Pests can cause irreparable damage in a household, most of which are expensive. Apart from the damage to the property, problems can cause infections.
Especially if you have kids, safeguarding your house against pests is imperative. However, there are times when pests infest your homestead without your knowledge. They create a haven, only to wreak havoc after a while. At such a time, an exterminator’s services are essential.
So, what signs do you look out for to know when to put that pesticide away and call an exterminator?
Structural damage
When pests invade your home, structural damage is bound to happen. One of the pests best known for causing structural damage is termites.
Termites are notorious for causing massive damage to wooden surfaces. So, the next time you notice buckled wood or swollen floors, it is time to call termite control.
You see them
Sometimes, you will see a cockroach or a rodent running across the room when doing household chores. It is a fact that for every pest you see, several others are hiding behind the walls.
The best thing to do is to perform a night assessment. Nights are mostly silent. As such, pests are likely to come out. You will see one or two cockroaches during the day, but they mostly operate at night. High chances are, you will see the magnitude of their existence when you wake up in the middle of the night and switch on the lights.
The same case applies to almost all other pests.
Strange smells
Cleanliness is the number one thing to uphold in your home. However, you will sometimes notice strange smells as you clean the house. Exterminators will indeed tell infestation problems by smelling around the house.
For instance, when you notice an ammonia-like smell in the house, there is a high likelihood that mice have invaded your home. When you see these unpleasant odors, you need to call an exterminator.
You see droppings
It is bad enough that you have a pest problem, but constantly cleaning pest droppings is irritating.
Pests are good at hiding. It is one of the best reasons pest infestation is sometimes caught when it is too late. However, problems are not keen on hiding evidence. They will leave their droppings in plain sight.
You will likely notice fur and shed body parts besides droppings. All these are left behind as they move from one place to another.
Bite or gnaw marks.
Pests are destructive by nature. They will chew on anything edible in your home, from food packaging to furniture and plastics.
One of the most obvious signs is bite marks on food packages. Pests need food to survive, and if none is readily available, they will invade your cabinets and bite on anything.
Strange sounds and grease marks are some other signs of pest infestation. Call an exterminator once you notice any of these tell-and-tale signs. Delays in doing so could cost you your expensive piece of furniture.
