Home Maintenance & Cleanliness - Are you rolling out the red carpet for unwanted guests?
So, you’ve got a house or perhaps you just bought one. How many people live in your house...a spouse, kids or perhaps a roommate? Do you have any other residents, besides people?
You may not know this yet, but you could be laying out welcome mats for the most undesirable residents without even knowing it. Ants, wood beetles, spiders, wasps, centipedes and even cockroaches could all gravitate towards your bug motel if you have issues with any of the following. It’s not that we don’t like bugs. They have a purpose too. We just don’t want them living with us. Here are 7 tips and hints for how to keep your home looking new and bug free. 1. Do you have piles of wood leaning up against the walls or foundations of your house. These wood piles create the perfect home for wood beetles and spiders. Once they move in there, they look for warmer places like under the wall plates of your home. Once they get in there, they can gravitate towards the inside of your home. Evict them by not leaving wood or debris against your house. That includes sheets of plywood or drywall as well as cardboard boxes.
2. Old plant pots with soil in them, that are just stacked against your house, beside the stairs or on your sundeck, also make the perfect home for all kinds of bugs. Especially spiders. Empty the pots, wash them out and let them dry well before stacking them back together. While you’re at it, don’t stack them near the house. Put them in the garden shed or along the back fence.
3. Do you have rotten jute mats at your front or back door? Even old rotten rubber mats can make a lovely suite for the most discerning bugs. Get rid of those mats. Keep them as fresh as you would keep the mats on the inside of your home. They may have a quaint phrase on them or a picture of a lovely flower, but if they’re just bringing in “unwanted guests”, go buy a new one that will bring in “wanted guests”.
4. Is the siding on the outside of your house covered with dust or spider webs? Perhaps you even have the remnants of old wasp nests clinging to the soffits. How long have they been there? Would you let your car go unclean for months or years on end? This house is a much bigger investment than your car, so you need to take care of it. Get a pressure washer and clean off that dust and old spider webs. A small electric one will work. If you don’t want to buy one, you can rent them, but Ryobi Tools makes a lovely little electric pressure washer for only $128.00. I just bought one and I love it. The cleaner your house is, the less likely the bugs are going to want to stay. It needs a good wash at least twice a year. Window sills especially or any ledge where dirt and dust can sit. If this dirt gets wet from rain or sprinklers, it acts as a sponge causing the wood or surface below it to stay wet and perhaps begin to rot.
5. Gutters, gutters and more gutters!!! Are yours always full of leaves and debris or dirt and pinecones? You have to keep them clean. This is more of a pain than anything else, but you can do it. If you don’t keep your gutters clean, the rain water can’t get into the downpipes. When that happens, the water backs up and runs over the gutters, usually over the face of your fascia boards. (Those are the boards that the gutters are nailed to.) When that happens, your fascia boards have a tendency to commence rotting. You may also experience some serious soil erosion along the foundation of your house if the gutters overflow and the water runs down the walls. Then you’ll have bigger problems. The easiest solution is obviously to keep the gutters clean. It’s not that big of a job if you have a relatively average to small size home. A bigger home may require the assistance of an exterior cleaning service. If you have a serious ongoing problem with leaves or dirt or moss clumps getting stuck in your gutters, perhaps you should back up and go with a more preventative route such as having gutter screens installed. They will make the gutters work more efficiently by keeping the leaves and debris from plugging the downspouts as well as saving your fascia from the constant barrage of overflowing water.
6. How are your window screens? Do all your windows have screens that are “HOLE” free? Screens with holes are useless as having holes defies the purpose of the screen. Buy new ones, fix the old ones but please use them. My home repair video series will have a lesson on how to repair and replace screens in your home. And check to make sure that the screens fit the windows. If there is still a half inch gap around the screen, they aren’t doing their job. It’s just one less thing to worry about isn’t it? I don’t like mosquitoes, but flies bother me more so I did a complete screen check up on my house this year and I am happy to report that I have no “HOLEY” screens.
7. There are so many issues we could address, but these were just a few. The last item I want to mention at this time is your roof. In my opinion, your roof is the most important part of your house. If the roof is not in good shape and does not provide protection from the elements, how can it possible protect your possessions? Take some time to do an inspection of your roof. Clean off the moss with an approved moss removal product such as Concrobium. Check that your vents are still sealed properly. Does your chimney still look intact? If not, call a mason and have them fix the grouting, or if you’re brave, you can do it yourself. It really isn’t that hard. Sometimes it’s just the height that scares us off. Lastly, how do the shingles look? Do they look healthy and straight or do they look like your hair when you’re transitioning from one hairstyle to the next....in other words – Scary!!! These things can make or break the beautiful appearance of your home. So take care of it.
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