A pest infestation is the accumulation of bugs, insects, or rodents in your home. The most common pests include; Ants, cockroaches, bed bugs, mice, and rats. Pest populations are drawn to your home looking for food, moisture, and protection.
Pests will access your home through doors, windows, and open crevasse. Pests are small enough to infest even the smallest of places! Today, we’ll cover the best natural and chemical pest control measures. We’ll also go over how to prevent infestations from happening ever again! As a London pest control company we’re well placed to provide excellent and professional advice.
Natural Pest Control Methods
Natural methods for pest control are affordable, effective, safe, and humane. Excessive use of chemicals can have a negative impact on your health and wellbeing. It’s always better to try natural pest control methods on your insect infestations before resorting to chemicals!
Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint essential oils are one of our favourite ways to naturally and humanely control a pest population. Simply mix a few drops of pure peppermint oil into a spray bottle with water. Spray this concoction onto door frames, windows, floorboards, cupboards, and any other place you have seen a pest. Don’t settle for toxic ant bait when there are amazing natural alternatives!
Peppermint oil is a natural pesticide that is toxic to pests. Once an insect comes into direct contact with peppermint oil it will instantly kill insects. It will also disrupt the pheromone trail they use to find their way to food sources. Peppermint oil is an ant repellent and deterrent.
Tea Tree Essential Oil
Tea tree essential oil works the same way as peppermint oil. They are both highly potent and harmful to pests. Add tea tree oil to a spray bottle, or soak cotton balls in the oil and scatter them around your home. The fumes from the tea tree oil will make insects leave your home immediately.
Boiling Water
Pour boiling water into a pest infestation. The boiling water will kill Ants and cockroaches inside their nest. However, it won’t destroy the entire colony. Boiling water will only disrupt the colony. This disruption will prompt the pests to move away from your home and relocate elsewhere.
You can also use boiling water that has been slightly chilled in a spray bottle with rock salt. Spray the salty water around the colony and any other areas where you have seen Ants or cockroaches. Repelling pests can be easily done with household ingredients. No need to use toxic chemicals!
Dish Soap
Dish soap is another easy, convenient way to get rid of pests. Squeeze the same liquid detergent you use for your dirty dishes into a spray bottle with water. Spray the liquid soap anywhere you have seen a pest, or think they may be drawn to. The liquid will leave residue that insects will be unable to walk across. A pest contamination can easily be solved with a little bit of dish soap!
Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth
Food grade diatomaceous earth can be used to permanently solve your pest problem. It is one of the best, most enduring solutions to pests in the house. Diatomaceous earth is a sedimentary rock that has been dissolved into fine, white dust. Diatomaceous earth can be used to filter drinking water. It can also be used to prevent clumps from forming in food or medicine.
Diatomaceous earth is poisonous to Ants and other pests. You can sprinkle diatomaceous earth onto an area that has been invaded, pests will smell the substance and subsequently not come back to that area.
If you have suspicions there are pests in the house (e.g you’ve smelt rodent urine), but haven’t actually seen them, you can sprinkle diatomaceous earth along your floorboards, or in your cupboards. The great thing about it is that it can be used generously and liberally. Your pest contamination should be quickly resolved after using diatomaceous earth.
It is a good idea to purchase food grade diatomaceous earth. This means it is safe for human and animal consumption. You don’t want a harmful chemical littered around your house! Food grade diatomaceous earth will keep you and your family safe.
White Vinegar
White vinegar is a really easy way to get rid of many pests. Wipe the surfaces of your home with a solution of white vinegar and water. They will completely avoid the treated area!
Pests prefer substances that are far less intense, in fact, they hate the smell of white vinegar. Vinegar will literally stop Ants, cockroaches, rats, and even birds from coming into your house. It makes for the perfect and affordable rat pest control. Vinegar will disorient them to such an extent they won’t come back to your house! They will be so frustrated and scared that they will find someone else to hassle.
Be warned that white vinegar will leave a greasy residue on your surfaces. It is also very smelly. However, it’s a small price to pay for such an effective and affordable solution to pests in your house.
Lemon Juice
Lemon is another wonderful natural remedy for insects. The acid in citrus fruits will mask insects’ scented pheromone trails. Once the trails have been disrupted, the insects will be deterred from entering your house.
Lemon juice is a great option if you don’t want to harm the insects anyway. Insects merely feel uncomfortable and avoid the area where the citrus is coming from. Dilute some lemon juice in a bottle with water and spray on the affected area. Alternatively, you can leave lemon rind in door frames or on your window sills. Note, that this method will not be effective on rodents.
Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne pepper will quickly repel different pests from your home. Purchase cayenne (or even black pepper) at your local grocery store. Sprinkle the pepper near the source of the infestation. You can even create a wall of pepper around the base of your house. Either way, the pests will be unable to penetrate the cayenne pepper barrier.
This is because insects are unable to walk over slippery, or powdery substances. Additionally, they can smell the intensity of cayenne pepper, which will send them running. If they get too close, cayenne pepper can even kill them.
Brewed Coffee Grounds
Coffee grounds are dark brown, gritty, and very smelly. The smell alone will deter pests from entering your house. Coffee grounds aren’t toxic or harmful to insects in any way. They just really don’t like the smell.
Leave some coffee grounds by your doors and windows and you won’t see any for a long period of time. Coffee grounds will work as a repellent until they have lost their smell. If you notice a couple of insects or mice sneaking in, then just replace the grounds with a fresh supply.
This is a sustainable, cost-effective, and completely natural method to eliminate pests from your home. There’s no need to buy harsh, artificial chemicals when the solution to your pest problems is in your cup of coffee!
Chemical Pest Control Methods
On the opposite end of the spectrum are chemical pest control methods. Chemical pesticides are highly toxic and will ensure pests are completely eliminated. Chemical pest control methods should only be used in extreme situations and as a last resort. There are some health issues associated with the use of toxic pesticides. These risks should be noted before pesticides are used in the house. Despite this, chemical methods remain one of the best ways of controlling pests.
Pesticides
Chemical pesticides are far more effective than physical traps. They will destroy an entire infestation or colony, while a physical trap is only able to target one or two pests. Pesticides can be used to kill insects, rodents, fungi, and weeds. There are over 1000 different pesticides. Some are immediate action for domestic purposes, others are ultra low volume for field crops.
A report originally published in 2020 found around 5.6 billion pounds of pesticides are used each year worldwide. Pesticides are fantastic at deterring pests. You just need to find the best one for you and your needs! There may be some trial and error until you’re satisfied with the product. Take your time finding the perfect pesticide!
Watch some online training before you use pesticides. It’s better to be informed than to make mistakes while handling the chemicals! Make sure you keep chemical pesticides away from food, children, and plants. They will contaminate food and potentially harm children or plants after physical contact.
Pest Control Services
Prevent Pests From Getting Inside the House
There are a couple of things you can do to stop more pests from getting inside again. These are preventative measures you can deploy in your pest-prone house.
Disrupt the Scented Pheromone Trail
Remember that smell will attract pests! Try to interrupt their pheromone trail as often as possible. Without a scent trail, they will be unable to find their way around your house. This means they won’t be able to find food, nest, or bring their friends into your house. Note that only Ants, termites, bees, and wasps use a pheromone trail.
Cleaning the floors of your house won’t adequately erase the pheromone trail. You will need to use some of the aforementioned remedies. Our favourites are peppermint oil, dish soap, lemons, or vinegar. Dilute any of these ingredients in some water. Spray the mixture over the infestation and any other places you think pests have been.
The pheromone trail will be instantly destroyed after it has been sprayed. Soon enough, all the insects will have run away! Spray the mixture a few more times to ensure they have permanently disappeared.
Pet Food
Pests love pet food! Pet food is one of the most common types of food left out in the house. While it is convenient for animals and humans to leave pet bowls out, it is a safe haven for insect infestations.
We recommend removing pet food once your animal has eaten. If this isn’t practical for you or your pet, you can create a barrier around the bowl of pet food.
For example, you can sprinkle cayenne pepper or petroleum jelly around it. The pet food will be left undisturbed, as the insects will be unable to cross the wall. However, this is only a temporary solution as pests will continue to be drawn into your house in search of the food. It also won’t stop nasty rodents from targeting your pets’ food.
Food
Our number one tip is to be vigilant around food storage. Always use sealed containers and never leave food out! Ants, rats, mice, cockroaches, and other insects will keep returning if there is exposed food in your house. Food safety is imperative to a healthy, happy, pest free home. Food businesses or other food premises need to be particularly cautious of how they store food. Preventing pests in your business starts with excellent food hygiene measures.
Natural Predators
Natural predators are one of the best ways to prevent pests from getting into the house. Natural predators are a form of biological pest control. A natural predator can be used as a form of biological control. They essentially eat pest populations and make them less evasive. Eventually, a natural predator will completely eliminate a pest from your environment.
A natural predator could be an insect like a ladybird, ground beetle, or parasitic wasp. Or it could be a large animal such as a dog, cat, or fox. Whatever shape or size the predator takes, it will actively hunt down pests that are causing you distress. The only problem with biological methods is that it may take a while for the pests to disappear. Use natural predators alongside another form of pest control.
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