Pest-Proofing Your Home for the Winter

November 29, 2021

As the weather gets cold outside, several pests are looking for a way to get into your home for shelter and warmth. Not only are pests in the home annoying, but they’re potentially hazardous for your family’s health.

Luckily, there are ways to keep these unwanted intruders from making their way indoors.

Here’s your guide to keeping your home pest-free during winter with some simple winter pest-proofing tips.

What type of pests do you need to worry about in the winter?

Most people mistakenly believe they only need to worry about pest problems during the warm, summer months. The truth is there are many pests that are very active during the winter months, especially if they’ve made their way indoors and are using your home for shelter.

Look out for these common winter pests:

  • Rodents: Mice and rats can be a huge problem during the wintertime, making their way inside through tiny cracks and crevices in a home’s entryways or exterior.
  • Spiders: During fall and winter, spiders move their webs inside for the cold-weather months. They can lay eggs in the warmth of indoor spaces, causing a major infestation that’s hard to get under control.

Pest-proofing the exterior

Sealing up your home’s exterior is one of the most important winter pest-proofing steps. Many types of pests are searching for a way into your house, and keeping them out can prevent significant infestations. Complete these tasks to pest-proof the outside of your home:

  • Seal up any cracks and crevices on all your home’s exterior surfaces and the foundation. Even a hairline crack can be an entry point, so seal it as soon as you see it.
  • Screen your chimney and all vents to keep pests from crawling in.
  • Inspect the insulation around your windows, and, if necessary, replace it to seal a potential entry point for pests.
  • Keep vines and shrubbery from growing too close to your home. They often act as a bridge for insects and many small animals to get inside your home.

Pest-proofing entry points

Exterior doors aren’t just a way for you to enter and exit your home—they’re also an entry point for many pests. Pest-proof your front door, sliding glass doors and even your crawl spaces by:

  • Making sure your doors’ insulation features are intact;
  • Repairing all damage to doors, especially damaged screen doors;
  • Adding a door sweeper to exterior doors to sweep debris, along with any insects, outside as you close the door.

Pest-proofing the interior

While you may have done a great job sealing your home’s exterior, there are some interior tasks you should do, too, including:

  • Keeping food in airtight plastic containers, so insects and rodents can’t easily access food sources inside the home;
  • Repairing floor, wall and insulation damage in your garage and basement, since they’re common entry points for pests, especially mice and rats;
  • Taking out your garbage frequently and keeping your garbage bin as far from the house as possible.

Keeping your home pest-free during winter can be a challenge, but you don’t have to go it alone. Reach out to the pest control experts at Crist Termite and Pest Solutions, Inc. today, and say goodbye to pests this winter and into the future.

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Crist Termite and Pest Solutions, Inc.