Pests can invade your home at any time. Furthermore, they may come to nest, to access an easy source of food, or to find shelter from the weather. They can fly, crawl, burrow, or jump to get into your property. They have one thing in common, and that is to get in regardless how bad you want to keep them out. Check out my tips on pest proof your home:
Common Pests
The most common invaders are rodents and insects. Rodents are extremely successful breeders and, if they are not dealt with promptly, can multiply rapidly and bring disease and nuisance.
Insects fly and crawl. Some can be very destructive to furniture and to the fabric of your home.
Prevention or Cure
Traps can be either lethal or non-lethal, although live traps leave you with the dilemma of what to do with the creature.
Poisoning, unless carried out by an expert, comes with a variety of drawbacks, including
- The risk of inadvertently killing other animals, including members of an endangered species.
- The difficulty of finding the dead bodies, which may still be in the house.
- The limited effectiveness of some techniques, such as rodent smoke bombs.
So prevention is generally a preferable route, where it is practical.
Don’t Invite Them
The most important step, is to discourage pests from getting near your home. Once they are comfortably settled close to the house, it will not be long before they decide to move inside.
Also, remove piles of debris from around the walls, including discarded building materials, firewood, trash cans, garbage containers, compost and leaf piles. All these make comfortable homes for insects and rodents. They can move in to nest and then look for somewhere a little warmer when the air turns cold.
Clean out gutters, downpipes, and drains. The organic matter that accumulates in these is very attractive to insects. Cut back trees and plants that are touching the walls or roof.
Replace traditional bulbs in exterior lights with sodium lights which attract less flying insects.
Move bird feeders away from the house, as fallen seeds will rapidly attract vermin.
Block Their Entry
It is said that if a hole is big enough for a pencil it is big enough for a mouse. Go around your house and inspect every surface for ways that rodents and insects could get in.
Check all your doors and windows to ensure they are close fitting and the frames are sound. Pay particular attention to basement and attic windows. Check all the points where pipes enter the building. Seal holes with caulk or concrete.
Damp and rotting wood is both attractive to insects and easy to chew. Replace it with sound wood or another material.
Keep Your Home Pest Free
Regardless of how hard you work to pest proof your home, everybody gets a pest problem at some time. There are plenty of companies around to help, but you can keep their requests to a minimum by taking simple steps to stop the critters getting inside in the first place.
