Pests are a fact of life, even in the cleanest homes. However, you can keep pests from becoming a huge problem in your home by taking preventative measures. The following tips will help you reduce the risk of having a pest invasion and make it easier to get rid of them if they do appear:
Get your pest inspection done.
Before you hire a pest control company, make sure that they’re certified and licensed. If you have any doubts about their qualifications, get a second opinion. The inspector should also be able to provide detailed information on the types of pests they are dealing with and what needs to be done in order to treat your home for them.
Once you’ve found an experienced professional who is willing to treat your house for pests, make sure that you get all of the necessary documentation from them before signing anything or making any payments: receipts for services rendered (and proof that those services were performed), written reports detailing how the infestation was handled, etcetera.
Clean your house often.
- Clean your home on a regular basis.
- Use disinfectants to clean hard surfaces and food preparation areas. You can also use them when you’re cleaning up pet hair, dander, and food spills.
- Use a vacuum cleaner to clean up dust and dirt from rugs, carpets, floors, furniture (including under cushions), window ledges, window sills and curtains.
Remove anything that attracts pests.
- Remove anything that attracts pests. Pests are looking for food, water and shelter. Make sure to keep your home free of these three things by:
- Keeping food in containers and not leaving it out uncovered
- Cleaning up after your pets when they eat or drink, as well as keeping their dishes clean and empty
- Putting away dishes when you’re done with them so pests can’t use them as a place to hide or build nests (and make sure the sink is empty before bedtime)
Make sure you properly store garbage and compost.
To avoid attracting pests to your home, make sure you properly store garbage and compost.
- Store all food waste in sealed containers or plastic bags in a cool, dry place. If you don’t have a sealed container, use plastic bags that are not torn or punctured.
- Make sure to keep the garbage outside of your home until the morning of pick-up day so that it doesn’t attract animals or insects while near your home overnight (you can learn more about when your local municipality picks up trash here).
You can do a lot to prevent pests from getting into your home without the help of a professional exterminator.
In order to get rid of pests, it’s important to have a basic understanding of the types and life cycles of insects that are common in your area. Most pests can be dealt with by following these steps:
- Identify the pest. If you don’t know what kind of bug is bugging you, take a picture of it with your phone and show it to an expert or search for images online until you find something similar (or just look at our handy infographic).
- Spray the outside of your house with pesticides. This will kill any bugs before they make their way inside—and if there are any survivors who do manage to sneak inside, they’ll likely die from starvation instead of reproducing and taking over your home again next year!
- Seal off entry points using weather stripping around windows and doors or caulk on window frames where necessary; also check that there aren’t any holes in walls where pests could enter from outside without having to go through an opening like a screen door or window screen (this should be easy since most homes aren’t made out entirely out corrugated cardboard boxes). Pest control companies can help seal up cracks like these if needed; otherwise just invest in some good quality caulking material yourself so that even if one day someone else moves into this place after me, they won’t have anything bad happen because I took care not only my own needs but also theirs as well.
Conclusion
We hope that this article has helped you to understand the importance of pest control and how easy it is to take care of them without having to call in a professional exterminator. By following these tips, we know that you’ll be able to keep your home free from those unwanted visitors who might cause damage or disease if left unchecked! If you need pest control in Liberal, shoot us a message today!