Home Curiosity How to Identify and Control Pests that Can Cause Health Hazards

How to Identify and Control Pests that Can Cause Health Hazards

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Have you checked whether you will be living alone after renting or buying an apartment or house? Well, it is always essential to take your precious time to closely examine every corner of the room to avoid coming across the hazards of pest infestation. In this article, we are going to share with you the shocking signs that pests are wandering within your premises. Read on to find out more about these signs.

What are the Top Signs of Pest Infestation?

First, when it comes to discreetly and effectively handling a pest infestation, an early pests identification is crucial. If you want an ideal pest identification, the sooner you get the services of a pest control expert to address the situation, the better. It would be best if you kept yourself updated about the presence of pests in your house. So, take a look at the following tips that you can use to identify pests in your apartment.

Pest Droppings

The common sign of a pest infestation is the presence of pest droppings. So, it is always advisable to check your establishment for any urine trails of fecal droppings. While it is easy to spot droppings from a rat or mice, seeing the waste from the small pests such as bed bugs is quite hard. Therefore, an in-depth examination is inevitable. It would thus be advisable to examine all the floors, furniture, beddings, and walls for any presence of pest droppings.

Grease Tracks and Grease Marks

Grease tracks and grease marks may be a sign of pest infestation, especially rats and mice which prefer wandering by the same paths. In the process, the rodents may leave a tell-tale greasy trail. Rodents prefer running along the walls and will leave dark grease spots to any place they move around your house.

Nesting

Rodents often make nests from any material they encounter, such as grass clippings, leaves and shredded paper. Pests usually hide in the unnoticeable places like between walls or flooring. Therefore, carrying out frequent inspections for any nesting signs is vital.

Damaged Plants

Remember to keep a close eye for insect trails, as well as gnawing on outdoor garden plants or on the grass edges. Another sign of infestation may be the presence of dead patches or damaged patches of lawn, like large brown or uneven grass length. So, if your garden or lawn starts to show any signs of pest infestation, it may be due to attack by moles, grubs, voles, crickets, flies, beetles, or other pests.

Physical Damage to Structures

Physical damage to your house, like gnaw marks and holes, maybe a sign of infestation by pests. Rodents love to chew. Thus, gnaw marks on wiring or furniture is a substantial red flag. Small holes in the walls or floors may also be a sign of infestation.

In addition, it would be helpful to be on the lookout for damaged wood, like outdoor wooden decks and wooden furniture. Normally, this is a huge indicator of infestation by termites. Thus, if you come across unexplainable property damage, getting in touch with an expert is vital to assist in pest identification.

How to Control Pest Infestation

In addition to damaging your property, various pests like spiders, cockroaches, termites and ants may also spread infections. So, the best way to control them is to get in touch with a professional pests control service. However, before you seek the services of an expert, you can try the following pest control tips.

Ensure that the Kitchen is Clean

Pests often thrive in a damp, dirty environment. So, to avoid an infestation by pests, make sure that the kitchen racks, counters, drawers and stove-top are super clean. As a precaution, use a disinfectant to clean them regularly. Remember, food particles in the kitchen attracts pests.

Seal Entryways

In most cases, pests enter into your house via crevices, inconspicuous holes and cracks. In fact, a mouse can squeeze itself through a hole the size of a coin! Therefore, it would be beneficial to block all entry points for new invaders.

Do not Allow Water to Stagnate

You all know that mosquitoes breed in stagnant water. It would therefore be essential to clean the area around your home to ensure that whenever it rains, water will not stand still. In the process, you will avoid contracting mosquito-borne diseases like malaria and dengue. Besides, if you are not using the buckets in your bathroom, ensure that they are dry.

Dispose of Trash Bin Frequently

Preferably, it would be commendable to dispose of your trash bin daily. Basically, an accumulation of garbage may result in cockroach, rodents and rat infestation. In fact, it may get worse if you come across rotten food particles all around the apartment.

Maintain the Garden

If you have a garden or lawn, it would be beneficial to fill in pits or holes where rainwater may accumulate. Additionally, if there’s a water fountain or pond in the garden, it would be wise to clean it often. Furthermore, prune the trees and other plants frequently to prevent bushy, wild growths. Thus, maintain your garden or lawn, keep it clean to prevent unwanted pests such as ants, rats and mosquitoes.