Modern Pest Management

Starting a pest management program? Pest management may be one of the most complex issues around home ownership: traditionally the province of exterminators, most pest management strategies have involved sprayed, sprinkled or gaseous poisons and the use of mechanical traps. For home pest management, you need two things; prevention and intervention.

Prevention relies on cleaning strategies and minimizing places where pests can gain entry. Pest management can be as simple as regularly scheduled housework. Keep food in the refrigerator: if you have particular problems with ants, spiders or moths, consider keeping dry goods such as flour, corn meal and sugar in the freezer. After a meal, make sure to wipe up all crumbs on tables, floors and counters using soapy water to prevent food smells from attracting pests.

If you can't wash your dishes after every meal, at least rinse them in soapy water. Dishwashers may encourage roaches, which crawl into houses through water lines. If your dishwasher has a drying function, use it frequently to keep the appliance dry.

Poisons need reapplication and always pose a hazard to people, pets and the environment. Modern pest management relies on ultrasonic devices that deter insect and rodent pests by the use of high-frequency sound. Tones of over 20,000 Hertz are unheard by people, cats and dogs, but cause distress in insects, mice and rats. Electromagnetic functions send the ultrasonic tone through the walls, preventing pests from hiding in them. Affordable and efficient, ultrasonic devices are easy to use; just plug them in.