During the fall and winter, your home can serve as a warm place for pests—like termites, flies, mice and squirrels—to nest. Still, when pests invade, they can cause property damage and even make you feel uncomfortable in your own home.
To keep your home pest-free, keep a few of the following tips in mind:
- Have a pest control service treat the home with a pesticide spray at regular intervals.
- Use traps or poisons to catch and kill larger pests like mice or rats. Humane traps are also available.
- Regularly clean and sanitize your home. Pests might invade your home to locate a source of nourishment, like improperly stored, discarded or spoiled food. Other sources of food for pests include live plants, trash, human waste and cooking residue.
- Keep entryways, like doors, windows and fireplace flues, closed when you aren’t using them.
- Check the seals around your doors, windows, gas lines, appliance hookups, plumbing lines, foundation and eaves for damage.
- Locate and fill in cracks or other holes in your home’s foundation and structure. Remember, even if a crack is only visible on the inside of your home, that doesn’t mean a pest can’t get in.
- Clean your trash cans and other storage bins regularly to wash away grime.
- Flush your plumbing periodically to clear away grime and clogs that can serve as breeding grounds for larvae growth.