It’s that time of the year again! Fall is when the weather starts getting cooler, days seem to be shorter, and the holidays are just around the corner. While all of this is all nice and neat, the cool weather causes many pests to start seeking shelter inside of your home. Yikes! These pests include spiders, rodents, and roaches.
How can you reduce the chances of pests going inside your home? Well, the first step should be identifying what exactly is bugging you, and fortunately for you, we got you covered.
Common Fall Pests
Many pests start heading into the warm homes once the weather starts to get cooler. These unwanted house guests are seeking shelter in our nice and heated homes. Unfortunately, many of these pests bring with them disease and pose a danger to us. Some of the most common and feared Fall pests are spiders, rodents, and cockroaches.
- Spiders: Spiders are some of the most feared pests in the world. They have gotten this reputation due to their unsettling appearance, and some of them have quite the venomous bite. Spiders can live anywhere inside your home. They can make a web in the corner of a room, hide in a dark area that it can squeeze into, or snuggle up in your shoe. Spiders tend to be loners, so If you begin to notice an increasing amount of them in your home, you should give us a call if you would like some assistance keeping them under control.
- Rodents: The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when it pertains to rodents are rats. They are one of the more common house pests today. The one many people are familiar with is the house mouse. The house mouse may look cute to some people, but it carries many types of diseases and bacteria. Some of these diseases include salmonella, hantavirus, and bubonic plague. You will want to make sure you keep these guests out of your home!
- Cockroaches: Cockroaches are the most common insect pests in homes, restaurants, and other structures. Many people are disgusted by the sight of them. They are also capable of transmitting disease-causing organisms. They are also a source of allergens as their waste goes in the air, causing flare ups in many people with allergies and asthma.
These pests are always out and about throughout the year, but why does it seem like there are more of them during the Fall?
Why Are There More Pests During the Fall?
The first and most obvious answer to this question is that these pests start seeking warm homes to take shelter in. The cooler, fall weather makes your home an enticing option for them to hangout. Many insects, rodents, and arachnids may start aggregating inside of your home. Once one of them comes in, others start to follow. This leads to a large amount of pests you begin to notice walking around inside your house.
Spiders tend to be hiding out in your home, even before it gets cooler. Even though that’s the case, many spiders start heading indoors when they see that their prey is doing the same. Seeing all their prey gathering in one place makes it more enticing for the spiders. This is when you start to notice more than one or two spiders you usually see in a month. They are either actively looking for a place to hide or hunting prey.
Rodents want to take shelter in a place that is nice, warm and stocked with food. Unfortunately, that is how we like to keep our homes cozy and stocked with food. They will get into cupboards, pantries, and any other place that houses your food. This makes them a nuisance as they can contaminate your food and leave fecal matter behind, which can harm you and your pets.
Cockroaches, like many other insects, prefer warmer environments as they are cold-blooded. The cooler weather makes them produce less heat and can harm them. Nice warm home with crumbs and liquids on the floor is the perfect place for them to live and reproduce.
Tips to Pest-Proof Your Home
Now that you know about the pests that come into your home during the Fall season and why, it’s time to give you some tips on how to pest-proof your home!
- Clean up any crumbs or spilled liquids as that is a prime golden source for pests. Leaving any crumbs and liquids on any surface can attract many pests to that location.
- Install door sweeps to your doors that lead to the outside world. The reason for doing this is to reduce the risk of any pests sneaking in through cracks in your door.
- Make sure to store and keep your food in secure places and containers. Many pests, such as rats, tend to climb into pantries and cupboards to reach your food. Keep your food secure by keeping them in airtight containers and storing them in hard to reach places.
- Regularly take out your garbage and avoid making it overflow. Taking out your garbage regularly is important as it can keep pests from going through it and causing a mess. Letting it overflow increases the chance of more pests coming in to feed on the floor.
- Always check everything that pests may latch onto to get indoors. Some pests like to lay quiet in grocery bags and come out when they know they are inside your home. It is always a good idea to make sure you are not bringing in any unwanted guests.
- Make sure to keep your basements and attics dry and well-ventilated. Pests love moisture, so keeping those areas free of it can drive them away. Invest in a dehumidifier to keep prime pest areas, such as the attic and basement, dry.
- Hire a pest control expert like us! Here at Meers, we are more than happy to help you with any pest issues. We have many solutions to tackle any pest problem you have.
Conclusion
Fall pests can be quite the nuisance and disturbance in your home. Fortunately, there are many preventive measures you can take to reduce the likelihood of an infestation in your home.
If you would like some assistance to tackle these pests, feel free to contact us. We will be more than happy to help you with your pest problems!