Although specific insects or animals vary, pests can invade a human home almost anywhere. Rodents, cockroaches, ants, and more can take up refuge and thrive in any house, unless you take a few important precautions. Let’s look at a few tips to maintain a pest-free home.

Kitchen and Food Standards

Kitchens offer food, water, and a variety of enclosed cupboards and other spaces. Remember “CC”: cover and clean. Cover up and/or put away any food, wipe down surfaces, and don’t leave dirty dishes in the sink. Leaving out food may seem fine for a few hours, but it shouldn’t be a pattern that insects can rely upon. If you leave a few crumbs of cake on the counter near a window, you may end up discovering a nasty line of Texas banded sugar ants exploring your countertop.

Special Seasonal Precautions

Cleaning and dusting your home regularly will help maintain an unwelcoming environment for pests. The summer, however, is when most common pests are most active. Heavy rainfall and heat can invite pests into your normally balanced home environment.

Before the approaching summer season, you should inspect your home for cracks, gaps, and holes, which are common routes for pests to enter. Professionals can also help judge whether certain areas are worth concern, or if you may be missing a more significant exposure point.

If windows are an entry point for pests, make sure to have your screens in, or retractable fly screens. This way, you do not have to worry about bugs entering your home.

Dispose of Waste Properly

No home needs to be kept 100% perfect, but bins should be cleaned out once a week, or when full, and all full trash bags and recycling should be dumped or taken elsewhere once a week. Many pests like environments full of clutter and garbage, especially if they haven’t been disturbed in a while.

Keep Bathrooms Spotless

Apart from regular cleaning, it’s also important to keep bathroom drains clear and clean. Some insects, like certain flies, can live in the drain of a dirty or improperly draining sink. Rodents sometimes make entry through Austin home drains that fail to block them out, such as in the shower. If you do spot rodent droppings anywhere in your home contact pest control Austin experts who can help identify the entry point.

Changing Beds and Pet Beds

In Texas, like most of North America, bed bugs can be brought in by pets and live on their bedding. Eventually, they’ll transfer to human beds and live in mattresses, sheets, pillows, and other soft matter. Apart from replacing and changing out items, bed bugs do not like hot temperatures or bright light. If you can, leave a sunshade open on a window near your bed when not in use, allowing sunlight to beam onto sheets.

These tips will help keep your Austin home pest-free every year. Granted, no two homes and properties are the same. An additional preventative treatment, done by a professional, could be necessary. Whether you choose professional pest control and prevention or not, do whatever it takes to keep you and your family free of annoying Austin pests.