Every year, pests begin to awaken from their dormant state as the weather warms up into Spring. This year, take some of these action steps to be proactive in preventing the pests from entering your home.
1.) Drainage issues and standing water
There are many pests out there that love water. Mosquitoes, gnats, silverfish, ants and more all need water to thrive or love living in the water. Take the time to walk around your home to identify where there might be problem areas where water could congregate. Check for low lying spots in your landscape and fill them with dirt and mulch. Locate any drainage gutters that could direct water into low lying areas of your property after a hard rain storm. Tires, toys, garbage cans and anything else that could collect water after a rain are all points of interest for pests.
2.) Trim back long grass and unnecessary brush
One of the best ways to attract pests of all kinds is to have thick cover around your home. Tall grass, thick bushes, dense sticks piled up, stacks of logs, and more are all amazing homes for pests all the way from the tiniest bug to the biggest rat. Take a look at the landscape around your home. Are the bushes trimmed back and under control? Is your pile of firewood located away from the house and stacked in a way that won’t promote or encourage pests to make a home out of it? Do you have large patches of uncut grass that are located near your house? These things and more are all great things to take a look at this Spring, to avoid making the perfect resting spot for unwanted pests.
3.) Clean out the gutters
Gutters are a big time collector of debris and if left unkept, are also a great place for water to sit. As we discussed earlier, any standing water is a problem. It is important to take a look at your gutters once a year to make sure they aren’t backed up with leaves, sticks and water and that they are draining properly. If you want to take gutter maintenance to the next level, a great product to invest in are gutter guards. A product like LeafFilter, is a great product to allow the water to flow freely into your gutters, but also keep the debris and pests out.
4.) Make any necessary repairs to your windows and doors
Over the years, your home can settle and wear because of the weather and use. This creates cracks and crevices in your home that weren’t there when it was built, or when you moved in. The most vulnerable places for these issues to arise are your windows and doors. Seems can split, windows can crack, and doors can adjust. All of these things create just the smallest amount of space needed for a pest to squeeze into. It doesn’t take but the tiniest of crack for a pest to wiggle into your home. Take a walk around your home inside and out to address any possible cracks or openings that may have been created since last season. Then take the necessary steps to fill and patch them before Spring arrives. A product like DAP Aplex Plus is a just one of the great products you can use to fill these voids.
5.) Contact your pest control company to create a barrier of protection
The action steps listed above are a great starting point, when you need to get control of the pests in your area. Once those are completed, the next best step would be to contact your local pest control company to have them begin to apply a barrier of protection around your homes exterior. At Warren Lawn, we provide pest control for Des Moines, Norwalk, Indianola and the surrounding areas. When you request a free estimate from Warren Lawn, we will give you an accurate price based on the linear square feet of your home. Then, we provide you with a barrier of protection around your home from the beginning of Spring, to the end of the Fall. This makes sure that you have a high quality product, that has been applied to the landscape and perimeter of your home to prevent pests from wanting to make your home a resting place.
