Your home is your castle. To stake your claim, you’ll want to consciously invest in pest prevention to keep little critters from marking their territory in your territory. Otherwise, you’ll have pests of all sorts scurrying around your home.
The good news is these household pests are easy to take care of, provided you know what triggers to look for and how to address them.
In this list, we’ll overview a list of the ten most-common pests that you’ll find in the average home. The list and adjoining treatment solutions are provided by our friends at Moxie Pest Control, who stand ready to help anyone who is looking to tackle pests in their own home and garden.
Ants
Have ants in your home? These picnic intruders may seem like harmless nuisances but can actually have a significant impact on your household. Pesky carpenter ants can build nests in your wood furniture and weaken it structurally, while house ants can contaminate food in your pantry.
To mitigate ant infestations, professionals locate the trails, put down bait traps, and use insecticides to destroy the ant colonies.
Between professional visits, you can purchase prevention sprays and traps at your local home improvement store.
Centipedes
Though centipedes aren’t necessarily a threat to human occupants, centipedes in your home can indicate the existence of other pests such as ants, cockroaches, and spiders—the favorite foods of this household pest.
For prevention, exterminators apply barrier sprays around foundations and all entry points.
You can do your part by maintaining a regular cleaning routine and reducing the amount of damp/moist areas in and around your home.
Cockroaches
Unlike ants and centipedes, cockroaches are nasty menaces that can threaten the health and safety of your family members or roommates.
Because these pests are attracted to human food sources, cockroaches are capable of spreading parasites and bacteria, including salmonella, to you and your family. Cockroaches can also carry allergens that affect between 63% and 98% homes.
To combat the effects of cockroaches, professionals apply gel baits in the areas cockroaches typically live and congregate. When you call the professionals, make sure to follow their detailed instructions to prepare for their upcoming visit.
Fleas and ticks
Both fleas and ticks are parasites that feed the blood of their hosts. Fleas primarily target household pets but are also known to bite humans, usually around the feet and ankles.
To reduce the risk to your pets, make sure they are current on their flea and tick prevention and are regularly washed and groomed.
While fleas usually threaten animal life, ticks are known to carry a variety of diseases, including Lyme disease—making them more dangerous to human targets.
Professional treatment involves routine cleaning and chemically treating the areas your pets spend most of their time, inside and outside.
Mice and rats
These rodents are infamous for carrying diseases and gnawing everything in-sight: wood, insulation, wires, upholstery, you name it. Not only do they wreak havoc on your home, but mice and rats are also known to build nests in large appliances and snack on most human and pet foods.
Beyond their ability to chew upholstery, rats, through their urine and feces, can transmit diseases such as hantavirus, salmonellosis, and even the bubonic plague.
To keep your family safe from vermin, professional exterminators place bait traps with rodenticide along scent trails and identified areas. Household dogs and cats can also be an ally in controlling rats and mice.
Millipedes
Despite their ominous appearance, millipedes aren’t dangerous to humans.
These pests thrive in piles of decomposing vegetation around your yard and much-prefer the outdoors. If you find a millipede wandering around your home, it’s likely because they’ve taken a wrong turn and don’t know how to escape your four walls.
To stop them from trailing inside, ask your exterminator to spray a chemical barrier near and around all entry points.
Silverfish
Silverfish can stir allergic reactions in some humans, so be wary of their agitating effects.
Besides their potential for an allergic reaction, silverfish are known to munch on all kinds of common household items: paper, the glue in book bindings and photo albums, clothes, dry foods.
Unlike other pests that can be managed with small steps, dealing with silverfish should be left to the pros. Professionals know how to target the areas of infestation and apply the correct insecticides. Multiple treatments are often required.
Snails
Snails and slugs pose no threat to humans but can leave unsightly and sticky trails around your home.
Indoors, they are attracted to carbohydrates such as dry pet food. Outside, snails and slugs flock to your plant life.
To combat snail infestations indoors, close up entry points to keep them out of the house. When it comes to the outdoors, you can build a DIY snail trap, half-filled with beer. If DIYing isn’t for you, the professionals will use snail bait to manage the problem.
Spiders
Most spiders, while unsightly (and panic-inducing), are harmless. The black widow and brown recluse spiders are the only two exceptions you should be aware of. Even then, bites are rare, but who’s taking chances?
DIY sprays will work, but professional exterminators know how to lay-down a perimeter around your home and know exactly where to spray inside for maximum effect.
Termites
Termites are infamous for their wood-obliterating properties and have the power to cause serious, wallet-emptying damage to your home.
For a termite infestation, you’ll need the pros. Professional exterminators know where to locate termites, which insecticides to use, and how to apply them. In the long-run, it will save you money and time to consult the expertise of a professional.
Final thoughts
When it comes to eliminating household pests, knowing when DIY efforts will suffice and when you’ll need to recruit the professionals is the first step. Don’t let annoying pests invade your sanctuary. Keep your family safe (and healthy) at all costs.
