Bugs are not my friend! Ewwww! Pests in the home can be a nightmare to deal with but if you don’t stay on top of them, they can cause a lot of serious damage. If you aren’t careful, pests can make your home unlivable and they can reduce the value of your home in a big way, making it almost impossible to sell. If you want to manage pests in the home, it’s important that you know where they are coming from in the first place. There are certain hotspots around the home that attract pests and allow them to spread, and it’s those areas that you need to be careful of. These are some of the big pest hotspots that homeowners need to watch out for.

The Basement

The basement is one of the most common areas to find pests in the home for a few reasons. Firstly, bugs like mosquitos or cockroaches like damp, dark areas and they will lay their eggs in areas with a lot of moisture. Basements are more prone to damp than other rooms in the house, so it’s only natural that you find more bugs down there. The basement also provides an easy entry point for large pests, like mice and rats. From here, they can chew through the baseboards and move around the home. If you want to make your basement more habitable and keep on top of pests, there are a few things that you can do. Firstly, you need to ensure that all small gaps in the walls are sealed so you can prevent water from seeping in and stop any pests from entering the home. Secondly, you need to get a dehumidifier and improve the insulation to tackle the damp problem and prevent bugs.

Houseplants

Houseplants are a great addition to the home, but they can lead to problems with pests. The damp soil creates the perfect conditions for bugs to live and lay eggs. If you have a lot of houseplants in the home, you may find that you have a big problem with mosquitos. You will need to call out an exterminator, like Mosquito Authority to help you manage the bugs, but you also need to deal with the root cause as well. You can stop mosquitoes from laying eggs in your houseplants by using a specially formulated spray for bugs, which you should be able to pick up at any good garden center.

Underneath Sinks

The space under the kitchen and bathroom sink is another common place for pests to settle. If there is a leaking pipe and water is pooled up, this creates the perfect, damp, dark environment for pests. The pipes also provide pests with another route into different areas of the home. It is important that you check the pipes underneath sinks on a regular basis and fix any small leaks right away before you develop a serious pest problem.

Underneath Furniture

When you are cleaning, how often do you move the furniture and vacuum underneath it? Most of us are guilty of neglecting those areas but if you are worried about pests, you should pay more attention to the space underneath furniture and appliances. In the winter, pests always look for warm spaces to hide out and underneath the furniture is perfect for that, especially in rooms with carpets. That’s why it’s important that you pull all of the furniture out from time to time and vacuum underneath to remove any eggs and kill off pests. You can also get bug spray that is designed for use in the home, which will stop any bugs from moving into these areas in the first place.

The Shed

Pests often go unnoticed in the shed, especially if it’s filled with junk. There are so many small hiding spaces for rats, mice and bugs, and it’s easy for them to chew through the wood and hide inside the shed. Although pests in the shed don’t do as much damage as they would in the home, they will soon move from the shed into the house when the weather gets cold. It’s important that you try to keep the shed as tidy as possible so you can spot any signs of pests, like droppings or eggs. Keep on top of your shed maintenance as well and fix any small holes as soon as they appear.

Pests will quickly cause a lot of damage to your home, so it’s important that you stay on top of them. We just caught two the other day, oh man! These are the most common areas in the home where pests will settle, so make sure to check them regularly.

Cheers!

Janelle