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With Christmas right around the corner, it’s almost time for the end of year ritual of resolutions and personal promises. Common goals are losing weight, relaxing more, giving up alcohol, and keeping a neater, tidier home. Yet, this last commitment doesn’t really have to wait until the beginning of 2017. There are all kinds of wonderful benefits to getting your house in order right here, right now.
One of the biggest is that a clean, ordered home environment deters domestic pests from making an unwelcome entrance. Mice, ants, cockroaches, termites, and other invaders have nowhere to hide or breed without clutter, grime, and dark, dank crevices. So, for the purposes of preventing pests, it is a good idea to get a head start on your, well, new start and put your home in tip top condition today.
These super healthy home habits will help you break out of the cycle of inefficient cleaning and learn how to work smarter, not harder.
1. Wash Your Sheets Every Week
We tend to underestimate how quickly our bedsheets get rather gross. Every time that we toss and turn in them, we’re covering them with dead skin cells. This is perfectly normal and doesn’t mean that you’re any grubbier than anybody else. However, mites and bed bugs love this kind of environment, so you need to be washing the sheets at least once per fortnight and ideally once every week.
2. Always Hang Your Clothes Up
It can be ever so tempting, particularly after a long day at work, to get into the house and leave your clothes where you stand. The problem with this is that they don’t receive proper circulation and, if you want to wear them again, you’ll be walking around in all of the smells from yesterday. Plus, if you ever do get bedbugs or fleas, it’ll be twice as hard to eradicate them if there are a million places to hide.
3. Don’t Forget to Dust in Awkward Places
We’ve all got places that we allow to gather dust and grime, either because we don’t access them often or they’re up high and cleaning requires more effort. Not only does this fill the air with dust, allergens, and dead skin – which you then breathe in – but it makes it easier to miss signs of trouble. A good example is termites. They leave small mounds of waste in areas where they are active, but if you don’t clean thoroughly, they can be missed.
4. Get Rid of Junk and Clutter
Termites are also very fond of clutter and debris. It allows them to hide more easily and cause a lot of damage before you ever notice that there’s a problem. Mice too are very comfortable and happy around things like piled up newspapers and magazines. They take junk material for their nests, which you might later find out are nestled between the walls. Eliminating clutter is a simple and effective form of pest proofing, as it makes sure that there’s nowhere to hide.
5. Never Leave Old Food Around
Domestic pests have the same basic needs as you do. They are looking for a safe place to live and a reliable source of food. If you don’t give them either of these things, they’ll likely leave on their own or bypass your home completely. This is especially true in the case of mice, who are unlikely to stick around if they can’t source anything to eat. So, don’t leave dirty plates or scraps of food in the kitchen or in upstairs rooms.
6. Deep Clean the Fridge Once Per Month
Finally, don’t forget to give your trusty fridge some love every now and again. Just because the door closes and you can’t see inside, it shouldn’t be an out of sight, out of mind situation. Spills are common in this environment and, in order to keep food safe and hygienic, they must be properly cleaned. Try to avoid dropping bits of food underneath the fridge while you cook too, because curious pests will be thrilled.
Why a Clean, Tidy Home Is Your Best Weapon against Pests
Ultimately, there is always a way to deal with pest problems; even very serious ones. You can call in a pest control and removal service and have the whole house treated. However, this is quite the inconvenience and needs to be avoided at all costs. You could have to leave your home for a day or more while the work is carried out. To prevent pests from gaining a foothold, simply keep a healthy and tidy living environment.