They’re tiny and look harmless. Yet, they can spread diseases and infections and cause property damage. We’re talking about pests. If you’re a homeowner, you may have already felt the frustration of dealing with the unwanted presence of bugs, ants, rodents, cockroaches, mosquitos, and other types of pests. Eliminating a pest infestation can be a daunting task. But letting pests thrive in your living spaces can pose serious health risks.
Read on to discover more about the danger of pest infestations and learn how to protect your home.
Pest Infestations Cause Diseases and Allergies
If you notice a large number of insects or small animals in your home, you may be dealing with a pest infestation. And a pest infestation can pose serious health risks to you, your family, and your pets. For example, cockroaches can cause allergies, trigger asthma attacks, and contaminate food. In various regions, mosquitoes carry diseases such as Zika, malaria, West Nile encephalitis, yellow fever, and dengue fever. Ticks can transmit Lyme disease and cause other types of infections. Rodent-borne illnesses are also common. Moreover, any pest that reaches your food can contaminate it, making it unsafe for human consumption. These are just a few examples of the dangers that pests pose to human health. Thus, allowing pests to thrive in your home can have severe repercussions.
Pest Infestations Can Damage Your Property
A pest infestation can also cause house damage. It may seem difficult to believe that insects and tiny animals can cause structural damage to your home, but it happens very often. For example, insects can damage wood structures. By the time you discover that your wood flooring, furniture or ceiling have been invaded, it may be already too late. If your home is made of wood, you may have to worry about termites, which feed on the cellulose in the wood. Rodents often chew electrical wires, which can cause a short that starts a fire. They also chew paper and can thus destroy valuable documents or family photos. Repairing the damage caused by pests such as termites or rodents can cost thousands of dollars.
How to Protect Your Home
Preventing pests from entering your home in the first place is the best long-term strategy for keeping your environment clean and safe. Fix nets to your windows and doors, seal all small holes and cracks in your foundation, walls, and around windows. Declutter your garage and attic. Keep your living spaces dry because pests thrive in humid and damp spots.
Once pests find a way into your home, it can be difficult to keep their numbers under control. However, if you let them spread, you expose yourself, your family, and your home to the risks presented above. If you already have a pest infestation, it’s crucial to take immediate action. The best approach to this problem is to use the help of pest control experts. At ngpest.com, you will find a team of professionals who can eliminate all types of pests from your home, no matter where your unwanted guests are hiding.
Thank you so much for stressing how much property damage a pest infestation can cause. Since our new multi-family house is quite large and has a lot of wooden fixtures, I can see this being an issue no matter how small the infestation is. I’ll call up a pest control expert so we can do some preventive measures as early as now.