What’s the worst things you can think of? Well, we can think of a fair few – but opening up the pantry door to start preparing breakfast, lunch or dinner and finding a swarming infestation of creepy crawlies is definitely one of the worst! Nothing could make the skin crawl quicker. It’s essential that you protect your pantry from pests, but just how do you go about it? Well, we’ll make life easier for you with six helpful tips to keep your food safe from pests. Let’s take a closer look.
1 Enlist the professionals
Before we get into explaining some preventative measures, it’s probably important to mention that if you have a current infestation you’ll probably need to employ some pest control services. These are highly trained and qualified professionals whose sole job is to rid your home of bugs, pests, and other assorted vermin. They’ll be able to come in, assess the nature of the infestation and apply the best solution for you. Now that we’ve explained that useful tip, let’s get onto how to keep the pests at bay in the first place!
2 Seal your stuff
We can’t emphasise this enough: Pests come knocking on your cupboard door because there is food for them to eat. Loose crumbs, bits and pieces present the perfect treat for your ants, cockroaches and silverfish. So, do yourself a favor and seal your packages after use. Try to purchase foodstuffs in ziplock or easy-seal packets, or better yet, invest in some decent Tupperware to keep your food fresh and safe from the bugs!
3 Go the natural route
Sometimes all natural defense is the best measure you can take in pest prevention! Chemical bug spray is chock full of nasties that can cause harm to you if inhaled or left to settle on the skin. You can use some easily obtainable essential oils and brew up a batch of bug spray that’s bound to keep the insects at bay. You’ll want to use a combination of lavender, peppermint, citronella, rosemary, tea tree, geranium and lemongrass. You could use them all together or make a spray with just a few. Spray this in and around your cupboard and rest easy at night.
4 Or go the chemical way
This option isn’t too bad, as it involves treating the outside of your home. Use an outdoor insect spray that’s specially designed to create a barrier between the garden and your house. This should make any potential insect intruder reconsider your property before sneaking inside. For more information on dealing with termites and other pests, visit pestkilled.com/how-to-get-rid-of-termites.
5 Seal the cracks
Ants, in particular, love to crawl into your kitchen through cracks in the floor, wall and windows. They may even creep in from other rooms! Go through your home and look for obvious entry points and seal them up. You can grab some decently-priced sealant at your local hardware store, and it isn’t too difficult to apply!
6 Don’t be lazy!
This tip is similar to our first point.
Try not to leave food out overnight or even out for a few hours. Once you’re finished cooking and eating, bundle the leftovers into some containers and don’t leave any tempting morsels for the bugs.
Wipe down the bench too.
Even the smallest crumb sends a pulsing beacon to pests! Try to remind the other members of the family of this too. We know it’s the kids and hubby who are most likely to get a bit slack around the place.
There you have it
By following some of these simple tips, including sealing your food containers, cleaning up after yourself, calling in the professionals and mixing some natural bug spray, you’re a few steps closer to a pest free pantry!