Keep Bugs Out of Your Home This Spring With These 3 Tips

Spring weather brings sunshine, warm temperatures, rain, and bugs. And while most of what spring brings is nice, bugs are certainly not wanted in our homes. Unfortunately, as the temperatures rise, so do the chances of you seeing insects in your home.

To help keep your home bug-free this spring, let’s take a look at a few prevention tips.

Take a Look at Your Landscaping

While it’s true that landscaping can make your property look better and can even increase a home’s resale value by 14%, it can also be problematic when it comes to pests. If you have a lot of trees or shrubs right next to your house, insects can use them as sort of a bridge to allow them to get onto the house.

From there, they can crawl through any vents or openings and get into the house. So to prevent this from happening, you should make sure you stay on top of landscape maintenance. Any trees or shrubs right next to your house should be pruned away from the home to ensure there aren’t any places that bugs would want to stay in.

If possible, move your landscaping away from your home and add in some crushed stone as a barrier between your shrubbery and the house — keep mulch away from your house as best as possible. You should also mow your lawn regularly, keeping it short especially next to the house.

Install Pest-Proof Screens

If you don’t already, you should have screens on all of your windows and doors. This will do wonders when it comes to preventing bugs from getting into your home through an open window or door — and you can enjoy the nice spring weather without having to worry about what’s going to come in through the window. Along with your windows and doors, you may also want to consider installing pest-proof screens or mesh in your attic and crawl spaces.

This can prevent pests from accumulating in areas of your home you don’t see regularly. And when you’re installing these screens, you may want to consider if any areas in your home need an upgrade. After all, a new screen on an old window with cracks in it won’t do much.

Not only can newer windows save you an average of 15% on your energy bill, but they can significantly reduce the risk of bugs getting into your home. So when you’re installing your new screens, take a look at your windows, doors, and vents to ensure they’re all in good shape, too.

Look Out for Wet Spots

While most homeowners focus on keeping their home clean to prevent bugs from coming in, many homeowners may not realize that wet areas attract pests. To bugs, wet areas are both a source of drinking water and a great place for breeding. While some bugs die in water, like fleas, which can jump a distance of around 200 times their own body length, others thrive in water-filled areas.

Wet areas may include a sink full of dirty dishes and water, which is something most people would notice, but they can also include less obvious places — leaking pipes in the bathroom or basement can go unnoticed and attract bugs quickly. They also like damp places, like the basement or attic.

So be mindful of any wet areas in your home. You should keep the kitchen and bathroom as dry as possible, make sure any leaks get fixed right away, and get a dehumidifier for any damp areas in your home.

Bug prevention tactics don’t have to be anything extreme. Hopefully, these simple tips will help keep your home free of bugs this spring.