Over 500,000 US houses are damaged by termites annually, a figure that could rise if the right measures aren’t taken. While it’s possible that your home isn’t infested by pests, can you bet that things will remain that way?
Prevention, they say, is better than cure. So rather than lose sleep over a pest infestation in your home, why not adopt strategies to prevent a likely invasion? If this seems like a great idea to you, the following tips will come in handy.
Here are 6 effective pest control tips and tricks to keep your home safe from pests.
1. Always keep the kitchen clean
The average kitchen is home to rats, mice, cockroaches, and other types of pests. Why? Because the kitchen is the dirtiest place in the home and it also has what pests want—food.
The leftover cake, fruit salad, and half-eaten chicken bone scattered on the countertop or kitchen sink can attract pests who feed on almost anything. Cleaning your kitchen with disinfectant will make it less attractive to pests as they enjoy dirty and damp areas.
In addition to cleaning your kitchen, always dispose of leftovers immediately after eating. Plus, ensure that your kitchen has a bin that comes with a solid lid to make it difficult for pests like rodents to access food remnants.
2. Repair nets and windows
Pests like rats, roaches, bugs, mice, spiders, etc., access your home through entry points like holes, cracks, and faulty windows or nets. While you adopt necessary measures to close all holes and crevices, we advise that you do the same to the torn nets and faulty windows in your home. Doing so will help ensure that pests don’t have easy access to your home.
In addition to your net and windows, check the doors in your house for gaps and holes. If you find any, carry out necessary repairs to keep pests at bay. If the damage is irreparable, you can consider purchasing a new door. Doing so will not only help shield your home from unwanted intruders, but it’ll also play a good role in your ability to save energy.
3. Get help
Some pest infestations can be tackled with your efforts, while some may require the help of pest control services. Unlike you, pest control companies have the tools and experience required to eliminate the pesky pests in your home.
On your request, they can also pinpoint areas in your home vulnerable to pest infestation and give you tips on how to prevent a recurrence. When it comes to tackling potential or current pest infestation, pest control companies are your best bet.
4. Get rid of stagnant water
Stagnant water in and around the home may appear harmless, however, if left unchecked it can serve as a breeding ground for pests like mosquitoes. Termites, cockroaches, midges, booklice, and other pests are also attracted to standing or stagnant water, thus, you should ensure that you don’t have any in or around your home, regardless of how small.
Discard the water in containers outside the home. Inspect your gutters and other parts of your outdoor space for stagnant water too and get rid of it if it exists. The same goes for your kitchen. Don’t leave water in pots and other kitchen utensils for too long. If you own an AC that drips water, don’t keep a container under it to collect water. You can use a pipe to direct the water outside. Or ensure you empty the container often
5. Don’t leave your garbage unattended
Ridding your kitchen of leftovers is a good way to keep pests at bay. However, your efforts will be in vain if you don’t dispose of the kitchen bin regularly as pests will divert their attention to your bin, which probably contains all if not most of the meals on their food menu.
Things could get worse when pests like rats access the bins and scatter rotten food particles around the home. Your pets or toddler could ingest these particles, resulting in the spread of diseases. Consider disposing of your bin (which should have a solid lid) before it gets filled. You should also wash and disinfect it with hot water and a liquid disinfectant regularly.
Conclusion
Pest infestation should be tackled with a holistic approach. Yes, insecticides, rodenticides, or traps may help in ridding pests from your home.
But if you fail to tackle the root cause of the infestation, you’ll end up running in circles. So while you adopt tactics to rid pests from your home, also try to locate the root cause of pest infestation in your home and tackle it.
So many good tips here! Also, remember to clean air ducts. Dirty air ducts are a favorable environment for pests, which can make your house smell bad. HVAC specialists recommend doing air duct cleaning once every five to seven years to prevent air quality from worsening and pests from breeding.
Thanks for mentioning this. Switching to a ductless mini-split may also be a good solution. This will save you from having to clean the ducts and reduce the likelihood of pests in your home.
All the pest control tips and tricks are very effective to keep our home and office safe from pests. Thanks from sharing.