Pest Controlling Your Home for This Winter

This winter, as the wind gets stronger, the cold air sets, we crawl into our sweaters, socks, and hats to get used to falling temperatures, pests with four or more legs may be crawling into our homes.
As a homeowner, you need to take steps all year-round to pest-proof your homes. Pests adapt to the changing environment. Bugs can cause serious property damage in and around the home. It is vital that homeowners take proactive steps to protect their largest investment.”

In late fall and winter, the most common home invaders are house mice. A considerable health threat, these critters can transmit disease and have been proven an allergen to children. Mice are also known to consume and contaminate our food, chew up woodwork and insulation, and trigger electrical problems by nibbling on wires. Below are some pest proofing tips you can try yourself:

Ten tips for winter pest proofing:
1. Seal up any cracks and holes on the outside of your home including areas where utilities and pipes enter your home.
2. Make sure vents have screens on them.
3. Keep tree branches and shrubbery well trimmed and away from the house.
4. Inspect boxes, grocery bags and other packaging thoroughly to curb hitchhiking insects.
5. Keep basements, attics, and crawl spaces well ventilated and dry.
6. Store garbage in sealed containers and dispose of it regularly. Do not let it sit there, you are asking for trouble if you do that!
7. Store firewood at least 20 feet away from the house and five inches off the ground.
8. Repair fascia and sofits and rotted roof shingles; some insects are drawn to deteriorating wood.
9. Replace weather-stripping and repair loose mortar around the basement foundation and windows.
10. Call a qualified pest control professional for additional advice and treatment if necessary.

Also, below are important detailed factors to consider:

All insects, rodents, need moisture to survive. Carpenter ants, for example, never nest in healthy dry wood. They will seek out a windowsill that has been damp from a leak, or an area near a water pipe that leaks and will start a nest there. Termites will eat most hardwoods, but they must have moisture and will locate their nest near an available source. Brown Recluse Spiders and others love to eat termites and other insects.

Although they wander and can find moisture from other sources, they must have a food source thus are found near a moisture source. Inspect your home. If you detect any leaks, have them fixed immediately. Although repairs are expensive, in the end the repairs will save you money from pest control services as well as more repairs that are extensive.
It does not take a very big hole for an insect to gain entrance into your home, and mice only need a quarter of an inch. Inspect your home. Check areas where phone lines, cable lines, gas lines, etc. enter your home.

If you can see, any daylight caulks it up. Garage doors are notorious for mouse entry. Often the weather strip wears out on the corners, or was put on wrong. Replace them. Attic vents have screens, or should have. If they are worn out, or if you do not have one there, replace them.

They are a favorite entry for birds, squirrels, wasps, and silverfish. Also, while in the attic check for other holes and gaps. They make easy entry and usually forgotten.
Porch and patio lights attract insects, which in turn attract spiders to the food source. Then, when the kids leave the door open or the Pizza man is waiting to be paid, both insects and spiders sneak into the house and you wonder why you suddenly have bugs. To circumvent this problem buy yellow, or non-insect attractive light bulbs, and try to keep the doors closed with a weather strip on the bottom.

All windows and screen doors should have a fine mesh screen and be in good shape. Any holes or pulls must be repaired or a variety of insects may enter.

Basements, Attics, Garages are all subject to clutter. Boxes and various other storage items are all subject to infestations of insects, spiders, and rodents. Roaches especially like the corrugation in boxes to breed. Brown recluse like to hide in areas that are rarely disturbed.
Clutter also makes it difficult to inspect and treat areas should you have a problem. I know from experience that it is difficult to avoid clutter. One never knows when Shark Skin suits may come back in style. If possible, buy plastic sealed tubs to use for storage and be sure they are tightly sealed and stacked six inches from the baseboards.

Grain fumigation is required by the F.D.A. on all flour, cereals, dog food, and other grain that is packaged and sold for consumption. Usually they do a good job, but upon occasion a few insects are missed and the consumer winds up with confused Flour beetles, Indian Meal Moths, or other stored grain insects. A good rule to avoid contamination and spread of the insects is to seal all open foods in airtight containers, as well as birdseed and dog food. This will also stop mice from feeding on them should you ever have a mouse problem.
Leaf clogged guttering is a pain that we have to deal with nearly every fall unless you've invested a lot of money to have clog free gutters put on. Many times cleaning them is put off until summer, and then forgotten about until excessive rain and waterfalls down the side of the house reminds us to clean them. Not only does this cause wood rot and cellar leaks, but also it is a breeding area for many insects and other pests. Mosquitoes breed in standing water, silverfish have a water source, then access into the attic, Carpenter ants have water soaked wood, and birds have a water source. Clean all gutters, and make sure the slope is such that they drain into the downspout.

Trees and shrubs that touch or overhang the house are runways for insects and squirrels allowing easy entry into your residence. Carpenter ants are especially guilty of this, especially if they have dead branches on the tree to have begun a colony already. Squirrels are often a problem in the winter months, especially if you have shake shingles, and tree branches allow easy access. Shrubs touching the house or windows allow a variety of insect’s access to the windows, and they do not need much space to wander through a window and into you house.

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