Pest Control

How Do I Prepare My House For Pest Control?

Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

How do I prepare my house for pest control? The answer is not simple. You have to follow a few steps in order to prepare. In this article I am trying to provide all the steps you need to follow when preparing for pest control.  

How Do I Prepare My House For Pest Control

How do I prepare my house for pest control?

It is very easy to prepare your house or business premises  for pest control treatment. However,  it would be a little time consuming. Further  you need to ensure that you do several important things when preparing your house for pest control so that the pest control professionals  can treat your affected area more effectively. 

Further it makes it easy for the pest control professional to conduct the treatments. I suggest speaking  to the pest control professionals before you let them start the proceedings. First, you need to keep your premises neat , tidy and well cleaned. 

Ideally you need to scrub the floors well and vacuum the carpets and rugs as well. Further I recommend using a detergent when you scrub and mop the floors. 

That will make sure that there will be no eggs or any other food sources left there. Further you should remove the bag  from the vacuum cleaner and check the sealing of it. Once you vacuum , it would make the pests flee their habitats as they would find it difficult to find the food sources. 

It would make it much easier for the pest control professionals to treat those.

To briefly explain the other things you need to practice, you should seal linen clothing in bags, remove the opened food items, cover the aquariums , cages,  move the furniture etc. Besides, you need to ensure that pest control professionals can access any area in the house easily, be it  under your house, roof and so on. 

Consequently, it would allow you to have  successful results at the end. Don’t forget to close all the windows before they start the proceedings. Further I suggest you be ready in case the requirement comes to leave the house for about four hours.

Where does pest control spray in the house?

If you live in an apartment house, technicians will spray outside the house. Usually technicians can do spraying  within one days’ time if it is an apartment. 

Further they can spray the foundation around the doors so that it would make it less viable for the bugs to invade your space. Further you could spray outside the porch or even in your desks. You may also spray them inside your house as well. 

However, when you do that, you need to shut all the doors and then spray. You can target all affected areas here. On the other hand, if you wish to get back home right after you spray it, you could do that as well. However, it depends on the verdict of the pest control professional.

Do I need to move furniture for pest control?

Usually, the pest control process will not damage the furniture in your space. As such it is not mandatory to  move the furniture in and out from the house. Usually, the treatment would take place on the furniture edges. Hence it would not damage your couch or your bookcase. 

See also  Ants In Rice | How To Chase Them? (It's Easy!)

However, if you are dealing with a termite infestation, I recommend moving your furniture out from your house. Further you need to remove the indoor plants also from the premises. Besides, keep in mind to take  the plastic sealed mattresses out of their bags. 

Moreover, I recommend moving out the pets  from the house so that they will be safe. Further keep the pets’ toys also away from the premises. In addition to that you need to keep the caged pets away also when you conduct the pest control. If not, you can wrap a towel on their cages so that they will be safe.

Does fumigation affect electronics?

Fumigation may damage the electronics such as light emitting diodes, optical films in computer displays etc. In fact, if the pests control professionals use pest control which consists of methyl bromide and methyl iodide it would badly affect the electronic equipment.  

So, if you are wondering whether you need to remove the electronic items, I would say it would be safer if you do so. Moreover, you may also turn off all the electronic equipment and turn them on once everything  is complete. However, refrain from removing the clearance notice in the  gas meter as it will be the gas company which will turn it on behalf of you.

How Do I Prepare My House For Pest Control

Should you bag clothes for fumigation?

You do not need to bag  your clothes once you do the fumigation. Usually, fumigation will not make any bad impact on clothing such as bedding, towels etc. Hence you do not need to place them in any special bags. With that being said, I suggest you bag and seal the linen clothes before conducting the fumigation as it would be safer.

Does fumigation affect food?

I would say yes fumigation would affect food in your house. However, it is also possible to  keep the food in your house during a fumigation if you follow the right pest control process. 

Further if the food items are properly sealed in containers, it is very unlikely that you will have to remove them. In fact,  it will not create any adverse effects if you happen to eat the food contaminated from fumigation.  

Do I need to wash all my dishes after fumigation?

If you are using the right fumigation type, you do not need to wash the dishes after you conduct the fumigation. However, I recommend cleaning the house right after you conduct the fumigation as then it  would allow you to remove the dead pests too. 

Further once this is complete, you need to open the doors so that it would provide a good aeration to the house.

What should be bagged during fumigation?

I recommend bagging substance  such as milk, butter sour cream , cot tage cheese. Literally if you have placed anything in resealable containers need to be bagged. Further I suggest placing eggs, fruits, vegetables also to be bagged. 

See also  Can Ants Damage PCs ? ( Unfortunately, Yes )

Besides you need to place items such as feeds, drugs, tobacco products and medicines which are not sealed in glass bottles into bags. Further if you have kept them in containers which are not airtight sealed, best would be to bag them as well. 

If you have spices which do not have the original manufacturer’s airtight seal intact, you should consider putting them into bags. If there are canned foods which are not sealed properly , you need to bag  those items as well.

What can be left in the house during fumigation?

Despite the fact that you need to remove so many items before a fumigation, you may keep items such as sealed metal containers, sealed glass containers, sealed protective bags, sealed  liquor, or wine bottles in your home. 

Consider that you have canned goods in well-sealed metal containers, you may keep them in your space during a fumigation process. It is not necessary to place them in the bags. On the other hand, if you have placed any substance in a sealed glass container you may also keep them in the house while the fumigation process takes place. 

For example, food items such as apple sauce, pasta sauce pickles come in these types of glass containers, and you can keep them in the house without any hassle. In addition to that if you had kept food, drink in sealed protective bags, you may also keep them in the house. 

However best recommended would be to keep them double bagged in those protective bags. On the other hand, if there are new  cereal boxes, you need to put them into these bags and they could be left in the house. Finally, if there are new liquor bottles or wine bottles they should also be kept inside while the fumigation takes place.

Can I leave my refrigerator on during fumigation?

It would depend on the product you have and on whether you have used it before. However, I recommend turning off the refrigerator as if there are any cracks,  pests can hide at those places and that will not allow you to get the best results of the fumigation process. 

However, if you wish to keep it turned on, you need to remove open packages or properly pack them. If you wish to turn off the refrigerator , you can take the cold products out and place them in another refrigerator and keep the other refrigerator turned off.

Can you leave food in the fridge during fumigation?

Leaving the food in the fridge during fumigation depends on the fact that whether you have used it before. However, if there are cold products, you can take them  out of the refrigerator and place them in another refrigerator and keep them away from the area where you are going to fumigate. 

Further if there are any opened items in the refrigerator, chances are that fumigants could reach them. Hence , if you have any opened item, either you need to package them properly or remove them from the refrigerator be it any kind of food.

See also  Do Dragonflies Eat Mosquitoes? | 9 Useful Facts |
How Do I Prepare My House For Pest Control

Can you drink bottled water after fumigation?

You can drink bottled water or any other beverage after fumigation. In fact, they are safe for consumption as they would be properly sealed.     

How do you prepare a kitchen for fumigation?

  • First of all, you should open all your cabinet and closet doors as well as the kitchen drawers. 
  • Next take out all the substances you have placed in those and if there are any opened food items discard them. 
  • Next remove the dishes, flatware, kitchen appliances  and other utensils which you used for cooking. Further before you remove them check whether there are any bugs there. 
  • Then leaves the cabinet and closet doors open. However, if you wish to you can clean the empty drawers before you fumigate them.
  • Next you may remove the opened food items in the refrigerator. Further if there are any cold products you may take them out and place them in some other refrigerator.  
  • Next, if you have placed any plants in your kitchen, you need to remove them as well. Not only that but also, you need to remove the pet bowls and pet food too.

Don’t forget to close all the doors which are opening to outside. If you have any air heating system, you need to shut the air supply and cover the openings with a plastic wrap. 

Moreover, you need to temporarily disconnect and remove the kitchen smoke alarms too. Turn off all the electric appliances too. if you do it on your own, it would take about three hours whereas if you get it done from a professional it would take about three days approximately depending on the pest infestation.

Once the fumigation process finishes, you need to open the doors which are opening to outside. Provide a proper aeration for the treated kitchen for about 30 mints time. After that you can turn on the electric appliances and bring back the food stuff.

Can I be home during pest control?

Yes you can stay home as it is completely safe for you to do so.

Majority of pest control professionals are using natural products. That will keep both you and your loved ones safe.

Are windows left open during fumigation?

I recommend keeping the windows open during fumigation as then it will provide a good aeration.

When should you do pest control at home?

I recommend doing pest control at home once every four months a year or once every two to three months.

Pest control preparation sheet.

It is a document prepared by the pest control professional team to inform you about the procedure and what to do before fumigation. This fact sheet may be different from company to company.

Conclusion

To conclude,  I hope now you are well equipped with the necessary knowledge when you have  to prepare your house for pest control. 

Credit to : MacLeod Pest Control

Read Next : Do Bugs Hate Cold Rooms ? | Correct Answer |

I'm Dr. Chamika and I'm a Researcher in Water quality, Aquatic organisms, and Environmental chemistry. Our highly qualified team is trying to educate you in various aspects of the day to day life in many ways. Their mission is to help others to enjoy their life to the fullest.