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Cost-Effective Methods
Are you tired of spending hundreds of dollars every year on pest control? Did you know you can slash that price by two-thirds by doing it yourself with tested and proven professional-grade supplies, yes you can!
Homeowners who want to tackle pest control are using different methods both chemical and natural remedies. There is a growing debate on which one is more effective. Regardless of your school of thought, here are top 15 tested and proven DIY pest control tips from exterminators:
1. Keep Your House Clean
A clean house is less attractive to pests. Try to wash your dish regularly and drain its dirty water after each use. Wipe your kitchen counters and surfaces daily.
Store your foods and drinks in sealed plastic or glass container. Vacuuming, mopping, and sweeping should be your daily routine.
2. Eliminate The Key Attractants
According to a pest control company propestcontrolsydney.com.au, there are 3 key things that attract pests to your home. They are food, water, and shelter. If you are pragmatic enough to remove them from your home, then pests have no reason to enter your home.
As referenced above, repair every faucet and leaked pipes, clean your home, and remove junk and old magazines.
3. Seal All Openings
Some pests can penetrate your house through even the least tiny openings. So, as a safety measure, always inspect the outside of your home and seal any potential entry points with steel wool, chalk, etc. Always inspect your door frames, cables, utility pipes, the roof, and the wires. Repair any broken screens and windows.
4. Eliminate Weeds
Your environment should be in top form. Pests will, first of all, come to your yard before entering your house. Cut your grasses and do weeding and get rid of fallen branches, debris, and piles of leaves.
5. Keep Your Home Well Ventilated
This will help to keep the pests at bay. Most pests are attracted to basements and moisture. You can drastically decrease this by using a dehumidifier. This can also generate significant energy savings for your home. So, the keyword here is to keep your home dry and well ventilated.
6. Wash Your Beddings Regularly
Some pests like bed bugs and dust mites find great solace in your bedding. So, to stay safe, you are advised to wash any towels, quilts, blankets, sheets, clothing that you use regularly, at least 3 times monthly. If you have pets, wash their beddings as often as you can to help prevent fleas.
7. Use Plants As Natural Remedy
Some plants are great insect repellents, thereby serving as a perfect alternative to chemical methods. Plant any of these around your home as natural repellents; spearmint, Rosemary, Basil, lavender, catnip, lemongrass, pitcher plants, etc.
8. Identify The Predominate Pest In Your Location
Do proper research and find out the most common pests in your location and the threats they cause. Keep in mind that pests vary from one area to another and each of them requires specific treatment. So, proper identification is key to knowing the best treatment method.
9. Don’t Kill The Good Ones
Some pests are dangerous to your health such as roaches, termites, and rodents. However, there are some that are highly beneficial to have them around such as ladybugs- great for the garden, and eat aphids, and bats- reduce the population of mosquitoes.
Others include green lacewings and ground beetles. They are good and can serve as natural pesticides as long as they are outdoors, not inside your home.
10. Remove Centipede From Your Home
Sprinkle borate dust and silica in the affected areas. This can work momentarily, not as a long-term solution.
11. Keep Mosquitoes Away From Your Barbecue
Try as much as possible to prevent mosquitoes from entering your home. When barbecuing, you can keep mosquitoes away from the coals by placing rosemary or planting marigolds. Mosquitoes hate the fragrance.
12. Adopt A Cat
One of the safest ways to solve pest problems is by adopting a cat. Naturally, cats are experts in hunting and killing rodents.
13. Try Mulching
Mulching is a highly effective pest control alternative to chemical methods. Mulching reduces the spread of plants and also reduces the harmful effects of sunlight and rain.
14. Inspect Your Leaves Consistently
This will help you to know when the leaves in your garden are unhealthy or discolored. Doing a regular leaf inspection is a helpful method.
15. Neem Oil
Neem oil acts as a natural remedy to a variety of insects. They are effective in killing different species of insects like aphids, whiteflies, mealybugs, etc.
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