3 Tips for a Pest Free Home In the New Year

The New Year brings as much joy as it does reflection, paired with new declarations about healthy living that seem hard keep. It becomes time for Maryland residents to discard any remaining holiday sweets, get back on the treadmill, and resolve to call our Mother's more often. One resolution that escaped the top 10 best resolutions for 2012 promises us a fresh start to a well-organized life (and basement) and will help us to spend less and save more:  Make your home a pest free home in 2012.

The New Year is the perfect time to kick out and keep out unwanted insect and rodent pests. American Pest shares 3 pest prevention tips to keep your home a pest free home in the New Year:

Clean out the pantry and kitchen cupboards

Holiday baking and entertaining leaves behind bits of food debris that roll beneath kitchen cabinets and under stoves and other preparation surfaces. Seek to prevent the invasion of kitchen ants or pantry pests by thoroughly cleaning high and low. There is nothing more appetizing to these pests than a drip of honey or a sugary sprinkle left behind from all that delicious holiday baking.

• Wipe down all obvious kitchen surfaces with warm, soapy water, spaying special attention to grease splatters around the stove

• Go deeper into the crevices between the stove and the counter-top and beneath cooking surfaces

• Vacuum or broom sweep beneath the refrigerator and the stove

• Put all food items with a longer shelf life in containers with tight fitting lids (oats, bran, cereals, flour, sugar, decorating sprinkles, spices, etc.)

• Rinse and promptly remove recyclable items (do not store these in the garage)

Pantry pests such as the Indian meal moth tend to seek out foods with a long shelf life such as cereals, baking goods, and even your bird seed and dog food. Since these pests lay their eggs inside packaged goods you may even want to inspect food items at the grocery store before purchasing them. Some pantry pests make their way into your home before you have even opened the package. After a good cleaning of the kitchen you can rest easy knowing that your kitchen will not be the host to any unwanted guests this year.

Keep the exterior of your home properly sealed

There are many prevention tips that begin with the exterior of your home, keeping pests from ever entering in the first place. We all love a crackling fire for the cold winter months but it is important to keep your firewood stacked away from your home. American Pest, a Maryland pest control company, recommends keeping your firewood stored at least 10 feet away from your home and also off the ground to keep spiders and other pests from catching a ride inside.

Inspect the outside of your home and seal off any cracks or holes that mice, spiders and other pests may use as a route in. For pests small or large in size, it only requires a tiny space for them to make their way in so check your home’s siding, roofing, and basement for any small spaces that could serve as an open door to pests. 

If pests do find their way into your home, they will most likely be hiding in spaces such as the basement, attic or crawl spaces. So a thorough inspection of these spaces is important to make sure that the pests don’t make their way into your cozy living space.

Inspect for bed bugs when on vacation

The one thing we can all look forward to is a vacation to break up the cooler winter months. But beware, bed bugs are an increasingly rampant issue among hotels and travelers themselves. These bugs may hitch a ride in your suit case or even on your clothing to make their way back to your home. So when you finally get to take your long awaited winter vacation, it is very important to inspect the hotel room for bed bugs before you get too comfortable. Check on the mattresses, around the bed, and the upholstered furniture for any signs of bed bugs. You will want to look for the following:

• Dark, ink-like stains appearing in cracks, mattress seams, or on bedding materials

• Light brown pieces of skin they shed

• Live bugs themselves

If you do find any signs of bed bugs, get a new room immediately. Upon leaving, you want to thoroughly inspect your luggage to be sure you are not allowing any bed bugs a free ride back to your home.

So there you have it, the top three pest prevention tips for a pest free home in the New Year. But if the pests have overpowered or you have slipped up on your resolutions and you have found yourself in the midst of an infestation, contact the Maryland pest control experts today!