Fall is here. That means back to school for the kids, Halloween on the horizon, and football Sunday. It also means that a number of pests are going to be looking for warmer climes. Those warmer climes tend to be our homes where climate control keeps the weather beautiful all year long. If you’re concerned that pests are beginning to infiltrate your home, Elevate Pest Control can help ensure they find no safe harbor in your most valuable asset.

Pests In Fall

Once the weather begins to cool significantly, rodents, cockroaches, and spiders all seek out a place to stave off the cold. They, like you, know that the colder weather signals the long winter ahead. That means that if you haven’t shored up cracks in your foundation, openings between the eaves of your roof and your home, or places where your windows don’t quite line up, the time to do that is right now, before winter.

Dealing With Rodents

Once rodents get into your home, they’re very difficult to get rid of. They’ll nest within your insulation. Not only can they cause structural damage as they chew through your wood boring tunnels to your food, but they also contaminate your food and spread very dangerous diseases.

These diseases include Hantavirus, Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome, Rat Bite Fever, Salmonella, Tularemia, and Plague. You do not want these buggers setting up shop around your children and family.

Rodents can also gnaw through electrical wires exposing your home to dangerous electrical fires. Furthermore, they make your home more susceptible to invasion by other pests.

Dealing With Cockroaches

Cockroaches will also seek harbor within homes as the weather gets colder. Their feces can also spread diseases such as salmonella, typhus, and can also severely aggravate your allergies if you have them. Cockroaches cause allergy problems with their feces, saliva, and the parts of their bodies that they shed. This can even include their heads which they can live without for extended periods of time. Children are especially susceptible to allergy problems caused by cockroaches.

Dealing With Spiders

Spiders don’t care about the cold one way or the other. In fact, there’s only one thing that they care about: Food. If their food goes indoors, then so will they, and enjoy their lives all year round. Spiders like the brown recluse bite, injecting venom in the wounds they create. These, if they become infected, can pose serious health risks, especially to the very young and very old.

Preparing For Fall Pest Control

Now is the time to prepare for pests because once they’re holed up in winter, they’re that much more difficult to get rid of. So the question is: How do you as a homeowner prepare your home for winter?

Well, other than scheduling a free inspection with Elevate Pest Control, we have some ideas that will help you come winter. These include:

Installing door sweeps on exterior doors – Keeping the buggers out is your main priority. For that reason, the National Pest Management Association recommends installing sweepers at the bottom of your doors.

Check screen vents and chimney openings – These both provide inlets into your home. Rodents especially can scale electrical wires and will climb down chimneys to enter your home. Something to consider as these pesky critters look for warmth this winter.

Seal cracks in your foundation and where pipes enter – This is one of the services that Elevate Pest provides our customers. We will take a look around the entire foundation and areas where windows and pipes meet your home. These provide active inlets for rodents and other pests.

Use airtight containers for food – If you like cereal and have an active rodent problem, you’ll want to transfer all foods like that to airtight plastic containers. When it comes to garbage, you want to make sure your receptacles are covered and not attracting mice and rats.

Check under your sinks – Moisture is a huge draw for bugs and rodents. You want to ensure that leaky faucets, pipes, and roof issues are taken care of before the winter starts.

Talk To A Certified Pest Control Maintenance Attorney Today

If you’re worried about how pests can infiltrate your home this winter, schedule a free inspection today. We’ll take a look around your property and make recommendations on how you can shore up your defenses protecting you and your family from needless filth. Call Elevate Pest Control today!