roaches
Most people don’t have the time to asses everything around their home to see if they could be doing something to be breeding pests. Pests in Alabama are just like pests anywhere except that the humid and warm environment during the summer and spring make it ideal for them to thrive.
Something as simple as a wood pile too close to your home can can create a pest problem
It’s obvious to most homeowners to not leave food debris and spills for pests to feed off of. But what about things that aren’t so obvious that you might be doing to encourage pests. In Alabama, we have more warm humid months than we do cold winter months. This makes pest season virtually year around.
So what can we do to around our homes to discourage pests from moving in with us? Here’s a short list I’ve compiled that I think will be most helpful.
1 Keep an eye on the kids (or adults that act like kids) when it comes to eating inside the home.
I have a customer in Homewood who is in a constant struggle between her four kids and her husband to not eat on the couch, in the bedrooms, living room or anywhere else food can find it’s way onto the floor or in the crack of a piece of furniture. Pests will find their way inside and if you’re feeding them, they don’t have an incentive to leave.
2 Look out for wide open spaces.
They actually don’t have to be that wide open but that’s how most pests view little cracks around doors and windows that can be a huge entry point into your home. You don’t have to do anything drastic such as replace them but you can use things such as expanding foam (use it sparingly, it will make a mess) or weather stripping. Most homeowners are under the impression that their home is sealed from the outside. Not true. There’s plenty of cracks and crevices.
3 Keep the brush back
The more vegetation that you have up against your home, the greater the likely hood of pests finding their way inside. Try to at least trim it back to keep it from touching doors and windows.
4 Be careful of what you bring into your home
Pests don’t always come from the outside on their own. They can also be hitchhikers. Ants can be brought in with potted plants. Roaches can be brought in with boxes. Indian mill moths and beetles can be brought in with food items. You can’t always tell but inspect those items regularly.
My name is Greg with ETX Pest Management. Please call or text me @ 205-223-9460 or click here to find out about our four step initial service and how we help our customers to be pest free year around of pests in Alabama. I service select areas of Jefferson and Shelby County areas such as Hoover, Homewood, Vestavia, Pelham, Helena and Alabaster.
FollowIf you live in Hoover, Homewood, Vestavia and other surrounding areas, you’ve probably noticed mid to large size roaches in your home during warmer months or even when we have a spike of warm weather during the winter time. I’ve often been asked by my customers if these are the type of roaches in Alabama that establish large infestations inside the home and are difficult to eliminate.
The short answer to that question is no because what we’re dealing with here is outdoor roaches and not the “hitchhiker” (also known as German cockroaches) that are mostly found in restaurants and storage facilities. The two most common types of roaches are smokybrown and palmetto roaches. They’re similar in appearance and size. The fall more into the occasional invader category because when come inside your home, they’re looking for food and moisture.
Smokybrown cockroaches found in Hoover, Homewood and surrounding areas
They prefer dark and damp areas which are often crawl spaces and basements. The most common entry points are doors and windows. Mulch areas and heavy brush too close to your home are often the causes of them coming inside. To minimize this you want to keep brush trimmed enough so that they’re not so overgrown that they touching windows and doors. It’s also better to have much areas farther away from your home as opposed to being right up against the foundation wall.
My name is Greg with ETX Pest Management. Please call or text me @ 205-223-9460 or click here to find out about our four step initial service and how we help our customers to be pest free year around. I service select areas of Jefferson and Shelby County areas such as Hoover, Homewood, Vestavia, Pelham, Helena and Alabaster.