In a few more weeks, we will be ringing in the New Year not only with revelry and fireworks but with new plans, too.
While improving the home does not figure in the top New Year’s resolutions, homeowners who value their home and their families, especially their young children, need to pest-proof their home even before the New Year revelry. This is a wise solution that will welcome the New Year with a totally clean and hygienic home environment.
Common House Pests in Winter
This is the time when some common winter pests find their way to infest one’s house to look for food, warmth, and shelter. Let’s take a look at some pests that are prevalent in the winter and see how pest control at home and other measures can be carried out.:
- Mice and Rats
Mice and rats, both belong to the rodent family. They damage property and carry deadly diseases like the hantavirus and leptospirosis to name a few. While both are rodents, they are extremely different. Mice are smaller but bolder. Rats are of medium size and are wary and afraid.
At night when you hear light scratches and scurrying in your ceiling or walls or in the attic, you are most likely dealing with rodents.
Using traps and rat poison, setting up a bait, covering trash cans and bins, sealing holes and cracks in different areas in your house are just among the many measures of rat-proofing your home.
- Squirrels
These furry animals with bushy tails look cute but they are still rodents, making them the next of kin to mice and rats. During wintertime, squirrels love to inhabit your attic. If you hear scratching or scurrying noises in your attic through the day, chances are high that squirrels have invited themselves into your home.
To prevent them from cozying up in your attic and starting a family, remove opportunities for them to climb into your chimney. Trim those overhanging tree branches in your yard since they can easily leap to roof edges that serve as entry points. Mesh wires can be placed on chimney tops and other opening vents. Seal any opening in the house like plumbing mats or even wall cracks.
- Raccoons
Like rodents, raccoons also love to settle in attics especially during the winter. They like rummaging trash bins, eating your pet’s food, and trying to sneak into your house through the chimney.
Be careful if you see them lingering in the backyard because they can attack when provoked or startled. Worse, they are major carriers of rabies and other pathogens. To ward them off your house and keep them from making a den out of your attic, cover your chimney tops with mesh wires. Do not leave food outside, keep pet food in tightly sealed containers and make sure garbage can lids are sealed tight.
- Cockroaches
Regularly check damp places like the pipes under the sink, repair the leaks and seal cracks, store food in closed containers and avoid leaving dirty dishes in the kitchen.
These dirty crawling creatures mill around nooks where there is moisture like water pipes, bathrooms, dumpsters and areas where there is food and water.
What’s worse, they multiply so fast that it would be harder for you to control. It’s better to call pest control experts. If you happen to live in southern Ontario, experts on pest control in Barrie can help you out.
- Bed bugs
These tiny creatures are like vampires; they feed on your blood. They love to hide in mattresses, linen and pillows, luggage and backpacks, in carpets, and in the nooks and crannies of furniture. They give you allergies, discomfort, and leave stains on your clothes, mattresses, and linen which are just among the signs of a bedbug infestation.
Vacuum often and dry those beddings and linen in high heat, avoid cluttering your place with excess magazines or paper, throw away your old clothes and linen that you no longer use. When there is an infestation, you should know how to bug-proof your home to keep the house safe and clean.
HELP FROM SKILLED PROFESSIONALS
You may be asking yourself, “Is home pest control safe?” No less than experienced pest control experts can answer your questions. It is natural to feel concerned about the toxicity level of these chemicals used in exterminating bugs and pests inside the house.
While it helps to undertake do-it-yourself measures to get rid of these critters, you may not be able to do it properly, making it even more expensive in the long run. Tapping the services of experienced pest control experts to bug-proof the house is the best way to go about it. They offer long-term and safer solutions that leave you worry-free. The treatment and length of time will depend on the type of pests that are plaguing your house.
Enjoy your winter holidays and be assured of the safety and comfort of your house in the new year by leaving the pest-proofing to these licensed and skilled professionals. You can seek the help of pest control professionals in Ontario by calling Mr. Pest Control which offers a free estimate and is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Call Mr Pest Control in Barrie at 705-739-7378; in Orilla at 705-326-3377; in Simcoe County at 705-739-7378 and in Midland & Area at 705-739-7378.
