There is no permanent solution for keeping insects, rodents, or birds away from your home forever. As long as there is a slight chance of shelter and food, you are bound to have a pest. It is possible, though, to keep them at bay so that they do not pose a threat to small children or wreak havoc on food or other animals. Here are a few tips on how to keep your home clear of pests:
Ants
When it comes to pests often found in your home, it is best to keep the areas where food is as clean as possible. Ensuring that kitchen counters and bathrooms are kept clean with disinfectant will deter ants from searching for food and water. Try these tips to help you:
- Cleaning detergent with ammonia will keep the kitchen counters clean of food and free of food smells. In most cleaning detergents, ammonia is a good repellent and is non-irritant for most people’s skin.
- Cucumbers are bitter for ants, who are usually attracted to sweeter smells and tastes. Leaving a few thin strips alongside the entry points where the ants are seen walking will leave them to try another entry point and not return at all.
- Cloves crushed or mixed with garlic are a strong deterrent that sends ants moving in the other direction because of the smell. It can be an irritant for anyone with allergies because of the scent, but you won’t have to worry about any ants.
Dust Mites
Dust mites can pose a problem for anyone with severe allergies, but they can be found everywhere in the home, which is unavoidable. The only solution most people have when it comes to dust mites is to keep their homes as clean as possible through daily vacuuming, washing down surfaces, and doing the laundry regularly. You could also do the following:
- Keep your bedding and furniture clean. Dust mites are attracted to fibers, and anything that they can stick to, so keep bedding, clothing, and furniture vacuumed and cleaned at all times. The more woolly carpets and bedding you have, the more you need to keep it clean. Wash children’s toys in a good laundry detergent regularly and keep them off the floors when they are not playing with them.
- Keep your home free of clutter at all times If you are done reading books or have bags and boxes lying around you do not need, throw them away. The more chaos you have, the more your chances of attracting mites and other insects.
- Diatomaceous Earth Using the food-grade version is less harmful to humans but effective with bugs. It can be used for fleas and bed bugs and only needs to be dusted onto the areas. You can leave it on for two to three hours before vacuuming it up and changing your bedding.
- A humidifier will be an excellent accessory for your rooms. Dust mites thrive at high temperatures, so keeping the room at a lower humidity level will help keep them from procreating.
Cockroaches
Every home has this problem at some point or another because of how fast cockroaches travel and how quickly they can procreate. It might be the smaller roaches that most people find in their kitchen, or it could be the larger ones usually found on drains outside the home, but either way, they are a nuisance. Here is what you can use to deter them from staying in your home:
- Apple cider vinegar works well to keep roaches away because the scent is an irritant for insects. You can spray it around the counters and areas where you see roaches escaping to lure them away from their feeding site.
- Catnip has an active nepetalactone, a natural repellent for cockroaches but non-toxic to humans or other animals. Place a bit of catnip into boiling water and let it simmer. Once it is done, use it as a spray in areas where you have spotted cockroach activity. You can also stuff small pieces of catnip into cracks along with the kitchen counters or skirtings.
- Boric Acid placing this powerful insect killer in places like the top of kitchen cupboards or inside cupboards that are high up will make it easy for you to get on with your life without worrying about hard-to-reach places. Boric acid can be dangerous when ingested so keep it safe from children.
Pigeons
These pesky birds can be a nuisance when they find a home for the area, which usually includes being someone else’s home. They poop in awkward places, and their poop can be dangerous, so it is always necessary to keep the area clean. However, you can keep them from making a home for themselves through ads. It is illegal to kill them, but you can make sure that the house that they make is not on your property. Here are a few things you can do to keep them at bay:
- Can spray water, vinegar, and baking soda mixed in a spray bottle around areas where the pigeons like to land. The pungent smell will help stop them from landing there, so be sure to spread the area every alternative day if you have a considerable pigeon problem.
- Putting reflective strips helps to blind them temporarily.
- Anti-roosting spikes will stop them from landing on window sills and gutters or chimneys.
Conclusion
As mentioned initially, you cannot get rid of pests forever. Still, if you cannot call for Northampton pest control to come and assist you, you will need alternative solutions to the problems. These solutions are meant to deter the pests from coming into your home and making a home for themselves, but call a professional service to assist you if it doesn’t work.
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