How to Properly Handle a Pest Infestation

When you finally get your first house, it can be one of the most satisfying things ever. It is a dream for many people, and it’s one that they work for all their lives. While it’s a very fulfilling experience, it is not without its challenges. The biggest problem you might encounter at your house is a pest infestation. The key to dealing with a pest infestation is to do it right to stop the problem from happening again in the future.

Here’s how you can properly handle a pest infestation. 

What Pests Are You Dealing with?

This is the first question that you need to ask because each pest will require a different approach. The most common home pests include ants, fleas, moths, rats, and spiders, but there are plenty of other ones that you might unfortunately face. The first thing that you need to do is try and identify the pests. If you’re lucky, the pest will look familiar and you will be able to identify it easily, like with spiders and ants. If you can’t recognize the pests, you could take a picture of them and try consulting with professionals or using online resources so you could identify what kind of pest infestation you’re dealing with. 

Protect Your Household 

While the best way to deal with a pest infestation is prevention, sometimes that doesn’t work. If you do face an infestation, you need to take immediate action to protect your family. Some pests could be lethal to dogs or cats, so you need to make sure your pets are safe. You should also ensure that your kids won’t come in contact with pests, and you could do that by keeping them away from the infested area as much as possible. You should steer clear of the pests until you figure out what you’re going to do. In the next point, we’ll discuss contacting professionals, which might mean you will have to take your family and stay elsewhere until your house has been cleaned. You should also remember to keep all foods in your place locked in tight containers and safely out of the bugs’ reach. And if you have any personal belongings that could be damaged by the pests, you should remove those as well. 

Should You Call Professionals?

This is the question that everyone dealing with pest infestations thinks of. It will most likely depend on the severity of the infestation and whether or not you could keep it under control on your own. If you noticed that there are just too many bugs and they’re coming out of everywhere, then you should definitely call Pest Control and wait for the experts to come and deal with the problem. Professionals will be able to best identify the problem and deal with it properly, and they will make sure your house is clear from any pests. In these cases, you might have to take your family away for a few days, depending on the kind of pesticide they’ll be using.

Identify the Cause

Whether you called professionals to deal with the problem or not, either way, you need to identify the root of the problem so you can avoid having any future infestations. It won’t do you much good if you killed all the bugs in your place, only to have them come back a month late. So, try to follow the bugs to find out where they are coming from. They might be coming from cracks in your windows or doors or walls. Plants and trees touching your house from the outside might be housing pests and leading them to your place. Water and moisture in the basement is an open invitation for pests and mold. 

Whatever the root of the problem is, after identifying it, you need to deal with the situation. If there are cracks and seals, you need to seal them properly and make sure there isn’t any room for pests to sneak into your house. If you have moisture in your basement, make sure to regularly have it removed and clean any stale water. If the trees are leading pests into your house, trim the trees, and make sure they don’t touch your walls or are near to your place. 

Safety Precautions 

If you’re going to use pesticides on your own, you need to make sure you’re using the right kind for this particular pest infestation. You should also be careful not to use any pesticides that might be poisonous to humans or animals. Either way, you have to keep your kids away from the areas in which you used the pesticides. Always follow the safety instructions outlined on the pesticides, and avoid products that require mixing as much as possible. One last thing to remember, always dispose of pesticide canisters safely and ask about the way to do it.

Prevention 

As we mentioned earlier, prevention is key if you want to stop future pest infestations. This means that you need to regularly clean your house since pests are often attracted to dust and dark places, not to mention moisture. You need to have a consistent cleaning schedule that would help you avoid any future infestations. Take care of any leaking pipes around the place and make sure you don’t have any leaking water to the surfaces. Garbage disposal needs to be done properly, and you need to always contain your waste in tightly sealed bins with lids to avoid attracting cockroaches and other pests. Never leave any food out in the open. Always store it safely; kitchens are some of the most common places around the house for pest infestations. 

Pest infestations are annoying and disgusting, but with some preparation, you could handle them. Remember to reach out to experts if the infestation proves too big for you to handle, and always identify the root of the problem. Always make sure your house is hygienic and regularly cleaned to avoid any future infestations. You need to make your house an unwelcoming environment for pests, which means keeping it clean all the time and removing any food leftovers.