The Benefits Of Quality Professional Pest Control For Your Sugar Land Home

When it comes to residential pest control, many homeowners assume they can handle a pest infestation on their own – but this can be a costly and time-consuming mistake. Home pest control services can be more beneficial than you think, and can save you time, money, and hassle in the long run.
 
Here's what Sugar Land residents should know about the types of pests that may invade your home, the problems they can cause, the hassles with DIY pest control, and how pest control in Sugar Land can keep your home pest-free. 

The Many Types Of Pests That Can Plague Your Home

Unfortunately, there is no shortage of pests that may invade your Sugar Land home. Residential pest control companies like those of us at All-Safe Pest & Termite have experience combating all sorts of common pests in the Sugar Land area, including:

• Ants: Ants are usually a nuisance pest, and since their colonies can grow into hundreds of thousands, these critters are difficult to get rid of once you have them. Some of the most common ants in Sugar Land include carpenter ants, odorous house ants, and acrobat ants.
• Bed Bugs: With bodies the size of an apple seed, bed bugs are a form of parasite that may occasionally get mistaken for beetles, but they're much harder to prevent. They like to hang around sleeping areas or anywhere with human activity and will bite people in their sleep.
• Cockroaches: Cockroaches can survive in even the cleanest Sugar Land homes, but these are some of the most unsanitary pests you can encounter. Cockroaches are great at hiding, and their presence can go unnoticed for months at a time while they continue to grow their numbers.
• Centipedes: Certain types of centipedes, like house centipedes, may enter your home because they're looking to hunt pest prey. Centipedes may not always invade in large numbers, but they can still be a nuisance to eliminate.
• Crickets: Crickets definitely win the award for the noisiest pest in Sugar Land, so it's no surprise you don't want them in your home. Not only are crickets destructive, but they can also spread bacteria.
• Earwigs: Despite their odd-sounding name, earwigs won't try to enter or invade your ear canal. Besides being a nuisance, earwigs don't pose a threat to you or your home, but they can be unsettling.
• Flies: From fruit flies to house flies, these pests have short lifespans but breed extremely quickly. Flies can contaminate your food and pantry as well as become a major nuisance around the house.
• Fleas: Fleas are always unpleasant, and they don't just invade homes with pets. While it's more common to get flea infestations if you have pets that spend time outdoors, you can also get fleas from rodents or wildlife that hang around your home. Despite their short lifespan, fleas also reproduce extremely quickly and can cause health and allergy problems for both pets and people.
• Scorpions: Sugar Land, as well as most areas in Texas, is not immune to scorpions. These pests are drawn to moisture and pest prey and love to spend time in dark places. It's not uncommon for them to pop in your yard, closets in your home, or even your favorite pair of shoes.
• Silverfish: Regardless of their name, silverfish don't swim, nor are they a type of fish. They have scaly bodies and wriggle around the floor in a way that might resemble a fish, which is how they got their name. As unsettling as silverfish may look, they're not dangerous to anything except paper materials in your home.
• Rodents: Some of the most common rodents in Sugar Land include house mice, roof rats, and brown rats. These pests may seem harmless, but they bring disease, parasites, and destruction.
• Spiders: These pests are always unwelcome from the large, intimidating wolf spider to the venomous black widow spider. Sugar Land is home to mostly harmless spiders, with the exception of the black widow and brown recluse spiders.
• Termites: Not only can termites cause tons of damage, but their presence can go unnoticed for months or even years in Sugar Land homes. Without professional treatment, termites can end up costing you hundreds or thousands of dollars in property damage over time.

There is no end to the number of pests that can invade Sugar Land homes or the problems they bring with them.

The Many Problems Pest Infestations Can Create In Your Home

While any kind of pest problem can be troubling, some pests can cause issues beyond a simple nuisance. Unfortunately, many pests can contaminate food, damage property, and even spread disease or otherwise compromise your health.

Pests such as cockroaches, flies, and some species of ants can contaminate food and surfaces with disease-causing bacteria. Rodents are also capable of contaminating food and spreading diseases such as hantavirus, tularemia, and rat-bite fever.

Other pests, like fleas and bed bugs, bite humans. Fleas can transmit diseases to both pets and people. Although bed bugs are not vectors of disease, they leave itchy bites and can affect your sleep. Some spiders also bite, and in the case of the black widow and the brown recluse, this can cause serious symptoms.

Pests like bees, wasps, fire ants, and scorpions are all known to sting. Stinging insects like bees and wasps will sting if disturbed or threatened. This is painful for anyone, but is particularly serious for those with an allergy to bee and wasp venom. Fire ants can be aggressive and won’t hesitate to sting if you accidentally disturb their mound nest. Scorpions also pack a mean sting and can cause allergic reactions in people sensitive to their venom.

Another issue with pests is the risk of property damage. Termites are notorious for causing expensive damage to wooden structures. Rats and mice can also damage your home by gnawing on drywall, pipes, wiring, and other materials. When rodents chew on electrical wires, this can potentially start a fire.

Regardless of which pest you're dealing with, you can expect problems – whether it's the risk of disease, property damage, or even just becoming a time-consuming nuisance.

The Hassles With Do-It-Yourself Pest Control

Homeowners may think they can tackle residential pest control in Sugar Land on their own, but DIY solutions rarely work out. With many pests, including bed bugs, ants, cockroaches, termites, and more, you need to eliminate the entire infestation to get rid of the problem.

Most over-the-counter sprays and baits can eliminate some of your pests, but they rarely kill off the entire infestation. Any survivors that withstand your DIY treatments will just continue reproducing, and within a few months, you'll be back where you started.

Even if you're trying to use home remedies to get rid of pests, not all DIY or home remedies even work. For instance, placing your furniture in the sun is a home remedy for getting rid of termites, but this does not work.

Along with working with professionals to find the right treatment plan for you, there are steps you can take to deter pests. While there are specific prevention tips for each pest, here are some general guidelines you can follow to prevent pests from getting inside your Sugar Land home:

• Make sure you're storing food properly and keeping any leftovers, pet food, or even bird food in plastic containers or sealed packaging.
• Keep a tight lid on your indoor and outdoor garbage cans and empty them regularly.
• Use caulk and other rodent-proof materials like steel wool to block off tiny cracks and crevices around entrances and your foundation.
• If there's a gap under your door or windows, use weatherstripping to block it.
• Deal with excess clutter lying around your home, like cardboard boxes, stacks of newspaper, and other debris.
• Keep firewood at least twenty feet away from your home if possible.
• Clear yard debris from your home and inspect any items before bringing them inside.
• If you're purchasing used or secondhand furniture, make sure you inspect it for bed bugs and termites before bringing it inside.

If you're looking for more specific ways to prevent certain pests, contact the pros at All-Safe Pest & Termite to learn more.

The Stress-Free Way To Your Pest-Free Home In Sugar Land

While you can use the general pest prevention tips above, you'll need residential pest services from All-Safe Pest & Termite if you're already dealing with an infestation. Any pest, from bed bugs to cockroaches or termites, can cause big problems in your house and needs to be dealt with as soon as possible.

With years of experience serving Sugar Land and surrounding areas, we've dealt with pest infestations of every size. If you're seeing signs of a pest problem around your home, there's only one thing to do – call us today at All-Safe Pest & Termite to learn more about how our residential pest control company can help you.