After a long and rainy winter, summer is finally here and the pests are out! We are looking into some of the best Do-It-Yourself methods for preventing and treating pests in your home.

1. Regularly clean out drains — drains are full of debris and bacteria and serve as a sneaky backdoor entrance into your home. Keeping drains clean and free of debris and bacteria can reduce the chances of pests making this their breeding site. Also, drains that are not used often can dry out the water in the P-Trap giving pests (and fumes) access to your living space.
2. Moisture is the enemy — Most insects cannot survive without moisture, and a humid pipe-filled basement is the perfect playground for these creatures. Consider getting a dehumidifier or installing better ventilation for moisture-abundant places such as basements, attics, and crawl spaces.
3. Clean your gutters — As mentioned before, water and moisture are an insect’s best friend. Most people are unaware of how much standing water can be built up through gutter systems. The standing water can create a literal ecosystem of pests with ready access to your home. Regular cleaning out of gutters can help avoid clogs and make sure water is being diverted away from the home.
4. Keeping waste bins clean — Pests smell trash even when you don’t. It’s a great practice to keep all trash bins lined to keep lingering particles from sticking behind when you empty bins. Take it one step further and give trash bins a good scrub down once a month to fully eliminate any food or liquid waste build up.
5. Seal everything — Overtime wear and tear can happen in our homes. It’s important to do semi regular checks to entry points such as windows, window screens, and door frames. Use wall putty to fill in gaps in the wood frames to avoid nesting wasps and hornets in between walls. Repair or replace window screens so flies, ants, gnats and other small insects can’t take shelter here. Another handy trick is to stick steel or copper mesh in brick weepholes to keep out smaller pests like roaches.
6. Try homemade spray remedies — Did you know that you can spray down your own home by mixing items you probably already have in your kitchen? Avoid toxic chemicals and save money by making your own pest spray. For ants, mix equal parts water and vinegar and spray around entry points like doorways and windowsills. For insects, mix 3–5 drops of either eucalyptus, lavender, peppermint or citronella essential oils with 2 cups of water and spray entry points including doorways, windowsills, and drains.
7. Do not store wood in your home — If you have a wood burning fireplace, indoor or outdoor, do not store the wood anywhere near your home. Wood piles are a refuge for termites, carpenter ants, beetles, mice, rats, and squirrels. Wood stored outside should be stored off of the ground on a metal wood rack.
8. Trim your trees — As fantastic as it is to have lush greenery surrounding your home, it also serves as the perfect access point for rodents to access your home. Make sure to keep all trees, shrubs, and vines trimmed at least 6 feet away from your roof.
9. Ditch mulch — Mulch is a common choice for plant beds and gardens surrounding homes. However, wood mulch chips contain a lot of moisture making it the perfect home for pests. Consider replacing mulch beds near your home with stones to avoid creating pest sanctuaries so close to your home.
10. Install Katcher monitoring system — the key to effective pest management is knowing what you’re dealing with. With the Katcher monitoring system you can receive real time updates to your phone or computer about exactly where and what is crawling around in your home.