DC Pest Control: Pests and How to Fight Them How to Fight Pests DC pest control companies have to deal with a high volume of pests. Shockingly, many pest species in the DC area infest human habitations, making it difficult to live there, as wells as unpleasant and unsafe. This guide focuses on three of the most common causes of DC pest control calls. An infestation of any kind can become dangerous. As a result, you are forced to call in the professionals. However, you can prevent most of these at home as the first line of defense. Ants There are several species of ants in the DC area, and it’s difficult to get rid of most of them. Once they’re in a home’s soil or landscaping, they form colonies that contain tens of thousands of members. Ants come into your home searching for food, and it can be challenging to find out where they’re coming from or drive them out. Your first line of defense against ants is cleanliness. Regularly cleaning with chemical cleaners can wipe out an ant’s trail. This makes it difficult for other ants to follow them. Wipe down any area where you see even one ant ASAP to prevent others from following! Next, use an ant trap or poison bait. You can pick these up at a hardware store. Not every type is effective against every ant, but if you catch the infestation early enough, this can help. If the ant problem persists and you’re not able to fend them off, call a professional DC pest control company. Bed Bugs Bed bugs are difficult to fight on your own. If you see more than one, just call a professional right away. The alternative is washing everything in hot water, from clothes to bedding to carpets and rugs. Steam clean furniture, curtains, and mattresses. You have to heat the water because you have to kill the bed bug eggs. These eggs take a while to hatch, so you may think you’ve gotten rid of all the bed bugs just to discover a new generation biting you a few days later! Mice Mice contaminate everything that they touch. Because they carry diseases, anything that a mouse has come into contact with should be considered unsafe for humans. There are many methods to combat mice on a DIY basis, but they usually fail because they don’t address the root issue: how and why are mice entering your home. The most common advice for dealing with mice is to get a cat. Pet allergies aside, this is far from a perfect solution. Simply owning cats won’t drive mice away, and even a very hungry predator won’t catch them all. You can also purchase traps. These traps can be tricky for some people to use correctly. Emotions (even for a pest) can be unpredictable, and many adults don’t want their children to come across a sprung trap by accident. Mice enter a home looking for food, water, and shelter. Secure your food at all times, especially if you know you have a mouse. Contamination can be dangerous! Next, try to find out what drew the mouse to your home, and how you got in. DC pest control professionals can help you identify the source of your mouse problem. Pests can be a threat to your home’s value and your health. Combat pests as you can, but acknowledge when you may be in over your head. A DC pest control team not only rids you of your pests but finds the reason for the infestation in the first place.