10 Best Pest Control Tips and Tricks to Keep Pests Away
10 Best Pest Control Tips and Tricks to Keep Pests Away
Published on February 22, 2022. EST READ TIME: 3 minutes
![Pest Control for Home Pest Control for Home](/images/default-source/home-insurance/pest-control-for-home.jpg)
For most people, the sight of a cockroach or spider is a scary and unpleasant thought. While these creepy crawlers don’t belong inside our home, they have somehow made their place in our bathrooms, kitchen corners and even our bedrooms. While throwing a slipper at a cockroach or swatting flies with rolled newspapers may help in handling the situations temporarily, they don’t help in keeping our homes pest-free. These methods might keep the immediate danger at bay but they also create an unhygienic atmosphere inside the house and at times, can be infuriating.
While cockroaches can be a great threat to asthma and allergy attacks in kids and adults, mosquitoes and flies can cause serious diseases like malaria, dysentery, dengue, and more. Scorpions, bees and wasps can sting you resulting in swelling and inflammation. Living with all these can be seriously dangerous to both you and your property and that is why you need to opt for pest control.
Pest control is also an important part of property maintenance as house insurance policies generally do not cover it. And if pest control is not done from time to time, termites and long-horn beetles can seriously destruct building supporting infrastructure, thus negatively impacting the value of your home.
Spots to Identify Pests in your Home
1. Typical Pest Red Flags in Your Residence
While building and decorating can be a one-time investment of time and money, maintaining the house is a regular and never ending responsibility. And it is in the best interest that you look out for pest red flags in your home before they cause external damage. Here are some of the major flags to look out for in your house:-
2. Discarded Wings
A sure sign that your house has or had termites is discarded wings. When a swarm matures and begins a new colony, it leaves back its wings.
3. Mud Tubes
Mud tubes along the foundation of your home or exterior walls are abodes of termites, where they live and reproduce. Mud tubes confirm the presence of termites in your homes and can be extremely damaging for the surface along which they make the nest.
4. Vulnerable Wood
While inspecting your house, if you find the wood of the furniture or doors and windows soft and hollow, it is a clear indication that your house has got a serious pest issue.
5. Frass
Termites eat wood to produce frass, which is a wood-coloured discharge that looks like pellets. If you find them in your house, it could be a sign of pests being around!
If you notice any of these it’s time for pest control in your home!
Top Ten Pest Control Tactics and Ideas
Let us take a look at some of the most popular tactics and ideas to control pests:
1. Do Not Allow Water To Stand
Stagnant water helps mosquitoes to breed. And these mosquitoes could be a bearer of deadly diseases like malaria, dengue and filaria. Make sure that you do not keep standing water in the bathroom or kitchen buckets when not in use. Keep the utensils dry and ensure all the drains run outside your house.
2. Cover The Windows With Nets
Fix nets on the windows of your house. This will stop a wide range of pests like flies, mosquitoes, cockroaches, and bees from entering your house and spreading diseases. This step will also help in maintaining proper ventilation while keeping the pests at bay.
3. Do Not Leave Cut Fruits And Vegetables Out For Long
When cut fruits and vegetables are kept in the open, they attract pests like flies. While they can be harmless, rotting fruits and vegetables can attract larger pests like ants, flies, and bees which are hard to get rid of.
4. Keep The Bathroom Clean
Your bathroom can be a potential breeding place for pests so make sure to follow certain steps to keep your bathroom hygienic and safe. Keep the place always dry and clean, clean the pot every alternate day, use a heavy-duty cleaner for your sink twice a week. Last but not the least, make sure the drain is not clogged with hair or soap particles.
5. Throw Away Garbage Regularly
Dispose of the garbage regularly, if possible every day. Accumulating garbage can lead to an infestation of rodents along with pests which may lead to the spread of diseases. To avoid harm, throwing away garbage daily is the key!
6. Maintain the Area Outside Your Home
It is extremely important to maintain cleanliness outside of your house to keep the inside clean. If you have a lawn or garden, make sure to fill in the holes and pots to avoid stagnant water. Trim your plants regularly to avoid bushy growth which may attract pests.
7. Keep External Use Accessories Outside
If you have a lawn or garden, you might have furniture, shoes, buckets, and objects that you use there. Make sure not to bring them inside and use them before cleaning them thoroughly as they might be carriers of pests. The same applies to toys and bicycles that your kids use outside.
8. Keep the Kitchen Clean
Keep your kitchen racks, stove-tops, and drawers free of vegetable peels, spilt food and other specks of dirt. Clean them regularly with disinfectants and always maintain a dry atmosphere in the kitchen. This helps in controlling pests inside the house and kitchen.
9. Dispose Of Things You Don’t Need
One of the most useful tips in keeping your house free of germs is decluttering. If you have unused boxes lying around the house, clothes, and toys that your children have outgrown, it’s time to throw them away. They are just lying around the corner, accumulating dust and acting as an abode of germs.
10. Take Professional Service
While the above tips can help in controlling the pests, they may not make your house entirely free of termites or pests. Hence, it is best to take professional help occasionally as they are well trained and use verified chemicals and maintain the safety of your home.
Conclusion
Keep your house safe and secure through regular cleaning and pest control. Whenever you are opting for professional pest control services, make sure to keep your children away from chemicals and avoid food contamination. Your house insurance might not cover pest control expenses but they can surely help in keeping your house a safe place. Hence, house insurance policies help you in repairing your house from time to time, keeping the foundation strong.
Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purpose only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.
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