Destroy Pests Without Hurting Yourself, Family, Or Home
There are a lot of ways to get rid of pests. Some are going to be better than others. Calvin And Hobbes by Bill Watterson illustrate a good point to consider here. In one cartoon, either Calvin or Hobbes notices a mosquito on the other’s head, then whacks them hard with a blunt instrument, and it’s hilarious. This is one way to get a bug! But is it the best?
You don’t want to smash a mosquito with a sledgehammer when there are better options. Likewise, you don’t want to fumigate the house, infusing the whole property with terrible chemicals, just because you’ve got a pest issue. There are better ways to go about getting rid of unwanted vermin which are natural, organic, and safe. We’ll explore four of them here.
1. Spiders Don’t Like Mint Or Vinegar
Mint and vinegar should be spread across doorways to catch roaming spiders in the night. They really hate mint, and they really hate vinegar. Here’s the thing: you may not like vinegar either. Mint—strong, strong mint—is a great spider-deterrent. Many arachnids hunt at night, even if they’ve got webs. You might spray doorways with mint, or put down the sticky paper.
2. Diatomaceous Earth Kills Flies, Ticks, And Bees
Diatoms are basically fossilized microorganisms like plankton or algae. For whatever reason, petrified diatoms are toxic to flies and ticks. However they’ll kill bees, too; and you don’t want that!Bees make honey, and everybody loves honey. So be careful how you use diatomaceous earth as a means of killing insects. It might be best to seek consultation from pest control groups.
3. Rats And Mice Hate Steel Wool, And Also: Cats
Steel wool is to rats and mice what nails on a chalkboard are to humans. Many rodents use their big front teeth to chew through things. They’ll chew and dig simultaneously. When they come against steel wool, it’s so repugnant they’ll seek other avenues of entry, or leave entirely. Plug up mouse holes with steel wool, then get a cat to keep the rodents away.
4. Temperature Control: Hot And Cold Make Bedbugs Die
At between 117 and 122 degrees Fahrenheit, bed bugs die. At 0 degrees Fahrenheit, they also die. If you live in Wyoming, Montana, the Dakotas, or Minnesota, and you get bed bugs, go on vacation for a week, turn off the water, and let the house freeze solid in January when things get below zero.
Obviously this isn’t feasible for many, so on the other side of the temperature spectrum, steam heat options can do the trick—provided you can get the temperature above 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
Pest Free Organically
For some further imagination stimulation, here you can find a lot of ideas pertaining to natural pest control solutions. Going the natural route is always to be recommended over going the synthetic, chemical route.
Determine what you’ve got available, and what sort of pests you’re dealing with, then use the appropriate solution. You don’t have to put yourself or your home in danger through chemical means of destroying pests.