The holidays have come and gone and I am sure many relatives and friends will have been passing through your home. How do you keep those uninvited guests from crashing the festivities? I am not talking about your Uncles and Aunts, I am talking about the neighborhood rodents and ants. With the rains and cooler temperatures approaching, pests will have increased motivation to find their way inside your home to seek food, shelter, and warmth. Keep in mind, homes on the water are more prone to rodent activity. There are some things that you can do now to make sure that the pests don’t get to your holiday dinner before you do.
At any given time in South Florida, you can find ants, rodents, cockroaches, millipedes, spiders, ticks and mosquitoes on your property and around your home. They are part of nature and our ecosystem. Here are some suggested minor repairs and maintenance that will help pest-proof the exterior of your home. This will make your property less conducive for pest activity and will eliminate some of the easy access points they often use to get inside your home.
- Trim the landscaping and trees enough so they are not touching the walls or roof. Ants, rodents, spiders, and ticks are all excellent climbers.
- Seal any settling cracks around windows and caulk any gaps around where water spigots, wires, pipes, and cables enter exterior walls. Ants will use these openings as highways into your home.
- Replace any fascia screens that are damaged (located just under the edge of the roof). Rodents can use these openings to gain access into your attic.
- Inspect landscaping to see if there are any “honeydew” producing insects such as aphids, scale, whitefly or mealy bugs. Honeydew is a primary food source for ants.
- Rinse bottles and cans before they are put into recycling bins. Eliminates sugar residues that attract flies and ants.
- Add an extension to gutter downspout to draw water away from the base of the house. This can attract ants and subterranean termites.
- Eliminate any standing water as this can breed mosquitoes. Bird baths, buckets, and bromeliads are some things known to collect water.
- Eliminate bird feeders. If you have fruit trees, pick up the fallen fruit from the ground as soon as possible. Rodents are highly attracted to fruits, seeds, and nuts.
- Inspect exterior and garage door thresholds to make sure there is a proper seal when closed. You should not be able to see daylight. If you do, replace or add cushion or stripping. If not sealed properly, millipedes can crawl under closed doors and rodents can crawl under garage doors.
- Mulch can harbor ants and cockroaches so you may not want to have it right up against the walls of your home. It is better to have a 1’ foot band of rocks.
If you start now, these recommendations will certainly help pest proof your home and property in time for the holidays. If you have more persistent pest challenges and feel you are in need of some professional support, then call the experts at JP Miller & Sons Services at (954) 874-8897