spiders
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.
FollowIt’s not really what you think. A customer of mine relayed a story that a friend of hers told her had happened over the weekend. She was having lunch and watching tv in her living room when she looked to her left and noticed a large spider had crawled up on the arm rest of the chair she was sitting in.
She immediately freaked out, screamed and jumped up out of the chair without any regard to the hot soup, ice tea, sandwich and chips that occupied the tray sitting in her lap. She immediately grabbed the first weapon she could find, which was unfortunately an iron fireplace poker and swung it at the chair with reckless abandon.
To the spiders good fortune, she missed it with every swing and all she managed to do was burn her foot with hot soup, make a huge mess on the floor and put a small tear in her recliner. Although not a pleasant site, the bite of a wolfe spider is not highly toxic or a medical threat to humans.
A Common wolfe spider found around central Alabama
Spiders fall into the occasional invader category when comes to entering your home. They’re not even classified as an insect. They’re actually arachnids (eight legs as opposed to an insects six legs).
They feed off of insects and small animals. If they don’t find a food source and moisture they can’t survive. The best way to control them in your home is to minimize insect activity and seal up cracks in your home which are often around doors and windows.
I suppose if my customer’s friend would have just known these few facts, she could have saved herself a lot of hassle.
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.