Finding pests in your new home is traumatic. Mice scurrying around or ants marching their way across your floor can bring dirt and disease into your living space.
But with a little work, you can make your home pest-free. Simple and effective, there are some easy-to-do items you should put on your to-do list.
To help you keep your home pest-free, we’ve got 5 of the most important tips to keep in mind. Read on to learn all you need to know.
1. Get Inspected
One of the easiest and best ways to keep your home pest-free is to schedule regular inspections from a pest-control expert. Such an inspection will alert you to any obvious problems. It will also offer you the chance to have someone perform removal or extermination should that be needed.
Make sure to check the professional you want to hire has a Pest Control license. Ask questions ahead of time about their process, too.
2. Clean Up Your Trash
It might seem obvious, but if you have trash lying around outside your house, there is a good chance you will attract pests. Animals from rats and mice to raccoons and bears will come sniffing around if you have trash piled up. Smaller pests such as ants and other insects will also find your trash.
Use garbage cans with lids. If you can lock the lids even better. Put the garbage cans in a small shed, box, or garage if you can.
3. Don’t Water Them
Water is one of the biggest attractants of unwanted pests. If you minimize the amount of standing water around your house you’ll keep your home pest-free.
Rodents and insects, in particular, seek water. Look to see where water might collect after it rains. Make sure you have good drainage away from that area.
Do regular maintenance on your gutters so that water doesn’t collect at the end of a downspout. Check your basement to see if you have water gathering. You don’t want to draw animals into your basement!
4. Seal Up Your House
You’d be surprised at how small a hole can be and still pests get in. Mice, in particular, can squeeze through tiny holes and cracks.
Check your home for holes and cracks. Seal them up to keep pests out. Pay careful attention to door and window frames. Apply caulk around the edges.
Check pipes, vents, and other areas that offer a way in from the outside. Use steel wool to block cracks and spaces. This material is hard for most pests to chew through.
5. Pay Attention to Wood
If you have a woodpile or keep wood for a fireplace, keep it as far away from your home as possible. Woodpiles are some of the biggest draws of pests. They are dark and safe for pests to hide in.
Termites love woodpiles. Snakes and spiders do, too. You don’t want termites migrating from the woodpile to your siding, and you don’t want snakes and spiders biting your family!
If you store wood, it should be 20 feet or more from your house to keep your home pest-free.
Make Your Home Pest-Free
It’s easy enough to keep your home pest-free if you pay attention to the kinds of environments they like.
Keep the outside of your home clean and tidy. The fewer things you have around you that draw pests, the less likely it is they will become a problem.
Because we believe everyone should have a beautiful home, we don’t want you to have pests in it. For more great ways you can make your home safe and welcoming, check out our website.
