Living in central Florida can be great. The sun shines for most of the year, the hurricanes aren’t as bad as on the coast. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. One thing that Dover and the surrounding areas have a lot of? Well, pests. Bugs of all shapes, sizes, colors, and severity love to make this region of Florida their home. Humans aren’t the only fans of this warm, balmy weather. That’s why today we’ll be discussing Dover natural pest control, and cover a few of the regulars you can expect.
Dover Natural Pest Control: Tips
Okay, we all know that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound in cure. So to start off, we’ll cover basic, catch-all tips for preventing most pest infestations. And to start with, your trash!
Probably the most important thing you can do to prevent tips is to empty your trashcans. Make sure that all the garbage bags and bins around your house are emptied regularly. And while it may be nice to fill the bag to the brim every time, sometimes it’s not just realistic. That goes double if you’ve cooked meat and have to throw away a bloody container. Pests are attracted to the trash found at the top, obviously. Avoid letting your garbage bags sit for too long. Bugs don’t care if they’re half full or not, so take it out nightly or at least a few times a week.
And next, obviously, is staying on top of your hygiene in general. It may be tempting to ignore a lone crumb or a small spill but don’t. A crumb under the oven or a puddle of water under the sink can be like a dinner bell to Dover pests. Clean the kitchen after every meal, and scrub all of your flat surfaces. This includes stovetops, tables, and counters. And make sure all the areas around your food-making appliances are clean as well. That means leftover smoothies or toast crumbs in the bottom of your toaster.
Another good Dover natural pest control tip is to seal the gaps around your home. Cracks, gaps, and spaces around the plumbing. Between these and tears in your window and door screens, bugs can get into your home with ease. Save yourself the headache of an infestation and stay on top of home maintenance!
Dog Food and clutter
These get their own special section due to their severity. Fewer things are more attractive to bugs than open feeding your pets. It’s for the best to have scheduled meal times for your dog or cat, and keep their food stored away in a bug-proof plastic container. Obviously the same goes for any smaller pets like hamsters or rabbits, but those come with the added headache of regularly cleaning their cage as well. The substrate these small pets need can easily become infested with pests.
And clutter of all kinds is one of a bug’s favorite things. Old boxes, newspapers, and magazines can be a perfect spot for an ant colony. Not only that, but some pests like roaches and termites specifically seek these out to consume. Break down and neatly store all the boxes you keep in and around your home and keep them away from your main living area. Also, any old junk that’s large, has room inside and doesn’t get moved often can become a haven for a pest infestation.
Dover Natural Pest Control: Bugs to expect
Alright, now that we’ve covered some basic tips for making your home less inviting to pests, let’s talk about the pests themselves. We’ll cover three of the most common bugs you can find infesting your central Florida home or business.
Cockroaches
Now, if you didn’t see this coming you must not have lived here for very long. And while this isn’t exactly a unique problem, Florida is a hotbed for cockroach infestations. But Florida’s climate allows for some of the densest roach populations in the entire nation, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. It’s been reported that roughly thirty percent of Florida homeowners report an infestation every year. And Tampa and St. Pete have slightly higher averages of around thirty-seven percent. So with the good weather comes quite a big headache! So one in three homeowners in or around Dover could be dealing with this problem every year.
And what’s so bad about roaches? Well, for one, they live in their own poop. Because of that even roaches moving around your home leave behind trails of potentially life-threatening bacteria. Cockroaches are known carriers of many infectious diseases. Some of these include Leprosy, Dysentery, and even the Bubonic plague! And not only that, roaches will damage large sections of wood and paper around your home. This can be anything from support beams to ceiling boards, to wallpaper, and even book bindings.
Ants
There are hundreds of ant species worldwide. And, unfortunately, most of them love that Florida weather. Some of them eat wood and glucose, others will swarm your trash and sinks for food scraps. But one of the biggest issues you’ll face from ants as a Florida homeowner is the Red Imported Fire Ant.
Fire ants are territorial and relentless defenders of their mounds. And many colonies down here have multiple queens. They get their name from their stings and bites, which cause painful and itchy welts. And their method of attack is to grab on with their mandibles and then sting repeatedly.
BED BUGS
And finally, of course, is bed bugs. Bed bugs are some of the most pervasive pests in the state. And you can simply thank our booming travel industry for that. It really only takes one person to bring bed bugs into a hotel before you have a massive infestation in your business.
That goes for your home as well. Not only can they cling on and ride in on luggage and clothing, but second-hand furniture and electronics as well. It only takes a handful of eggs, as females mature quickly and breed rapidly. If you see one bed bug, there’s likely more that you don’t.
Dover Natural Pest Control: What To Do When Infested?
Well, to keep it simple, call a professional. Most pest infestations can occur whether or not you keep a tidy home. So simply going from room to room and washing up can help, but certainly won’t treat the underlying problem.
Instead, make a call to a pro. And be sure to find one that uses natural methods of pest control, as chemical methods are both dangerous and risky. Most Florida pests are rapid breeders, so incorrectly applying pesticides can breed resistant or even immune pests within a few generations. Leave it to the people with the right tools and knowledge for the job when it comes to getting some Dover natural pest control.