Once the weather starts to warm up, you and your family might struggle with a wide variety of unwanted bugs and rodents. Here is a quick look at four of the most common summer pests and a few steps that you can take to keep those critters away from your home and family.
Mosquitoes
While mosquitoes are usually nothing more than a minor annoyance, these critters can carry a wide variety of diseases including the Zika virus, the West Nile virus, and malaria. The most effective way to keep mosquitoes off your property is to make sure that there isn’t any standing water. If you have a pond or water feature on your property, then you might want to add some type of mosquito treatment to that water.
Ticks
Ticks can be extremely dangerous, and they often carry multiple diseases and viruses. To reduce your risk of a tick bite, you should make sure that these insects don’t have anywhere to flourish on your property. They often build nests in woodpiles and other areas where natural debris has accumulated. Ticks can also hide in your clothing after you go hiking, and that is why you should always check your pants and jackets after spending time outside.
Bees
These stinging insects are very important to the ecosystem, and that is why you must speak with a residential pest control expert if you ever find a beehive on your property. In many cases, those experts will come and retrieve beehives so that they can be taken to other locations. For wasps and yellow jackets, you should most likely have your entire property sprayed with some type of insecticide.
Ants
Practically every homeowner will have to deal with at least a few ant colonies over the years. There are many different types of ants, and each species prefers different food sources and environments. Luckily, most of those species can easily be taken care of with generic insecticide. Outdoor colonies that aren’t near your home can usually be left alone as long as they aren’t fire or carpenter ants. Those two species can inflict painful stings and damage your home.
Spiders
Most spiders in developed areas are not overly harmful to humans. However, there are a few that can give painful bites, particularly for small children. Wolf spiders, jumping spiders, brown recluse spiders, and black widows are all common house spiders. These are great spiders to have in the garden as they’ll keep other vegetable and flower-eating pests at a minimum. They aren’t necessarily spiders that you want to have in your home though. The most proven method for keeping spiders out is having someone come to spray your home. You should also take measures to make sure there are no easy points of access like broken screens, worn away weather stripping, or cracks in the foundation.
If you think that your home might be infested, then you need to contact a local exterminator who offers emergency services. A pest infestation can bring your life to a grinding halt, and many of those bugs and rodents will bring dangerous germs into your home.
