November 1, 2013
How to Rid Your Home of Critters For Good!
Regardless of how cleanly or disorderly your home is, one thing we all struggle to find a solution to is creepy crawly little bugs. Some sneak in through the little cracks and passageways we couldn’t see even if we wanted to. Others wait for the perfect moment and run, jump or fly in just as we open the door.
Is it just our unfortunate fate that we must live amongst these disgusting things? The roaches, the ants, the spiders, the mosquitoes? No. I’m here to tell you there are simple, and might I add natural, ways to keep these little guys out of your house and away from your food, kids and most importantly, yourself.
There are four main household pests that we are going teach you how to get rid of. The ant, the spider, the mosquito and the repulsive cockroach.
Getting Rid of the Pests
Ants: These little things sometimes seem impossible to get rid of! They’re persistent and there are hundreds of thousands of them in your yard alone. So what do you do?
– Make sure you keep your dishes clean
– Keep food containers, such as jelly, clean
– Make a soap and water solution in a spray bottle, spray every area that you have seen the ants. This will get rid of the chemical trail they leave behind for other ants to follow them.
– Create a barrier around window and door frames to keep ants out. Barriers are things such as Vaseline or white vinegar mixed with water.
– Leave a deterring scent. Ants do not like the smell of mint and will completely avoid it.
Spiders: No one likes spiders. Even if you say you do, you don’t. Just kidding some people really do like spiders. But not you or I.
– Spiders like cluttered and dusty spaces. Regular vacuuming and decluttering is one way to take away from the appeal to spiders.
– Much like the ant, spiders HATE peppermint. Make a peppermint and water solution and spray it around your home.
– Make sure windows and doors are properly sealed, as to keep them from getting in.
– Also, cedar. Spiders avoid cedar so if you can, use cedar around the perimeter of your home to repel the nasty little guys.
Mosquitoes: Okay but really though, no one likes these blood sucking monsters. They make it nearly impossible to enjoy a day outside with friends, and when they get in your bedrooms, forget about it.
– Mosquitoes hate lavender, a scent that most women love. It’s relaxing and beautiful. Add a couple of drops of lavender to a ribbon or a decoration by windows and doors and mosquitoes will avoid you like the plague. Haha, get it?
– If you’re planning an evening outside, use a lavender and oil mix as a moisturizer for your skin to keep the bugs away.
– Plant mosquito repellent plants around the perimeter of your home. There are a number of these that mosquitoes don’t like, such as, feverfew, catnip and lavender.
Cockroaches: Ew! That’s all I have to say.
– There are tons of cockroach repellant methods on the internet, use borax, use sugar, use citrous floor wax. The problem is, none of them really work. Roaches are basically indestructible, which is unfortunate for us because they’re pretty much the nastiest home invader of them all. There is however, one thing that has been proven to work. Fresh, high quality, bay leaves. Roaches absolutely detest them and avoid them at all costs. Put a couple bay leaves in each room in a place where pets and kids wont get to them (bay leaves are bad for you to eat). Replace them a couple times per year when they dry out and you will never have roach problems again.
If you would love to be able to keep your home so sparkling clean that spiders and critters don’t even want to come in, but you just don’t seem to have enough time in the day, call Green Apple. We’re a cleaning service that will provide you with a crisp clean home every time. We pride ourselves on a job well done and strive for excellence. Give a call today to set up your first appointment.
