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1. Tricks to keep rodents out of your home – Part 1

Dear ABC,

It is important for you to understand that rodents can be very annoying and dangerous, if they have managed to sneak into your house. It is very hard to get rid of them. You live in a city, or you live in a village, rodents are a fact, which cannot be ignored. There are ways to deal with them, but until they get eliminated from your house, you will have to bear a lot of tension, especially if you have little kids in your house, or you have seen the mouse in your kitchen area. They are dirty and can spoil your food items in the kitchen. You would be shocked to know that around 35 diseases can be caused by mice and rats if they are in your living space. Looking at these potential problems, it is vital for you to know that prevention is way better when dealing with rodents. You will have to make sure that rodents don’t get into your house and to achieve this thing, you can adopt various preventive measures.

First of all, make sure that any possible entry point for rodents is blocked. They can find little holes in your doors, windows or rooftops. They don’t need a big space to get into your house; a little hole can be a good enough entry point for them. So, always make sure that all possible entry points are blocked. One good thing to fill up the whole is steel wool. It is hard for rats and mice to chew steel wool, and if they manage to do so somehow, they will die before getting an entry into your house. The other important information to keep in mind is that you must make your house smell as fresh as possible. It has been found that rodents don’t like the smell of peppermint, so spray some peppermint oil in different areas of your house to keep these rodents away. You must also understand that sanitation and cleanliness is extremely critical. Poor sanitation and a dirty kitchen can be the best place of attraction for rats. They like to visit places, where they can find any food or such things to eat. So, it is vital to make sure that food waste and other waste are cleaned and dumped properly. We will continue to inform you about various other DIY methods so that you can keep rodents out of your house.

2. Tricks to keep rodents out of your home – Part 2

Dear ABC,

It is the second email as part of providing valuable information that what tricks you can use to keep rodents out of your house. We have talked about preventing the entry of rats and mice in your house. Now, let us detail a few other useful tricks for you. If you feel that you have seen a mouse somewhere in your house, then look for possible entry points and use ammonia to deter them. It is a cleaner which is used to shine the glass of your windows and doors, etc. It has been found that ammonia can work as a deterrent for rodents. It has also been found that scent produced by Tea tree oil is very strong and offensive for rodents, and they don’t like it at all. So, spray some tea tree oil at potential entry points to keep rodents away. The same is the case with cloves, as rodents don’t like its smell, so use cloves in different parts of your house. These are some of the prevention measures to keep rodents out of your house.

On the other hand, you can also use different measures to kill or trap rodents, if you are sure that they are in your house. You might have seen them in the kitchen or somewhere else in your house, so use mouse traps to trap them. Mousetraps can be extremely effective in catch rats and mice. There is a variety of mouse traps available in the market, and you can buy any of them as per your requirement and affordability. It is important for you to know that you can use a bait trap, as well as, glue trap to trap the mouse. For instance, you are sure that the mouse is around, then don’t use just one trap, rather go for two or three traps, because chances of trapping the mouse will increase with multiple traps. You can use a variety of food items to use with bait traps so that the mouse is attracted to traps. It has been found that chocolates, dry fruit, bacon, and peanut butter can be attractive for mice and rats. Remember one thing that you need to place these traps in right places. You have to identify areas, where a mouse can come around so that they are easily trapped. So, these are some of the most used tricks to keep rodents out of your house or catch them if they have managed to sneak in.

3. Stopping Spiders

Dear ABC,

Most of us think that spiders are not that harmful, so their presence will not bother us, but still, who would like to see these spiders crawling around with their eight legs. You may have some house members, who are afraid of spiders, or they never look good to have in your room or anywhere else in the house. It has been observed that most spiders live in outside areas, but once they are in the house, it can be difficult to get rid of them. But the good news is that there are so many ways to keep these spiders away from your indoors or kill them. You can try various natural remedies to stop them. The first such remedy is to use vinegar. Use a spray bottle with white vinegar, and spray it in different areas, where you have seen spiders, or places, where the possibility of spiders is more likely. However, always careful in using the vinegar at varnished surfaces, because vinegar can be damaging for such surfaces. It is also observed that there are few strong smells, which are not liked by spiders, and if you use those scents, it can be helpful in stopping spiders.

Peppermint oil is one such thing, which has a fragrance to keep spiders away. Use a spray bottle; add some water along with 10 to 20 drops of peppermint oil, and spar it on required areas. There are few other natural items, which can help to stop spiders, like you can use tea tree oil, cinnamon, rose, as well as, lavender. If you don’t see any effective results with these oils, then you will have to use another remedy, which is a bit difficult, but very effective. It has been found that eucalyptus trees planted in your garden area can be helpful in repelling spiders. If it is hard for you to plant eucalyptus trees, then use lavender or plant mint. The strong smell produced by these plants is useful in repelling spiders. It is also observed that citrus scent is also not liked by spiders, so you should use lemon cleaners or rub citrus peel to get rid of spiders. You should also know that spiders are found in areas, where insects are likely to gather around lights. So, make sure that any extra lights are turned off during the night time, otherwise, spiders will attract towards the light in search of food. So, these are few useful measures to stop spiders.

4. Detecting dry rot in your home

Dear ABC,

You may have designed and decorated your house with a lot of woodwork, to give it an artistic style, or you may have different wood items, which are used in your house. In any case, you would never want your wood to get damaged by anything, so dry rot is going to be a headache for you. Dry rot is a fungus, which is extremely damaging for the wood. It is a fungus which can be seen in every part of the world. It is known to damage timber, especially used in buildings and ships. So, it is really important for you to identify dry rot, which may be damaging your timber used in your home. You have to detect, whether your timber is being damaged by dry rot, or any other fungus is causing the damage. The detection is very critical because dry rot can quickly spread throughout the building, and can be extremely damaging. You have to look for indications, which will determine whether dry rot is present or not. The first indication to detect dry rot is wood shrinks. You would see that wood is shrinking and cracking, and its color is getting darker. It is a prominent sign that timber is having dry rot.

Moreover, you might see some teardrops growing, because fluffy and white “cotton-wool” tends to develop in given humid conditions. One more important thing to detect dry rot is a damp and musty odor, which is produced from timber due to dry rot. The decay produced by dry rot will always produce some bad odor, which should never be ignored. The surface of the timber would have wide pores. You must know that dry rot is developed due to moisture, which develops in the wood for a variety of reasons. Damp and wet conditions can be one of the reasons. The color of the wood having dry rot will be grey and it will have a mycelium skin. So, you can easily differentiate that wood with dry rot will lose its original color. These are some of the visual signs, which help to detect dry rot so that you can take prompt required action. But always remember that visual signs will not show in few days, rather timber might have developed dry rot for many months, and then it comes up with visual signs. So, always have a close look at your timber, which is used in your house, and detect any issue to get it resolved in time.

5. Home remedies for ant control

Dear ABC,

We all can face a lot of issues on a daily basis in our homes, and one common issue faced by many is ants running around everywhere in your house. It can be frustrating to see these ants all around, and it is even more frustrating when the number of ants is too much. Ants can be damaging in so many ways. These ants are unhygienic because they get into different food items, and may leave various kinds of bacteria. So, your food items get contaminated by these ants. There are even types of ants such as Harvester or Fire ants, which may bite humans. One more type of ants is called Carpenter, and it has been observed that building materials can be damaged by this type. You would be amazed to hear that there are more than 12,000 different types of ants. The fact of the matter is that ants are a reality, which cannot be ignored by any means, and we all hate their presence in our homes. So, it is important for you to know about some remedies, which can help to get rid of these ants. Here are some of the suggestions to keep in mind, if you are having too many ants in your house:

·         Always make sure that your house is clean as much as possible

·         One of the methods to deal with ants is to use chalks. It is important to know that calcium carbonate is contained by chalks, which is helpful in dealing with ants. Make a powder of chalks, and sprinkle it in areas, where ants can potentially enter. But be careful in case you have little kids in your house. Make sure that they don’t have access to this chalk powder

·         Peppermint is one of the effective natural remedies against insects. You can also use it to get rid of ants. You must plant mint, or use its oil in areas, where ants have been running around. It has been observed that ants do not like the smell of peppermint

·         It has also been observed that ants also don’t like the smell of lemon. So, you can use lemon juice or place lemon peels at entry points, where ants would potentially come. You can also add a little amount of lemon juice in water, which is used to wash floors, as it will keep ants away.

·         Salt is another best natural remedy to deal with ants, so sprinkle salt in corners and places, where ants have been found, and they will surely run away.

6. How to check your home for Termites

Dear ABC,

You might have noticed some damage to wood material used in your house, or you have a doubt in your mind that you have termite in your house. You may think that you will hear any sounds of termite, or you will see them running around, but that is not the case with termites because they don’t make any sounds. It is important for you to know that termites are one of the most destructive pests. The stats are horrific in relation to the United States, as it has been revealed that damage caused by termite in the United States is around $50b, which is a huge amount. It also shows how damaging termite can be. The other scary thing about termites is that they can cause a lot of damage before you notice them. The time, when you realize that termite is there, extensive damage is already made. They are known to eat wood, but they do it inside out, so it is always hard to check their presence in your home.

It is important to understand that your wood material may look absolutely fine from outside, and it may look as hard as it was before, but it may be getting weaker from inside due to termites. One good thing to know is that termites work a bit slowly, so damage is not caused immediately; rather it takes time to happen. But in any case, it is vital for you to check your home for the presence of termites. You have to spot it before it causes a lot of damage. You can look for different things to ensure whether termite is present in your home or not. Termites used to make mud tubes, and these mud tubes can be spotted on wood or nearby areas. If you see any mud tubes, then it is a clear indication that termite is there in your home. If you will remove the mud tubes, and you see them again in a few days time, it means that active termites are present.

You may also inspect wood where you have found mud tubes. It is more likely that termite is damaging wood from inside, and you can use any screwdriver to check whether the surface of the wood is still hard, or it has become weaker, and screwdriver easily goes inside the wood. It means that wood has softened and it is losing its hardness. These are some of the methods to check your home for termites.

7. Tell tale signs you have termites

Dear ABC,

You will have to be cautious if you feel that termites are around somewhere in your home. There are various considerable warning signs, which will easily tell that termites are there in your home. There are a variety of signs, which can help you to detect the presence of termites, and few important signs are mentioned below:

·         It is a fact that termites are one of the fragile insects, and they cannot defend themselves from any outside predators. It is important for their survival to have a moist environment. So, when termites are not inside the wood, and moving somewhere outside, they make termite tubes, which are actually small tunnels for them made with mud. If you see any termite tubes anywhere in your house, then it is a clear sign that you have termites in your home. Moreover, if you have found any termite cement around your home at any place, then it is another indication that termites have arrived.

·         One of the primary signs of termites’ presence is flying termite. If termites have a nest in your home, then male and female termites will fly around to find new places, where they can make their new colony. You may also notice discarded wings of termites, which have been flying around to find a new place.

·         You must be careful in determining whether termites are there in the house because some people are mistaken by white ants, as termites. You will have to carefully examine whether you have seen termites or white ants. There are a lot of differences between white ants and termites, such as the color of termites is light as compared to white ants.

·         If you see wood tunnels in any broken wood, then it is another clear sign that termites have arrived. But remember one thing that these tunnels are made inside part of the wood, so you can’t see it from outside until you see any broken wood. So, if you see any kind of damage to wood-like it is breaking and getting damp, it means that termites have made their camps inside the wood.

·         It is important for you to understand that if you are not able to find any of these signs, but still you think that termites are around, then ask experts to visit your place and examine your building to find if termites are present or not. We can be helpful in this regard so you can certainly use our services to examine the presence of termites.

8. Checking the wood in your home for termite Damage

Dear ABC,

You may have designed your home with furniture, which is artistic and very expensive as well. You also may have used woodwork as a major design for the whole interior of your house, or even you have less number of furniture; in any case, you would never want termites to damage your furniture. If you have used wood material for designing and interior of your house, then you will have to be extra cautious regarding termites because once they sneak into your wood, they will come up with extensive damage. This damage will ruin your entire design and interior because termites can be very damaging in this regard. They can damage your entire wooden structure, which may become unusable. For instance, if you have wood flooring in your house, and termites have invaded it, then it will damage its entire structure. The wood floor will look like as it has been damaged by water. If wood flooring has blisters, and then you should be aware that termite is damaging the wood below the wood surface.

It is your responsibility to check your furniture or any kind of woodwork on a regular basis, because you may feel that termite is not there, but its presence can go unnoticed for some time until any visual damages start to appear on wood structure. By the time, termites’ presence is found; it may have done extensive damage to your wood structure. So, regular check-up is very important. You can check the surface of wood, and look around to find any droppings of wood, which is a clear indication that termite is damaging your wood, and it is chewing it from inside. You need to understand that if you are not able to identify the presence of termite making damage to your wood, then don’t waste time, and contact experts to do this important job. The experts have methods and tools to identify damage to wood and identify the presence of termites in different areas of the house. You can get in touch with us for this purpose.

9. Does mint really stop rats and mice?

Dear ABC,

Rats and mice can be a headache for you, especially if you have seen them around. It is never a pleasant feeling to know that rats have invaded and roaming around in your house. It can be even more frustrating if you have seen them in the kitchen area. You might have heard about various remedies to get rid of rats, and you also might have tried them, but with no considerable results. Now, you are wondering whether these natural remedies actually work, or is it just a myth. One of such methods to get rid of rats and mice is mint. It is important to know that natural rat repellents such as mint can work in different situations, but there is no guarantee that such methods will work in every given situation. Moreover, it is always difficult to determine what amount of mint or mint oil should be used to repel rats and mice. The use of such natural repellents is also dangerous, especially, if you have little kids in your house. You will have to make sure that they are kept away from such natural repellents and chemicals; otherwise, the consequences can be severe.

You might have heard from people that they have planted mint in their garden or used it in the house to repel rats, but they still see rats and mice around, which shows that mint is not the ultimate solution. Rats and mice are very difficult to get rid of, and mint may not work effectively every time. It has been observed that mint can play its part in repelling rats, but if you think that mint will help you to stay away from the worry of rats, then it is a wrong myth to have. Mint will not be an ultimate solution; rather you will have to use various other methods as well. For instance, if you have mint plants in your house, and still rats are running around, then use mouse traps so that you can trap them. You must also understand that natural remedies may take more time to get rid of rats, than any other concrete methods. The more time it will take, you will be at risk of getting any disease, which is spread by rats and mice. Moreover, having mint in your house is not enough, you should also know how and where to place these mint leaves. In addition, if mint has helped you to repel rats and mice, but they still remain a threat so you should ensure that all possible entry points are blocked.

10. Do it yourself - Rodent control

Dear ABC,

Rodents are never a pleasing sight if you have seen them running around in different areas of your house. What you would like to do if rodents’ presence in your house is confirmed? Will you ask experts to get rid of rodents? Or will you use do it yourself (DIY) method to deal with rodents? If you chose the first option, then there is not much to worry, because experts know their job, and they will throw your worries away by eliminating rodents from your place. But if you are looking to choose the second option; then there are a lot of things to keep in mind, whether the DIY method will work or not. The first issue with DIY methods is their effectiveness. It may be coincident that your DIY method has helped you to get rid of rats because such methods are not found effective in the majority of cases. If you are looking to use any bait trap for rodents in your house, then it is difficult for you to determine what type of rodent is running around, and what kind of bait trap will be effective to catch the rodent. Moreover, DIY methods are short-lived; they may give you temporary relief, but you can’t get a permanent solution with such methods.

Moreover, removing rodents with the DIY method is just half the job done, because you also have to ensure that they don’t get in again. For this purpose, you will have to examine the whole house to identify any potential entry points. If you won’t do this, you will see rodents again in a few days' time. In addition, DIY methods can be costly for you, because you are not sure which method will work, so you will keep trying different methods. So, it will waste both your time and money. You will continue to try these methods until you get succeeded. The other important thing to keep in mind regarding DIY methods is dangers, which are involved with such methods. The first major danger is a disease, which can be caused by rodents. So, you can’t take so much time to try different DIY methods, because if methods will not work, then rodents will keep spreading diseases, as well as, continue to contaminate your food items. Especially, if you have children in the house, they can get ill due to disease spread by these rodents. So, it is important to understand that the DIY method is good for initial action to be taken, but you will need the services of relevant experts to get rid of rodents.

11. Is your insulation attracting rodents?

Dear ABC,

If you allergic to rodents and don’t want to see them around, then there are few things to be made sure of, and one such thing is the insulation used in your home. People try to avoid few expenses while installing insulation of their homes, and later they have to pay the price when rodents and other pests are able to sneak in. So, it is vital for you to know if your insulation is good enough to resist the entry of rodents, or is it attracting them? It has been observed that generally people use insulation, which contains glue in bulk, and this glue can easily be bitten by rats and mice. Moreover, such insulation with a lot of glue can be cheesy and delicious for rats, as well as other pests. So, if you are going to use insulation for your home, it is necessary to avoid any insulation, which has glue, because rats can get through such insulation. So, always remember, if you don’t use proper insulation, and try to install insulation with cheap prices, then you are actually inviting and attracting rodents. Make sure that insulation is good enough to stop rodents to sneak in.

The other important thing to keep in mind while discussing rodents is palm trees. It has been observed that fruit rates or rood rats are fond of palm trees and they love to live on these trees. So, if you are living an area with palm trees, or if you have palm trees in your own garden, then you must know that palm trees will have rodents around because they are attracted to palm trees. Rats and mice love to live on these trees during the day time, and they come down to find food during the night time, so they may get into your house during the night time. So, roof/fruit rats will always be attracted by palm trees, and if you have palm trees around, then be careful.

It is also quite interesting to find different kinds of pests like to get into our homes. There must be particular reasons, which attract these pests. For instance, pests and rodents would like to get into homes, where they can find various places to hide. The other reason of attraction for pests is food, as they get into houses in search of food so that they can get enough feed to live. If you are living in an old home, which is not that clean and organized, then it is more likely to have more pests in your home.

12. Ants are everywhere – what do I do?

Dear ABC,

If you have the same question on your mind, then this email is going to be useful for you, so read till the end. We know that ants are not only annoying, but they can also spread a variety of bacteria, which is not a good sign for your health, as well as, health of your children. If you are looking to deal with the problem of ants, then there is one interesting thing to understand. You must know that ants have a queen, which continues to produce ants on a regular basis. When you see a colony of ants going on the floor or wall, and kill them with any spray, and think that the job is done. But the job is half done, because the queen stays in her nest, and continues to produce more ants. It means that until you get rid of the nest, you won’t be able to eliminate ants. So, you have to look for trailing ants. When ants are moving around, actually they are looking for food, and when they find some food, they go back to their nests. So, you have to track their trail to identify their nests, which later can be destroyed so that the production of more ants is stopped.

Moreover, you must remember that until nests are not getting rid of, ants will continue to appear in your place, because queens continue to produce a colony of ants one after the other. So, if you track the trail and it gets you a point, where you can spot the nest, then spray different sprays available in the market so that the nest is eliminated. Once the ants are killed and the nest is also destroyed, then the next step is to ensure that you don’t allow ants to come again. Block all entry points, and always keep your home as clean as possible. Moreover, store food in airtight jars, where ants can’t reach the food items because food is the biggest attraction for them. Look for little holes in your doors and windows, and seal them to make sure ants are not able to get in. Even if you have tried all these methods, and still ants are haunting you, then do get in touch with us, we will provide a permanent solution.

13. Coffee ground pest control! Do home remedies work

Dear ABC,

Coffee is one of the most common drinks, which we all use in our daily lives, and when coffee is made, it results in coffee grounds, which is actually the waste of coffee. It is a dark brown solid material, which is left over after making the coffee. Households do not produce many coffee grounds, but coffee shops produce a lot of coffee grounds on a daily basis, and they would love to give this leftover to gardeners, or people who want it. There are many perceptions about coffee grounds such as they make the soil more fertile, and help gardeners in better gardening. One of the perceptions about coffee grounds is that it can keep different kinds of pests away. It has been said that coffee grounds can stop snails & slugs to enter your garden because they don’t like the smell of caffeine. So, when you use coffee grounds in the soil of your garden, then it is more likely that snails & slugs will stay away from your garden.

It is also said that coffee grounds can also help in keeping cats and rabbits away from your garden, as they also don’t like soil with too much smell of caffeine. It is important to know that such remedies can be effective in different given situations, but there is no guarantee that such remedies will work every time. Such home remedies can help to control pests and keep them away, but it is not sure that it will happen 100% every time. It means that such home remedies can be used with other preventive measures, but these remedies alone will not give desired results. So, you may use coffee grounds to keep pests away from your home or garden, but you still need experts to do the job for you, finding a permanent solution for your problem.