Date Posted: September 5, 2014
Category: Fall Pests
Keeping bugs away from your foundation walls can go a long way to preventing them from coming inside the house. Installing a gravel buffer around the perimeter of your home, and keeping it dry, will deter many bugs from getting too close. Gravel is great for filling in moist areas, as well. Bugs love puddles and wet soil. If these areas are against the house, you're asking for trouble. But rocks in your yard, that have moist pockets under them, can also be a nesting area for bugs. Lift those rocks and put gravel underneath, to deter bugs from thriving. Other helpful prevention tips include,
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Keep moist leaves, wood piles, and construction materials, away from your house. Bugs love these, and they will take full advantage of being close to your home.
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Keep trees cut back, so bugs and critters can't drop onto your roof.
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Use a caulking gun to seal up cracks around windows, air conditioners, pipes, outlets, meters, and vents. Caulking is also good for sealing up cracks in siding.
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Keep leaves raked up in your yard, and keep your lawn trimmed.
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Have a professional spray your yard to kill mosquitoes and fleas before they can pester you.
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Weed your gardens. Excess green in your flower beds will invite pests.
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Have the outside of your house sprayed by a professional. They can get hard to reach places, like: the shingle cracks on your roof, sills, and second story windows.
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Check all your screens, and add screens to attic vents, or across your chimney.
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Put wire mesh at the bottom of your downspouts, to keep rodents and bugs from crawling up, and getting access to higher, more vulnerable, areas of your home.
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Scout around your yard, and remove small wasp nests that have cropped up. If you find a larger one, make sure to get a professional involved. Wasps can sting multiple times, and are known to swarm if their nest is threatened.
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Don't forget the flying bugs. Get up on your roof and check for cracks. While you're up there, take a mirror and look under your eaves. You would be surprised how many large holes can be up there. Fill them in with spray-in expansion foam to protect your attic from rodents, bats, and wasps.
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Check weather stripping on doors and examine the bottoms of your doors. If there is even ¼ of an inch gap, all kinds of bugs can get in.
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Make sure you have a place to put trash cans, and make sure those cans are covered.
These simple home improvements can significantly reduce your chances of having bugs and rodents enter your home. Bug prevention starts outside. Take the battle to the bugs!
