and gaps
In addition to doors and windows, you should also inspect the exterior of your home. While inspecting your exterior, keep an eye out for cracks, crevices, and gaps that are big enough for pests to slip through. You should also check your foundation, siding, and roof shingles, for cracks of any sort. Finally, your utility lines, such as pipes, electrical, and cable, shouldn’t be left out.
If you find any cracks, gaps, or crevices, seal them with copper mesh, coarse steel wool, sheet metal, or mortar. Don’t seal cracks with expanding caulk, as pests are good at chewing through them.
6. Store bins outside
If possible, try storing your bins outside your home rather than in your kitchen or garage. Since pests are attracted to the content of your bin, doing this will make your home less attractive for them. After all, it’s better to have pests running amok outside your home than in your home. If storing your bin outside isn’t an option, ensure it is emptied regularly. You should also clean it often.
7. Clear your drains and sinks
Many of the gunk and debris in your home find themselves in your sink and floor drains. Unfortunately, their presence attracts various pests, ranging from roaches, sink flies, spiders, fungus gnats, etc. So, try to clean your sinks and floor drains often to make them less attractive and habitable for pests. You can use baking soda and vinegar to clean your drain.
Conclusion
The chances of encountering pests in your home are high, given the prevailing number of pest issues in America. However, with the tips outlined above, you can reduce or eliminate the possibility of dealing with pests in your home. All that is required of you is to follow them to the letter. And ensure you contact pest control if things get out of hand.
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