Pest Control Tips

Buzz Kill Pest Control has some great tips on mosquito prevention that will help in your Dallas-Fort Worth mosquito control program, or for your mosquito misting system program.

Homeowner Prevention Tips:

1. Eliminate or reduce mosquito breeding sites by replacing all standing water at least once a week. This includes birdbaths, ponds, and swimming pools.
2. Remove unneeded vegetation or trash from around any standing water sources that cannot be changed, dumped or removed.
3. Introduce mosquito-eating fish such as gambusia, green sunfish, bluegills and minnows to standing water.
4. Screen windows, doors, and other openings with fine mesh, sealing around all screen edges and keeping doors and windows shut to prevent entry.
5. Avoid going outdoors when and where mosquitoes are most active: during dusk or dawn.
6. Use repellent on exposed skin whenever and wherever mosquitoes are likely to bite. The most effective repellents currently available contain the active ingredient N,N-diethylbenzamide (DEET), in concentrations up to about 35% (greater concentrations don’t offer better protection).
7. Wear long-sleeved shirts and long-legged pants, preferably treated with a repellent as well.

Buzz Kill Pest Control, LLC has some great tips and information on how to prevent termites in both post-construction and pre-construction phases of building.

Post-Construction Termite Prevention Tips:

1. Avoid water accumulation near the foundation of your structure.
2. Divert water away with properly functioning downspouts, gutters and splash blocks.
3. Make sure the structure is properly ventilated, including the attic and internal crawl spaces.
4. Identify and fix all water leaks in your home, both internal and external
5. Remove any brush or heavy growth around your home.
6. Never bury wood scraps or waste lumber in your yard.
7. Store all firewood and excess building material away from the structure
8. Most importantly, eliminate wood contact with the soil by maintaining at least a one-inch gap between the soil and wood portions of the building

Pre-Construction Termite Prevention Tips:

1. Clean building site of all stumps, roots, wood and similar materials before you start construction.
2. Remove all form boards and grade stakes used in construction.
3. There should be no contact between the building woodwork and the soil or fill. Exterior woodwork should be located a minimum of 6 inches above the ground and beams in crawl spaces at least 18 inches above the ground to provide ample space to make future inspections.
4. Landscape plants and irrigation should not be placed within two feet of the foundation.
5. Thorough annual inspections should be conducted to discover evidence of wood damage or termite activity such as shelter tubes on foundation surfaces, wings or adult termites.
6. Any wood to ground/soil contact, such as fence posts, poles, and general foundation structures, should be commercially pressure treated, and should not touch another structure.

How Do Pests End Up In Your Home?

Rodents are excellent climbers and when fall starts and food sources are scarce, they can easily enter your home. Mice can squeeze through spaces as small as a nickel. Rats can gain entry to a home through a hole the size of a quarter. Other pests can crawl through weep holes, tiny cracks around windows and doors, under garage doors, from branches and shrubs that touch the home, eaves, etc.

Preventative Tips That You Can Do as a Homeowner to Keep Pests Out:

• Cut down on entryways, which can reduce problems indoors. Install door sweeps or thresholds at the base of all exterior entry doors. Don’t forget to check the garage door and fit with a bottom seal.
• Seal cracks and holes on the outside of the home including entry points for utilities and pipes (outdoor faucets, gas meters, clothes dryer vents, telephone wires, cable/TV wires, etc.).
• Remove sources of moisture and harborage.
• Keep branches and shrubs trimmed away from the home.
• Store garbage in sealed containers and dispose of it on a regular basis.
• Store any firewood away from the house and off of the ground.
• Don’t overlook proper drainage at the foundation and always install gutters or diverts which will channel water away from the structure.
• Consider applying an exterior insecticide treatment.

Sealing Takes Work But Is Worth It

While sealing is a more permanent way to exclude pests originating from the outdoors; it can be labor-intensive and sometimes impractical. Pest proofing can be supplemented by an exterior treatment with an insecticide.