3 Tips For Keeping Your Home Pest-Free After Fumigation Service

You recently eradicated your pest infestation by having your home fumigated. Although fumigation removed all the pests that were already in your home, it doesn't prevent new pests from finding their way back into your walls or closets. Instead of assuming that your home is safe from all future infestations, follow these tips to ensure that pests won't invade your home once again:

Replace Any Torn or Poorly-Fitting Window Screens

Your windows serve as ideal entry points for flying insects—especially if your screens are torn or aren't fitted correctly. Pests such as bees, wasps, mosquitoes, and flies can easily pass through small tears in your screen or gaps between your screen frame and window.

Luckily, replacing a window screen is an easy task. To do so, measure the height and width of your window and purchase a suitably-sized window screen kit from your local home improvement store. Additionally, buy a roll of insect screening. Insect screening is stronger than your average fiberglass screening so it's less likely to tear or sag after years of weather exposure.

Use a hacksaw to cut your window frame kit so that it matches the dimensions of your window opening. Next, place your screen corners and corner springs into the holes of your frame pieces. Once these components are in place, you can connect each of your frame pieces to each other and roll your screening over the frame. Press window spline into the grooves of your frame and use scissors cut any excess screening from your frame to finish the job. Repeat this process for each of the torn or poorly-fitting window screens in your home.

Seal The Gaps Beneath Your Doors

Gaps beneath exterior doors are one of the most common points of entry for pests. Even small gaps between the bottom of your door and your threshold will allow cockroaches, small rodents, crickets, and other similar pests to enter your home.

You can install door sweeps to eliminate any gaps beneath your exterior doors. A door sweep will create a seal between your door and your threshold to prevent pests from slipping beneath your doors at night.

To install a door sweep, measure the width of your door from the outside of your home. Next, purchase a door sweep (rubber sweeps are best for blocking pests) from your home improvement store. If your door is less than 36 inches wide, then you'll need to use a hacksaw to cut your door sweep to the proper width.

Once your door sweep is appropriately sized, place it against your door to determine the proper placement of your sweep. Your sweep should make contact with your threshold, but it should not drag along the ground when your door opens or closes. After you've determined the proper positioning for your sweep, use a power drill to create pilot holes at the base of your door for each of the screw holes in your door sweep. With your pilot holes in place, you can mount your door sweep and install your mounting screws.

Deploy Bait Stations and Traps

Aside from sealing your windows and doors, one of the best ways to keep pests out of your home is to give them a more appealing target than your home. To lure pests away from your home, you can deploy bait stations and traps around your property.

However, bait stations and traps are only effective when they're placed in ideal locations for the pests they're designed to attract. Additionally, some types of bait stations, such as those designed to attract subterranean termites, must first condition the pest colonies in your home's vicinity to fall for the bait. This concept is known as pre-baiting—and it's especially difficult to perform without extensive knowledge of the pest you're trying to bait.

For reasons such as these, it's best to leave the task of deploying bait stations and traps around your home to a professional pest control expert. By leaving this task to a professional like Ace Walco & Sons Termite & Pest Control, you can ensure that the bait stations and traps around your home are used effectively.

Don't give pests another chance to invade your home after you worked so hard to eliminate them. Instead, inspect your home right away to determine whether or not you need to replace your window screens, seal your doors, or set up preventative pest control devices.