Unfortunately, pests are quite a common occurrence all across the United States, and more and more homeowners are looking for ways to effectively proof their homes against a potential pest invasion. More often than not, prevention is better than having to get rid of an intruder, and the following tips will help you prepare your home and make it as uninviting to wildlife as possible.
1. Regularly check for holes and cracks.
Most pests don’t actively dig or chew through walls to get into your home (though that will happen on occasion). Instead, a large majority take advantage of pre-existing holes and cracks and other great spaces they can crawl through to find warmth and food.
So a good step to pest-proofing your property is to periodically check for any such cracks and manually repair them. Remember to also check the foundations of the house, as cracks there can be an invitation to snakes, as well as cracks in the roof to prevent such intruders as squirrels in the attic. For more information, visit squirrel-attic.com.
Tip: Use steel wool to repair any holes and cracks, as that is difficult to chew through.
2. Clean up your attic.
Speaking of which, make sure you regularly clean both your basement and attic. Since these areas are less used than the rest of the house, they often make ideal camping grounds for pests. By frequently cleaning both of these areas, making sure there are no edible leftovers, and maybe minimizing the number of boxes or potential hiding spots, you minimize the chances of a pest living there.
3. Beware of leftovers.
Regularly cleaning your kitchen and ensuring you keep all foods and leftovers in sealed containers also minimizes the risk of getting cockroaches, rodents, and a wide array of other household undesirables. Remember, these creatures are all basically just looking for food and a warm place to rest their heads. Now, there’s not much you can do about the warmth in your home, but keeping a tidy house can deter pests from approaching.
4. Set up a special dining place for your pets.
Pet food is a big attraction for a wide range of pests, mainly because we get sloppy about cleaning up after our pets and we’re often tempted to leave out food overnight, should our pet get suddenly hungry. But that also attracts pests, so you want to make sure you don’t leave pet food outdoors or scattered around the house. Set up a designated feeding area for your pets and make sure to clean up any crumbs and leftovers you find around the bowls and inside the house.
5. Put up protective screens.
Rodents, snakes, and other types of pests love crawling in through an open, unattended vent or even through your chimney opening. In order to discourage that, buy sturdy, safe protective screens with holes too small to allow the passage of any wildlife, get out your tools, and install them on all possible crawlspaces.
6. Trim your yard.
Nothing simpler, really. See, the thing is, most pests are wary of human beings, so they’re unlikely to run around in the open, as that exposes them to danger. Tall grass, wild hedges, and large piles of leaves, wood, and the like all make ideal hiding and crawling grounds for pests. So by keeping your hedges and backyard neatly trimmed, you deter any pests from coming near, simply because they won’t have a hiding spot.
Also, make sure you store your wood at a safe distance from your home and ideally, in a sealed container.
