Mice, roaches, termites, and bed bugs are just some of the pests that homeowners around the world have to deal with. It’s frustrating and downright annoying to have these invaders in our homes and yards. Whether you’re a new homeowner or just new to pests in the house, you may be wondering how to keep them out!
Preventive pest control is one of the best options for preventing pest problems before they even start. This involves making your yard and home less desirable to pests and closing up any openings to the outside that may invite these pesky critters inside.
This article will cover preventive pest control solutions that are simple, effective, and friendly to our families and pets. Read on to discover the 4 simple ways to prevent pests in the home before they become a problem.
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1. Correctly Identify Your Pest
The first step in preventive pest control is to correctly identify the pest that’s plaguing your home or yard. Whether you’re having trouble with tiny pests on your garden plants, creepy crawlers in the basement, or mice in the walls, it’s essential to identify the correct pest.
Preventive pest control for mice is different than that for deer or termites. Once you correctly identify your pest, you can choose the correct pest control option that will effectively deter that specific pest.
Here are some steps you can take to correctly identify your pest:
Look at the damage: Pests leave specific damage behind in their quest for food or shelter. For example, rabbit damage to plants is clean cut at an angle, while deer damage leaves behind ragged cuts. The damage left behind by pests are excellent clues to their identity, even if you don’t actually see the pest. Check out our article on the 10 signs you have mice in your garage for a fantastic example of identifying pest-specific damage.
Pest-specific behavior: Every critter has different behaviors. Mice are typically found inside the home behind walls. Raccoons and opossums tend to build dens beneath porches and sheds. Knowing the behavior of potential pests will help you choose the best deterrent technique.
Attractants: Animals are drawn to specific things in and around the home. Small mammals love hiding in tall grass, bushes and brush piles. Standing water attracts pests like mosquitoes. Softwood fences attract carpenter bees and woodpeckers. Think about what’s around your home and yard to narrow down which pests may be sneaking around. Our article on 8 things that attract flies to your home offers a great example of how to identify pests by what attracts them.
Seeing the pest in question is the best way to correctly identify it, but that’s not always going to happen. Sometimes the only clue is a dug hole in the yard, a trampled flowerbed, or a small circular hole in your garden plant leaves.
In these instances, use clues from damage, behaviors, and attractants to figure out which pesky pest is invading your space. From there, you can implement preventive pest control techniques to keep them away.
2. Seal Off Entry Points
Whether you’re trying to prevent pests in your house, garage, or garden, sealing off entry points is a fantastic way to employ preventive pest control. This will not only help control current pest problems but future ones as well!
There are various ways to identify and seal off entry points around the home, but the most important thing is to find every possible way a pest could enter the area and physically seal it up!
Here are a few examples of common pest entry points around the home and yard. Check these areas carefully and implement preventive pest control techniques to seal them up.
Electrical and water lines: Check where your electrical and water lines come into the house. These areas may have gaps around the lines, leaving it open to the outside and inviting pests inside. Head over to our article on how to seal gaps around plumbing for tips on water lines!
Screens: Window and door screens can be easily damaged, leaving holes that let in smaller pests like flies, spiders, and even mice.
Damaged fascia and roofs: Over time, fascia boards and roofing tiles or shingles can become damaged by weather or physical objects. These become highway systems for pests like bats, chipmunks, opossums, raccoons, rats, termites, bees, and wasps to make their way inside.
Space beneath buildings: Porches, decks, sheds, and garages sometimes have spaces beneath them that are open. These are harbingers for skunks, foxes, raccoons, groundhogs, and even coyotes to make a den underneath.
Doorways: Doorways are constantly opening and closing, allowing pests like flies, ladybugs, and centipedes to sneak inside. They may also have gaps beneath, leaving them open to mice, spiders, and stinkbugs to squeeze inside.
Beneath fencing: If you have fencing around your garden, pests like rabbits, groundhogs, and voles may burrow beneath the fencing to reach your prized vegetables.
This list is not all-inclusive. There are some uncommon entry point areas, such as through the chimney (birds, bats, raccoons), beneath roof flashing (mice, chipmunks, squirrels), and even through the drain pipes (spiders, cockroaches, silverfish, rats).
Think of all the places where there may be openings, holes, or cracks that lead outside, and seal them up tight for preventive pest control.
How To Seal Entry Points
There are a variety of ways to seal pest entry points, but again, it’s important to know what kind of pest you’re dealing with first to properly employ preventive pest control. For example, carpenter bees and mice will chew right through caulking, so if these pests are your problem, it’s better to opt for steel wool instead. On the other hand, cockroaches and spiders are easily blocked with caulking or putty.
Below are a few simple ways to seal off entry points and examples of what kind of pests can be deterred with the chosen sealant.
Steel wool: This is the top-of-the-line choice for plugging holes and preventing entry. The tough material can withstand even the most aggressive chewers, making it a good choice for keeping out mice, rats, carpenter bees, chipmunks, and squirrels. It’s not the best choice for larger mammals like raccoons and opossums. Alabrocon Store’s steel wool is a great choice to plug small holes.
Caulking: Caulking is an inexpensive, easy way to seal holes where pests are getting inside. This is a good choice for pests like spiders and insects because they will not chew through it. It’s great for areas with uneven holes, such as around piping or cracks. Check out our article on the 7 best caulks for bugs to find the best brands!
Hardware cloth: If you need to seal up spaces beneath porches and decks, hardware cloth is the way to go. It works great on larger critters like raccoons, opossums, rabbits, groundhogs, foxes, and coyotes. It can also work on smaller pests like mice, rats, and chipmunks as long as you buy hardware cloth with the correct-sized openings. This ½-inch hardware cloth from Hunka will keep out almost any-sized pest, from mice to coyotes.
Repair: If the entry point is due to damaged screens, roofing tiles, or siding, then the best preventive pest control option is to repair the damaged sections as quickly as possible.
Fencing: For large pests like deer, coyotes, and bears, fencing may be the best option to keep them out of your yard or garden. The type of fence isn’t as important as long as it prevents the animal from entering your space!
By sealing any entry point into your home and yard, you’re implementing preventive pest control for a variety of pests. If they can’t find an easy way into your space, they’re likely to move on and look for an easier target.
If you’re looking for more hands-off tools to pair with sealing entry points, simple devices like motion sensor lights, trail cameras, and chimney covers can help you spot and prevent pest activity early.
The reason pests are in homes and yards in the first place is because they are attracted to something. Animals are pretty basic. They need three main things to survive: food, water, and shelter.
If they find any one of these things in your home or yard, they’re likely to stick around for a while. Eliminating attractants is a huge step in preventive pest control. Like sealing entry points, it will not only remove current pest problems but also prevent future ones.
Here are some of the most common pest attractants and how to remove them:
Dirty sink: Leaving dirty dishes in the sink overnight is a surefire way to attract mice, cockroaches, flies, and ants.
Solution: Keep the sink clean by doing the dishes each day. Wipe out the sink before going to bed to prevent water from attracting thirsty pests. Our article on the 8 things that attract flies to your home can provide more insight into this type of attractant.
Bird seed: Bird feeders themselves aren’t all that attractive to pests, especially if they hang free from a tree. However, the spilled seed on the ground attracts small rodents and mammals, which in turn attracts snakes to the yard.
Solution: Use a catcher tray to prevent seeds from falling on the ground. Move bird feeders away from the house.
Hiding places: Brush and debris piles, leaf piles, unkempt woodpiles, tall grass, and undisturbed vehicles are all excellent hiding places for snakes, rats, mice, and other smaller pests because it hides them from aerial predators.
Solution: Keep the grass trimmed and remove any debris/brush piles in the yard. Do not let vehicles sit idle for more than a week.
Trash: Trash cans with loose lids or no lid at all attract pests like raccoons, opossums, rats, mice, cockroaches, wasps, and bears.
Solution: Use a bungee cord or lid lock to secure the lid or store garbage cans in a shed until pickup day.
Pet food: If you feed pets or stray animals outside your home, you’re likely to attract raccoons, mice, opossums, skunks, ants, flies, and coyotes.
Solution: Feed all pets indoors and bring any water dishes inside at night. If you must feed pets outdoors, only feed them during the middle of the day and pick it up at dusk and throughout the night.
By eliminating the things that are attractive to pests, you’re letting them know that there’s nothing for them in your yard. Think about sources of food, water, and shelter and eliminate them for the best preventive pest control.
4. Use Natural Repellents
Natural repellents are an excellent way to keep pests out of certain areas around the home and yard. They target specific areas and can be effective at keeping unwanted visitors away using natural products like essential oils and vinegar.
The important thing to note about using natural repellents is that they are not as strong as their synthetic chemical counterparts – pesticides and insecticides – so they’ll need to be reapplied more often. However, they are much safer for you, your family, and your pets, which is why we highly recommend them!
Below are some of the most effective natural repellents for a wide variety of pests. Remember to always read the directions on the repellent for proper application.
Peppermint and other essential oils: Effective against small rodents, raccoons, deer, opossums, and flying insects, peppermint is an all-around useful repellent. To use it, soak cotton balls in peppermint essential oil and place them problem areas. Alternatively, use 10-15 drops of peppermint oil mixed with two cups of water and place the mixture in a spray bottle. Read our article on the best peppermint oils to repel mice for more insight into this magical oil!
Diatomaceous earth: This silica-based repellent is excellent for insects because it cuts into their exoskeleton, drying them out. It can be sprinkled in problem areas and doesn’t require much work. We have a fantastic article on the 7 best diatomaceous earth for bed bugs here!
Beneficial nematodes: Nematodes are a form of biological control. They are soil-dwelling worms that consume smaller pests like the larvae of grubs, weevils, and caterpillars.
Hot peppers: Mixing a few drops of hot sauce with water to make a spray is a great natural repellent. The chemical capsaicin repels a variety of pests from eating certain plants or coming near specific areas. Sprinkling hot pepper flakes have a similar effect! Check out how to use hot pepper to repel raccoons for more insight.
Strong-smelling herbs: Garlic, onion, and rosemary are all excellent examples of strong-smelling herbs that can work to naturally repel pests. They’re great tools to have for preventive pest control!
Natural repellents work in different ways, but the main reason they work is that they overwhelm the pest’s sense of smell, making it difficult for them to locate food, smell approaching predators, or find mates. When they come in contact with the scent, it makes them want to leave the area.
Wrapping Up Preventive Pest Control
Whether you’re dealing with skunks, wasps, or bed bugs, having a pest around the home is frustrating and can make you feel overwhelmed. By implementing preventive pest control techniques like the ones discussed above, you can effectively prevent critters from invading your home and yard before they become a problem.
To recap, the 4 easy preventive pest control solutions to keep pests away include:
Correctly identify the pest
Seal all entry points
Eliminate attractants
Use repellents
The best way to keep pests out of the home and yard is to prevent them from ever becoming a problem. Keep up with yard work, home repairs, and use repellents when necessary. In no time, you’ll have a pest-free space and keep it that way!
As always, if you ever feel your pest problem is beyond DIY pest control, you can reach out to a pest control specialist for help.
Robyn is your friendly neighborhood writer, editor, and published author - boasting many years of experience in pest control, from which she magically weaves words into the captivating and engaging posts as we know them. When not tucked behind her laptop screen, she can be found embracing nature in the most thrilling ways possible. Rock climbing? Yes, please! Hiking? Absolutely! Traveling the U.S. with her husband, their lovable three-legged dog, and two mischievous cats? That’s her everyday reality. They live, love, and work in their cozy campervan, letting the road take them where it will, and finding inspiration in every sunrise, mountain peak, and wildlife sighting they encounter. Check out my Profile.
Pest Pointers was started in a cozy corner of Upstate New York, known for its expansive pastures, dense woods, and abundant wildlife pests. We are dedicated to providing YOU with solutions and insights into managing common pest issues. Starting out on over 50 acres of land and a freshwater bass pond with abundant pests, we combine firsthand experience with dedicated advice to help you tackle even the toughest of critters!
