Control Pests at Home with These Six Tips

The last thing you need while sheltering in place is an indoor pest problem. Since you have few places to go if you need to call in professional pest control, prevention is your best strategy at this time. Following simple tips will keep pests out and maintain sanitation and health at home. Here are six tips for home pest control in Central Illinois that you can implement today:

• Seal lids: This applies to indoor and outdoor containers. Move staples like flour or sugar into airtight containers—Tupperware or jars with rubber seals work well. Ants especially are attracted to sweet food sources, and this will make them less welcome in your home. The same goes for outdoor trash cans and yard waste containers—all your bins should have lids to keep pests away.
• Check for cracks: Eliminating food sources for pests removes the temptation, but you should also take the additional step of cutting off access to your home. Rodents and insects will often enter your home to investigate as well. Check around your home for cracks or holes in walls, foundations and vents. When you find them, fill them in. This will help prevent termites, roaches and rodents.
• Trim the flora: Landscape overgrowth offers pests another way to infiltrate your home. Bushes, trees and vines that come in contact with your home offer this access. You can reduce their helpful effects to pests by trimming them back. Avoid having vegetation make contact with your home whenever possible.
• Inspect food before buying: Food transportation services are careful, but sometimes, even with experience and regulations, something can go wrong. When you purchase dried food packages, check for holes in the packaging or any other sign of entry by worms or moths. If you cannot check it for pests before you buy, check it as soon as you are home. Remove any contaminated food and let your store know that this occurred. They can inspect further and will likely issue you a refund.
• Keep your home neat: You do not have to obsessively disinfect every surface to keep pests away. Avoiding standing water and wiping up crumbs will suffice. If you find a leak in a pipe or appliance, fix it as soon as possible. Wipe down surfaces when you finish preparing food, and vacuum and mop on a regular basis. Also, reduce clutter as much as possible—that will give pests fewer places to hide.
• Install screens: The weather is becoming warmer, and there is no doubt that you would like some fresh air. However, opening windows and doors can be an invitation to pests. Install window screens so you can enjoy fresh air without the bug infestation. If you have a porch, consider screening it in so you have an outdoor spot free from pests.

Crist Termite and Pest Solutions, Inc. helps clients eliminate ants, termites, rodents and other indoor and outdoor pests. Contact us today to schedule service or ask for more tips on home pest control in Central Illinois.

Categorised in: Preventative Pest Control