Each year, pest control costs the US millions of dollars. Rodents, bugs, insects; each year these little critters cause havoc in homes across the country.
No one wants to share their home with pests. But unfortunately, many people fail to prevent pests from entering their home. And so, end up with all sorts of rodents and bugs crawling around their property.
According to a recent survey, almost half of all homeowners in the US fail to do anything to prevent pests in their homes. With pest control costing the US millions each year, this needs to change.
The problem for many people is that they don’t know how to effectively, prevent and deal with pests in their homes. Or in some cases, are too fearful of pests to even attempt to deal with them.
Many people presume that using a pest control service, like Castle Rock Pest Control, is the only way to deal with pest issues. However, the key to effective management of pests is preventing them from entering the property in the first place.
It is the responsibility of the homeowners to prevent pests from entering their home. But with so many US homeowners failing to do this, pest invasions are on the rise.
Before thinking about chemical pest control, there are several things homeowners should do. The thing that people should remember is that pests like rodents, look for three things; food, shelter, and water. If they can’t find these things, then they move on. In many properties, pest problems can be solved by simply removing these three things.
The first step homeowners should take is to go around their property looking for any areas that could be used for access. Things, like loose tiles, cracks in the foundations and small holes are all ideal access points for pests. These should be filled in or fixed immediately.
In terms of water, leaking pipes and dripping taps are an ideal source of water for pests. Homeowners should go around their property looking for areas that water is coming from. These areas may attract pests and so should be fixed, or the water turned off.
Food is something that pests, but especially rodents, look for. To prevent rodents being attracted to their property, homeowners should keep surfaces free of food. Garbage bags should also be properly sealed and disposed of. There should never be any food left outside, this includes pet food.
If it is too late for these steps and pests are already in the property, the next steps should be DIY pest control. Then if unsuccessful, this should be followed by hiring a professional.
Traps can be used to catch some pests. However, they aren’t as effective as pest control. While using traps and bait is a good solution for dealing with an individual pest, they can’t control the population. In cases where the pest has bred, a pest controller should always be called.
The key to successful pest control is prevention. If every homeowner put preventative pest control measures in place, the annual spending on pest control would decrease.
