Pests bring a myriad of problems to households. Pests such as rats, mice and cockroaches are voracious and opportunistic eaters. They eat the food that you keep in storage and the food that you prepare. Pests like ants and termite are destructive. They can damage your belongings and property. And the worst part? Most of these pests are vectors of serious diseases that can be transmitted to humans. Still feel like letting these critters stay in our homes? A definite no. It is imperative for every homeowner to find ways on how to get rid of pests.
Prevention
One of the wisest course of action to take is to prevent pests from invading your house. How to do that? Keep your house clean inside and out. Do a general cleaning on your house once a month and make it a regular schedule. Soaps and detergents can deter most pests from going near your house. Do not leave anything unturned and do not spare any nook and cranny when it comes to cleaning. Regularly dispose of your garbage and leftovers. Make sure to wipe dining tables and clean the floors regularly of food particles. Have a pest management professional apply wood treatment to wooden parts of your house to avoid termite infestation. Termite infestation can be particularly problematic if household owners decide to sell the house. Damages done by termites can be extensive and will need renovation and fumigation when building pest inspections will be conducted. These can prove costly for the seller or the buyer, depending which of them shoulders the responsibility for the house repair.
Preemptive Strike
Another method of averting a pest invasion is to strike preemptively. Don’t wait for the numbers of the pests at home to rise before doing anything. As early as seeing one or two cockroaches, flies or mice, or a stray rat, immediately exterminate them before they can reproduce and do real damage. The same goes for spotting pests within the perimeter of your house and property. If you see an ant hill or mounds near your house or on the lawn, destroy them and apply insect repellent immediately to avoid rebuilding. The same goes for seeing a lone house fly or mosquito in the house. Immediately exterminate them before they can call in reinforcements.
Take the Fight to the Enemy
Setting traps and exterminating or repelling pests inside your homes or in areas where you see them will not be enough to get rid of the pests. It will not more than that. Find the lairs or hide-out of these pests and eliminate every last one of them. For mosquitoes, find sources of stagnant water around your house. They could be clogged gutters, unplanted pots, uncovered tires, containers or basins. Remove these sources and get rid of the remaining ones and religiously apply repellents to avoid another infestation. For flies, roaches and rodents, keep a close eye on where these critters most frequently come and go. Put baits laden with tracers or poison booby traps to kill other pests within their lairs or to flush them out of hiding and eliminate them once they’re out. For termites, trace the termite tracks until you reach the termite mound. Eliminate the entire colony by applying termiticide in and around the mound.
Weapons of Choice
Going green or choosing natural and safe pesticides is a smart choice in getting rid of pests. Although chemical pesticides are also effective against pests, homeowners should consider the impact of pesticides on the environment and the short and long-term health impact of the chemicals on the human body. A green and safe pesticide or insect repellant is ideal for continued and long-term use until the threat of pest infestation has been eliminated.
In getting rid of pests you just need two things: to be clean and smart. Regularly cleaning your house inside and outside is a good way of deterring pests and leaving them with no opportunity to infest your house. A wise Chinese military general once said that knowing your enemy is half the battle. The same proves true in the fight against pests. Know everything about the common household pests, and you will know the most effective way to get rid of them.