Winter Pest Control: Do you need to worry about insect infestations in the winter?

It is quite common to share your home with bugs and insects during the winter months. During the summer, insects can crawl through very small openings leading into your residence and run amok in your home. Ladybugs, old man bugs, ants, silverfish, beetles, and spiders are common offenders in the Midwest region.

People often ask, “Why worry about bug infestations during the cold winter months? Don’t bugs usually go dormant in the winter?” Many times, finding shelter inside your home will provide insects with the essentials to thrive in the winter months.

Unfortunately, your home is not protected from creepy crawlies, no matter what the weather is outside. If the bugs can make their way into your home, chances are they’ll live, eat, and breed right under your nose. Insects can usually be found inside wall voids, baseboards, storage spaces, and areas where moisture can be found.

One of the most widespread and widely publicized nuisances in recent years is the bed bug. Studies have shown that bed bugs are not as susceptible to cold temperatures as people might think. They are a real year-round threat to homes, hotels, and retail businesses everywhere.

There are a few things that you, as a homeowner, can do to help deflect or prevent a pest problem within your home. Consider practicing preventative maintenance as a smart and typically “green” option to help keep the pest population around your home at a controllable level.

seal your house

Keeping your home sealed is something you can do during the cold winter months anyway, but the benefits besides a warmer home with lower energy bills come in the form of sealing in unwanted pests. Bugs can slip through cracks as small as 1/8-inch, however weather stripping, caulk, and caulk are good ways to reduce the ways bugs can enter your home. If you feel a draft anywhere in your house, that’s a good entry point for bugs to use too. Winter is also a good time to replace torn window screens and install screens over openings in your home, such as vents and chimneys.

keep your garden

Keep things out of your yard and away from your home that can attract pests. If you have a woodpile, try to keep it at least 20 feet from your house to deter termites and carpenter ants. If you have a garden, be sure to remove all leftover produce, so it doesn’t attract insects and rodents when it starts to rot. Leaf piles also attract insects, rodents, and wood roaches. Make sure you don’t let that pile of leaves sit there all winter; it is a condo of bugs.

keep a clean home

Leaving food-covered dishes in the kitchen sink attracts hungry pests and rodents alike. Regular vacuuming can suck up any bugs that may be burrowing in your carpets, baseboards, or under furniture. Store items like clothing and dry goods in airtight plastic containers instead of cardboard boxes where insects can eat or build nests.

Beware of bed bugs

As mentioned above, bed bugs do not hibernate during the winter months. If you know you have a bed bug problem, any time of year is a good time to address the problem. The best course of action is to call in a professional to help you correctly identify the problem and get rid of bed bugs once and for all. Bed bugs are generally a type of pest that you cannot do yourself. To effectively and permanently get rid of the bed bug problem, a trained professional is needed and heat treatments are highly recommended.