Chances are your new year’s goals don’t include dealing with insects, spiders, or rodents in your home. Luckily, you can help avoid them with proper pest control and prevention. Read on to learn about a few pest-proofing tactics to keep your home safe and pest-free in the new year!
But first, let’s review the types of pests you’ll likely see hanging around both inside and outside your house:
The most common household pests include ants, termites, cockroaches, bed bugs, and spiders. But pests also come in the form of animals, including mice and rats, bats, raccoons, and even squirrels. It’s important to know exactly what types of pests you’re dealing with to properly prevent them from getting inside your home. Anything that can spread disease, damage items, and property, or cause you stress and fear is considered a pest.
Pest Prevention Strategies
Now, here’s a closer look at what you can do to pest-proof your home, inside and out. These are first steps towards keeping those pesky invaders out, and should be combined with professional pest control services from a reputable, certified and insured pest management company such as Sentry Pest Control.
Exterior proofing:
Pest-proof the exterior of your home by sealing all doors and windows and looking for any gaps where pests can come inside. Repair screens on windows and doors and make sure they fit tightly. Install weather stripping on doors and door sweeps.
Close off fireplaces at the roofline during the warmer months.
Look carefully at your roof and flashing, repair leaks in the roof which can be a point of entry for ants, beetles, and other moisture-loving pests, and make sure there are no other points of entry.
Look closely at your home’s foundation, sealing any cracks or repairing broken bricks.
Remove debris and leaves from the perimeter of your home, and make sure there is no standing water. Stagnant water is a pest magnet, particularly for small mammals and mosquitoes.
Seal cracks and crevices in interior and exterior walls.
Caulk, stuff, or seal openings around pipes and conduits that enter the home.
Caulk crevices around doors, windows, vents, plumbing fixtures, equipment, cabinets, and countertops.
Interior proofing:
Make sure that the inside of your home is clean and free of crumbs and food that isn’t stored in a sealed container.
Check your plumbing to ensure that no pipes are leaking, as this can be an easy source of water for thirsty pests.
Remove piles of clothing, newspapers, and clutter in general since many pests like to build their nests in dark, dingy places.
Clean up pet food regularly and make sure that your home is generally as clean as possible.
Keep windows closed when you’re not at home and look in your attic to ensure that there’s no easy way for pests to get inside.
If you want an extra layer of protection, use a pest control barrier spray, but make sure that it is child and pet safe.
Don’t Forget About Your Yard!
Surprisingly, there are some things that you may do that can attract pests to your lawn and garden. Here are a few common problems that can contribute to pests in these areas.
Get rid of standing water around your yard. Standing water in old tires, birdbaths, and ponds will attract pests to your lawn and garden, particularly mosquitoes and biting flies.
Clean up those leaves then take them away. Piles of leaves and dead plant matter are a significant pest attractant, as well as piles of firewood.
Secure your trash can lid. Trash that is not secured with a tight-fitting lid is a surefire way to attract pests to your yard and your home.
Clean your BBQ. Dirty grills will tempt pests to come closer to find food.
Consider where you put your bird feeders! Feeders filled with birdseed will bring more than just birds: they’ll also tempt various other animals to come and eat, such as mice and insects.
Don’t leave your porch light on at night, as it is another pest attractant.
Make sure that all trash cans have closing lids to discourage yellow jackets and flies.
Make sure that there is no organic mulch next to the house walls. Wood mulch invites termites and moisture-loving pests like millipedes, sowbugs, and earwigs.
Remove piles of wood, stone or other materials or stack them off the ground and away from house foundations.
Consider installing a 2-3-foot-wide mulch-free band around the perimeter. Leave the area bare or fill it with gravel, crushed stone, or shell.
Remove plants that host specific invading pests and replace them with insect and disease resistant varieties. For example, boxelder bugs feed on the female boxelder tree, often moving into buildings in the fall.
With these ideas, you’ll feel much more confident that you are taking strides to ensure that your new year will not be bringing in new pests! We also suggest working with a pest management company to ensure that your preventative measures are doing their job - consider calling Sentry Pest Control for a free inspection, a report, and suggestions about how to keep pests controlled inside and out around your home.
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