3 Tips For Rodent-Proofing Your Home This Summer

Having rodents in your home can be a traumatizing experience, as you lay awake at night listening to them scurrying between the walls or getting into your kitchen and contaminating your food. 

They leave droppings in your cupboards or on the floor, which can carry viruses and make humans very ill. Rodents aren’t the only pests that can ruin your summer in Toronto, especially as so many of them multiply in the warm weather. Cockroaches thrive in the heat, bed bugs are a year-round threat, carpenter and pavement ants reach their peak activity, fruit flies plague your kitchen, centipedes and millipedes abound, and, especially in the late summer, wasps and hornets become dangerously annoying. One thing to keep in mind is that DIY methods are often dangerous, and it’s much better to find professional pest removal in Toronto.

Rodents can be preventable, though. 

The Fantastic mice control specialists share with you pro tips to try if you’re worried about rats or mice creeping into your home.

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Clean Regularly

Bear in mind that high hygiene at home can highly reduce the chances of any pest infestation. Pests such as rodents are attracted to your property foremost because it is a food temple. 

So, our advice is whatever methods you try, never neglect the cleanliness of your home. 

  • Make sure, crumbs, food leftovers (especially pet’s food) to be swept, carefully packed and put every meal away. 
  • Use a vacuum cleaner minimum twice per week. 
  • Wipe the worktops, kitchen tables and inside the cabinets. 

Basically, casual housekeeping sometimes might save you from the unwelcome vermins

Eliminate Food Sources 

As part of the above-mentioned tip, one of the most effective deterrents against pests of all kinds is eliminating their food source. This is impossible when you’re dealing with pests like bed bugs, which feed off of you, but putting away pet food overnight can restrict their options. 

Keep in mind that modern cat culture is far from pets being exterminators, unlike their feline predecessors. Cat food is only going to attract more rodents! 

If you live in a house and have bird feeders this most certainly will attract rodents as the grains will fall on the ground eventually. Even if this is a delightful and generous act, you have to get rid of the bird feeders or keep them as far as possible from the property. 

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Keep Garbage Bins Sealed 

So, you keep clean, keep the food well packed but this is not enough if your garbage is exposed and easily reachable. You know rodents love burrowing in the garbage for food. For that reason, keep all garbage bins closed, throw the containers regularly (every day, if possible). If you can put the bins outside during the night as rodents are nocturnal and will be “hunting” during this time of the day.

Eliminate Entry Points

After you ensure your home is as clean as possible, you have to block all entry points. This preventative measure is the most effective one as rodents have to have an entrance in the first place. Repair all holes, small or big cracks and seal them well.

Exclusion is an important part of Integrated Pest Management and helps reduce over-reliance on chemical methods.

Also, wide-open doors and windows can invite rodents, especially in the cold weather when they are heading to a warmer shelter. Always check your garage’s door, basement’s window and door or your conservatory’s door if closed. 

Buy Rat Traps 

Traps can be effective for eliminating rats or proving that you have them if you understand how they move around your home and you know they haven’t begun to multiply. 

Whereas mice tend to be curious about their environment, rats are cautious and avoid new things. Rat traps are effective in cases where a rodent infestation has not already arisen. 

When trying to catch one or two rats, a rat trap can ensure that the rodent has been completely eradicated from the property.

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Rats usually stand close-by walls 

So, traps will be most effective if positioned around a wall and where it’s dull. For example, your closet, kitchen cabinets, behind the sofa or under your bed are the perfect locations where you can trap the rat. You may need to place unset rat traps in their path to convince them that the traps are safe before you set the real deal. 

Install Gutter Guards

Rodents are fantastic climbers. This means they can reach your roof through the gutters. Install gutter guards that will block access and keep them out. A bonus is that your gutter won’t be clogged with leaves. 

Call A Pest Control Company

Not all pest control companies are the same, and there are a few industry standards that only reputable pest control companies follow on a daily basis. 

For starters, any pest control company worth its salt will offer a free, no-obligation quote over the phone. Additionally, the best and most trustworthy pest control companies stand behind their service and generally offer a one-year warranty. Make sure to ask these questions before you decide to hire a pest control company. However, choosing a professional rodent control is the most effective way to prove your home. Experts know how the rodents act, where they possibly hide and can find the rodents’ nest. They are well equipped with high-quality traps, baits, and other approaches. The specialists are certified and are properly educated. The success of the experts is close to 100% due to the fact that they do it.

After you have decided to hire a pest control company, it’s important to note that the top companies only hire exterminators who are licensed must provide an official extermination card upon request. Make sure you ask the exterminator for identification before he begins work. 

One of the big concerns with pest control is the toxicity of the chemicals used. When a responsible pest control professional eliminates pests from residential areas, they use chemicals that are non-toxic and perfectly safe for children, pets, pregnant women and elderly people. Know who to call when you need a Toronto pest exterminator and get great, safe service.

To sum up

In conclusion, keep your eyes wide open. Always maintain a clean and disinfected properly. Regularly check for new entry points and close them as soon as possible. Pay attention to your doors, windows, and gutters. Buy rodent traps just in case but remember that professional pest control is always way more effective when dealing with the nasty vermins

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