Category: Pest Control Tips

You may have been seeing, or even hearing, signs of squirrels in your walls, attic, or basement this winter. Why do these furry little creatures turn in to home invaders in the cold and how do you get rid of them? Environmental Pest Management can help.

Can you hear that? That scampering sound! It sounds like it’s coming from the attic! If this is a scene from your own home, you might want to consider the possibility that you have a squirrel or two, or perhaps even more, taking up residence for the winter in your attic or walls.

No homeowner enjoys dealing with any pest in their home, let alone a squirrel. While you might think that squirrels are cute and harmless, these fuzzy critters can cause damage to your home.

If you have squirrels enjoying a winter vacation in your warm and cozy home, it is time to call Environmental Pest Management to remove the squirrels and prevent them from coming back. Whether removing squirrels from your attic or making recommendations to keep them out, you are in good hands with Environmental Pest Management. You can also trust that our methods are safe for your family, pets, and the planet.

Preventing Squirrels From Coming in the House

Winterizing your home is a great way to jumpstart your critter control plan. Ensuring windows and doors seal properly, and that there are no cracks or holes in the exterior of your home will help prevent any pest from getting inside.

Evaluating your home for any issues that might allow squirrels to infiltrate your home is an excellent way to prepare for winter and prevent all sorts of unwanted pests. If you need help assessing your situation or developing a plan to keep pests out, Environmental Pest Management will be happy to help you protect your home.

Winterizing your home is your best defense against pests entering your home during the cold winter months.

Also Read: Winterizing Your Home Against Rodents

Why Are There Squirrels in The House?

When you discover squirrels in your home, you might wonder how they got there and why. The cold weather prompts squirrels and other small animals to seek warmth and shelter, so your house quickly becomes a haven. If you have not adequately winterized your home for critter control, you may be looking at a squirrely situation.

Squirrels can enter your attic, garage, or other areas of your home through cracks or holes in your walls or loose roofing. They can also come through your chimney. Regardless of how they enter, once they are in, they can cause extensive amounts of damage.

Gnawing on cords, cables, or wires, or shredding insulation, these nuisances can quickly destroy areas of your home, and even create fire hazards. Their feces and urine can also create quite a disgusting mess. They can build nests in your walls and create burrows that can potentially allow other pests to enter your home. All in all, a squirrel infestation will not be an enjoyable experience, and the resulting damage can be very frustrating.

Also Read: Proven Ways to Treat a Centipede Infestation

Squirrel Dangers and Diseases

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention notes a few diseases that squirrels carry, and a few of them are dangerous to humans. These include ringworm, plague, typhus, and tularemia. These diseases are transmitted through bites or another direct contact with infected animals. Though it is possible for squirrels to get rabies, this is very uncommon.

The parasites squirrels carry are also a threat to your family and your home. Squirrels living in or near homes can pass ticks, mites, and fleas onto both you, your children, and your pets. These parasites can carry Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, or the virus that causes a type of encephalitis. If your home has become a haven for squirrels, it may also be a breeding ground for other pests that they carry with them.

Squirrel Removal

If squirrels manage to find a way to get inside your home, you will need to remove them to prevent any damage to your home, potential fire hazards, and any health risks the squirrels may pose to you and your family.

There are some techniques you can try on your own to remove the squirrels, including using live traps or blocking the holes where they enter and exit their nesting area. However, the best way to be sure you effectively remove the squirrels is to enlist the help of professionals.

Environmental Pest Management will assess the situation, identify entry points to the home, and locate squirrel nesting areas. After our assessment, we will make a plan to remove unwanted guests from your home. Letting us handle the exclusion, removal, and prevention keeps you and your family out of harm’s way and reduces the amount of damage the squirrels can cause. And by trusting someone who has experience outwitting these resilient critters, you can have confidence that the squirrels are gone for good.

Let The Professionals Keep You From Going Nuts

Environmental Pest Management is available to help you with your squirrel infestation and prevention with quality service, experience, and a commitment to environmentally safe pest control.

If squirrels are driving you nuts this winter, and you aren’t sure where to turn, let Environmental Pest Management take care of the problem. Contact us today for a free inspection and to learn what we can do to remove pests from your home and keep them from coming back. We will evaluate both the inside and outside of your home and provide you with a customized plan and individualized service.

Leaving squirrel removal to Environmental Pest Management is your safest and smartest option. Keeping your home and family safe is your main priority, and we share that commitment to safety through a pest-free home and non-toxic solutions.

Whether you are dealing with a squirrel invasion or any other type of pests, such as spiders, rodents, bees, or termites, we are prepared to handle all of your critter control needs.

Don’t go nuts this winter, leave the squirrels to us and let us keep your home pest-free.

The cold winter months turn bugs in to master home invaders. We put together a guide to all the ways these pests may creep in to your homes.

It’s getting cold outside, which means bugs are trying to get inside. Your house is warm and dry – everything that they can’t find outside.

If you already have noticed bugs inside, a professional pest control service like Environmental Pest Management can ensure the bugs are taken care of and make sure they don’t find their way back.

So, how do bugs get into your house? And what do you do once they have found their way into your home? Here at Environmental Pest Management, we’ve developed some helpful hints to keep bugs outside or to get them back out if they are already in your home.

What Bugs To Look For?

While many bugs live in the area, the most common bugs people deal with in winter are Indian Meal Moths and Carpet Beetles. Both of these bugs are annoying, but leave different signs of their presence.

Indian Meal Moths are commonly found in kitchens and pantries. These moths feed on grain and cereal products. They love to hang out in pantries more than any other bugs found on stored food. Indian Meal Moths cause most of the food industry’s pest problems.

Carpet Beetles, on the other hand, prefer to eat food that is animal-based, such as materials like silk and leather. They also commonly eat wool, fur, and hair. Because of their food preferences, they like carpets, furniture, pillows, blankets, and clothing. Typically, Carpet Beetles are not attracted to synthetic materials, unless there is oil, food, or sweat on them.

Carpet Beetles can survive inside or outside. But females prefer to lay their eggs where there is easy access to a food source. These nests are commonly inside.

Both Indian Meal Moths and Carpet Beetles can enter homes through open doors or windows. They can also be carried in unintentionally with plants, packages, or groceries.

Also Read: Proven Ways to Treat a Centipede Infestation

Where to Look for Bugs

Because Indian Meal Moths prefer to eat grains typically stored in cabinets or pantries, that is the first place to look for them. You will see webs near their food source. However, their nests will be in a more remote area. More importantly, they are nocturnal, meaning you will only see them at night. They fly in a zig-zag motion. They are tiny with a wingspan of only a quarter-inch.

Carpet Beetles are exceptionally hard to notice because of where and how they like to feed. Both mature and immature beetles prefer to eat in the dark, in areas that go undisturbed for more extended periods, such as under furniture or in the back of closets. Often, it is hard to identify a population until it has grown large and become difficult to eradicate.

How to Winterize Your Home

The first step to preventing bugs from entering your home this winter is to seal all the openings bugs might use. Any opening a pest sees whether it is a crack, crevice, or opening so small you think it won’t matter, can be an opportunity for a critter to crawl inside your home.

Examine doors and windows first. Check them carefully and replace weatherstripping that might have degraded over the year. Adjust doors and windows until there is a tight fit.

Find each location where utility lines enter your house, whether gas, water, phone, or others. Ensure there are no holes or gaps at these points. Any holes in these areas will undoubtedly attract pests because of the warmth that will be escaping. A good can of spray foam insulation or a caulking gun with waterproof caulk will be your friend.

Next, check for cracks in your ceilings. Flying bugs aren’t the only pests that can get in through the roof. Rodents and crawling bugs have been known to climb the wall to find a way to a warm spot. Either turn off the lights and look for light coming through a crack or light a candle and look for where the smoke is drafting. Use high-quality caulk, or other durable material, to seal these cracks.

Also Read: Should Carpenter Ants Be On Your Radar This Spring?

You can purchase screens for your chimney or wood stove from local hardware stores. Look for a sturdy screen that will not be easily bitten through. Pests love to use these large openings for entry into a warm, winter paradise.

Take steps to ensure there are no good habitats for pests near your home. Store firewood a safe distance from your house, preferably 20 feet. Clear away all piles of rocks, shrubbery, or debris near your home. You don’t want anything that could be a decent shelter for rodents or bugs close to your home.

Keeping your kitchen clean is a must to keep bugs out. If pests have easy access to food, they will do whatever they can to get inside. Keep your counters, stove, fridge, and floor clear of spilled food and crumbs. In particular, keep your drain clean by pouring a bleach solution down the drain every week. Keep food in well-sealed packaging and off the floor.

Excess moisture is also a draw for pests to enter your home. Ensure that areas like your attic, basement, or garage have no leaking pipes and no gaps where moisture can enter. Consider investing in TAP Insulation, a thermal, acoustical, pest control product made of recycled paper that helps keep your home pest-free.

What to do if You Find Bugs?

If you have found bugs or other pests into your house already, don’t fear! Environmental Pest Management is here to help. We have the experience you need at the prices you want. Our friendly staff wants to solve your pest problems in a safe way that lasts.

At Environmental Pest Management, we will safely remove bugs from your home in an environmentally safe and wallet-friendly way. We will locate and identify the bugs, find out how they got into your home and then safely remove them. You won’t have to see another Indian Meal Moth or Carpet Beetle this winter!

A real Christmas tree really does bring the holiday spirit in to your home, but what else does it bring?

Christmas is here again, which means getting out all of your festive decorations and trimming the tree. The holiday season brings cheer, family time, gifts, and traditions. The one thing you hope it doesn’t bring is unwelcome insects and pests.

Bringing the Christmas tree into your home adds a wonderful scent, festive decor, and the holiday spirit. Along with all of these fantastic things, it’s also possible that insects and pests stow away on your tree and end up moving in. As soon as these creepy-crawly bugs come into your toasty warm home, they get the urge to start moving around and leave the tree for your living room.

If you are worried about what kind of pests might be hiding in your tree, you can take steps to prevent them from coming in. We’ve compiled some tips to protect your home from outside critters, or, if you need assistance from the experts, Environmental Pest Management can help take care of all of your pest prevention needs.

Take a look at these steps to keep your home insect-free during the holidays.

Which Bugs To Look For

Are you wondering which pests might be creeping around in your Christmas tree? Spiders, beetles, sawflies, aphids, and mites are some of the most common.

Praying Mantises might be fun to find when you’re exploring outside and come across one in nature, but discovering one in your home after they’ve leaped off your tree may not be as pleasant. Look for these large insects or their egg masses in your tree before bringing it inside.

Some people consider the praying mantis to be good luck, or to mean that angels are watching over you. Lucky you for finding it, but perhaps you can keep the blessing outside.

It may be harder to spot aphids on your tree. Unlike the praying mantis, they are tiny, only about ⅛” long. What do aphids look like? Depending on the variety, they can be brown, grey, white, green, or yellow. They are pear-shaped and can be with or without wings. Also unlike praying mantises, aphids are rarely alone. If you spot one, there are very likely others.

Spiders and mites can be hiding in your holiday tree. Mites look like small red or brown dots. If there are mites or aphids, the tree might also attract another unwelcome critter: spiders. To keep spiders away from your home after you bring your tree in, use the steps below or contact Environmental Pest Management to create a plan.

Also Read: Should Carpenter Ants Be On Your Radar This Spring?

Check Your Tree Out

When searching for the perfect tree, choose one that is a vibrant green and appears healthy. Avoid trees with brown branches. No one wants a half-dead tree in their home (which can be a fire hazard), but it could also be a sign of bug infestation.

Once you pick your tree, check under the branches and around the trunk, looking for evidence of pests. Egg sacs, webs, nests, and insects themselves might be a red flag that bugs are hiding out in your tree. Prune away any branches that show these signs.

Shake Your Tree!

If you purchase your tree from a Christmas Tree farm, odds are they have one of the mechanical shakers to shake all of the dead needles and bugs off of the trees. Don’t skip this helpful service!  Let them shake your Christmas tree free of any pests and brown needles.

If you don’t purchase your tree from a tree farm, you can do the shaking yourself by hand. Vigorously shake the tree before you bring it in the house. Shaking the tree will help loosen and remove any pests before it enters your home.

Also Read: Squirrels in Your Home Driving You Nuts This Winter?

Dust Your Tree

No one wants to spray nasty chemicals all over their natural and beautiful Christmas tree. A healthy alternative is to use diatomaceous earth to dust over your tree. This all-natural bug-repellent will effectively and safely keep bugs out of your tree. It won’t leave any scent behind, and it won’t make your tree flammable like aerosol spray repellents. Do this outside, of course.

Vacuum

Once you get your tree set up inside your house, vacuum around it to catch any bugs that might have survived the shaking and dusting. This process will get rid of any stragglers, and keep them from taking up residence in your home.

Preparation is Key

Winterizing your home against pests is an excellent start to keeping spiders and insects away before you even bring the tree home. Closing any gaps around doors or windows, repairing cracks, and treating shrubs and bushes in your yard near your house will prevent bugs from coming inside.

If you have already put the time in to guard against insects and pests and have taken the above precautions with your Christmas tree, you’re likely in good shape for a pest-free holiday. If you are still worrying about insects invading your holiday, consider consulting the experts at Environmental Pest Management.

Rely On The Experts

Christmas time should be about enjoying the decorations, loved ones, and excitement, not worrying about pests moving in with your Christmas tree. Following these steps to keep bugs off of your tree will help you enjoy the Christmas season without the mess and stress of invasive insects.

Worrying about pests in your home can be overwhelming. If you aren’t sure how to keep spiders away or prevent other insects from taking up residence in your home, don’t stress. Contact Environmental Pest Management, and we’ll be right out to provide a free inspection.

After inspecting your home, we’ll develop a customized plan for your home, based on your budget, needs, and unique pest issues. Our plans focus on non-chemical methods and the most environmentally safe products to keep your family safe. And if we find any critters mooching off your holiday decor, we’ll remove them right away.

You’ll appreciate the exceptional service, as well as a pest-free home!

Centipedes swarm in to homes during the winter months looking for warmer places to live.

Centipedes, you’ve seen them — their hundreds of legs wiggling as it winds its way along. While they may look like some creature from a science fiction movie, the most common centipede, also known as the “House Centipede,” actually have 30 legs or 15 sets of legs.

These creepy-crawly critters find their way into homes as the weather grows colder during the winter months. Our team of Certified Technicians at Environmental Pest Management can help eliminate any centipede infestation with a simple phone call.

Centipedes originally came from warmer, more humid, tropical environments in other parts of the world. When the weather starts turning cold, as it does in Minnesota in winter, they seek out warmer, more damp places inside homes, buildings, and other structures.

These critters are most likely found in darker places with higher levels of humidity, such as basements, garages, utility rooms, crawl spaces, under sinks, under floorboards, or inside walls where moisture may gather. Centipedes are invertebrate arthropods and nocturnal hunters. They use their keen sense of sight along with smell and vibration to detect their prey.

So what do centipedes like to eat? They eat other common household pests such as bed bugs, silverfish, termites, cockroaches, spiders, and other insects. While centipedes can be natural pest-removers, it can be a double-edged sword since centipedes in your house is usually a sign of other bug infestations.

1. Keep Your Home Pest-FreeSince the house centipede’s diet consists of the most common other household pests, your first line of defense against a centipede infestation is to keep your home free of other bugs. Your professionals at Environmental Pest Management have extensive experience helping homeowners, business owners, and apartment management companies throughout Minnesota live pest-free since 1986. Our success rate and track record speak for themselves.

In addition, it’s always helpful to take steps yourself to keep unwanted pest visits to a minimum between professional treatments. Several of the most important things you can do yourself include:

• Keeping your kitchen and dining room clean and free of food and drink spills.
• Keeping tabletops and counters clear of crumbs.
• Leaving foods left out on tables and counters for prolonged periods without being properly sealed.
• Not letting excess pet food and water sit out between feedings.
• Keeping trash cans, garbage, and compost buckets in the house covered.

2. Seal All Cracks in the Home

Centipedes are, like all critters, trying to find a warm place to live and hunt during the cold months of winter. They will exploit cracks in your home and foundation as a point of entry. You might be surprised where these long, slender creatures can squeeze through and get into your house or apartment.

Thoroughly inspecting your home, inside and out, is a practice that you should get in the habit of doing every fall before winter sets in. Knowing where cracks in houses and apartment buildings are commonly found can be most helpful in this process.

The Certified Technicians at Environmental Pest Management have seen it all over the years and can help walk you through the inspection process. That way, you don’t miss any of the hidden cracks that can allow these critters to breach your home.

Start on the outside of the house from the bottom at the foundation, up to the roof. Cracks can occur along concrete and wooden patios and porches and wherever the home has been extended or additions to the house have been connected to the original structure.

Cracks can also occur under the bottom story flooring and even under the roof in the attic. Properly reseal all cracks with the right materials. Again, it’s a good idea to re-check any sealing work that’s been done each year to make sure the job has remained intact.

Also Read: Proven Ways to Treat a Centipede Infestation

3. Make Sure Windows, Doorways, and Plumbing are Fitted Flush

Just like inspecting for cracks throughout your home, making sure that door sweeps, windows, and screens are in place and fit flush is essential in the fight to keep out centipedes and other pests.

4. Eliminate Damp or Wet Areas Inside the Home

Check dark and seldom-used spaces inside your home and garage to make sure leaks, condensation, and moisture haven’t had a chance to seep in and build-up. Centipedes thrive in dark, damp spots where they’re free to live and hunt without being bothered by humans and other predators.

Some of these spaces can include sheds attached to the home, basements, boiler rooms, and water heater closets, as well as under kitchen, bathroom, and utility room sinks. Check behind washers and dryers in the laundry room as well as crawl spaces behind walls, and the attic.

Have T.A.P. Insulation Professionally Installed In Your HomeT.A.P. Insulation, or Thermal Acoustic Pest control insulation, is an environmentally friendly and permanent solution to pest control. This proprietary insulation is made from recycled paper and acts as both a sound barrier and insulator that can reduce heating and cooling costs in the home up to 30 percent.

Also Read: Natural Bug Repellents For Bug-Free BBQs

Best of all, T.A.P. Insulation is easily installed over your home’s existing insulation and kills centipedes and other pests while remaining harmless to humans. Call your local T.A.P. Insulation provider today at 952.432.2221 to learn more about this amazingly useful product today.

5. Check Potential Hiding Places That You Bring into the Home

Another way centipedes can end up in the home is by hitching a ride on stuff that you bring in from outdoors. Some of the things to double-check when bringing in the house include firewood, used furniture, Christmas trees, boxes from a storage unit, as well as camping equipment that you’ve used outdoors.

Call us at 952.432.2221 or contact Environmental Pest Management online today to keep your home pest and centipede-free!

Mice, rats, chipmunks, and squirrels invading your home?

As winter approaches, you begin taking the necessary steps to protect your home. Cold weather, rain, and snow can bring several threats to your house and yard. Between freezing hoses and water lines, drafty windows and doors, and protecting against potential flooding, you have a lot to accomplish as winter sets in.

Aside from the necessary tasks to protect your home against the severe weather winter brings, have you taken time to guard your home against rodents? Rodents are often looking for a warm place to hang out for the winter, and your house may be the one they are looking for!

The winter weather can drive unwanted pests into your home as they look for a reprieve from the harsh elements. House mice, rats, and other rodents can enter your home and get cozy, much to your dismay.

Taking care to winterize your home against rodents can help keep them outside where they belong. If you are looking for some ideas beyond this list, contact Environmental Pest Management to inquire about their services.

Protect Your Home

There are several ways to guard your home against unwanted pests, such as house mice and rats. Being proactive can help prevent rat nests, infestations, or even the occasional visitor passing through. No one wants to see mice scurrying through their living room, hear gnawing sounds coming from their walls, or find droppings in their cabinets and drawers. Follow these simple steps to prevent rodents in your home this winter.

Keep a Clean House

While rodents can enter even the cleanest of homes, if you keep your house clean, they will be less likely to come in and stay. Package all of your food in sealable containers to keep food sources unavailable for your unwanted guests.

Clean up food-related messes right away to avoid leaving crumbs and scraps for rodents to find — even under your stove or your refrigerator. Keeping your house free from messes, especially food-related messes, will keep rodents at bay.

Also Read: 3 Proven Ways to Get Rid of Mice Fast

Seal the Entrances

Ensuring your doors and windows are sealed will keep your home warmer and also prevent rodents from being able to enter. Aside from doors and windows, check your home for any cracks in the walls, floors, or siding. If you can identify and repair them, you will be ready when winter sets in.

Eliminate Water Sources

Rodents need water to survive, and without it, your home won’t be as comfortable to them. If you have any leaks in your home, be sure to repair them.

Check your home for leaking pipes, roof, or gutters. Fixing these areas will reduce standing water in, or around, your home that could be a source of water for these critters.

Insulate Your Home with T.A.P.

If you are looking for another way to prevent unwanted pests this winter, T.A.P. Pest Control Insulation is an effective and environmentally conscientious way to do so. Not only is this insulation thermally and acoustically superior to other types of insulation, but it also provides a long-term approach to preventing unwanted insects and rodents.

T.A.P. Pest Control Insulation is blown on top of existing insulation in your home, filling in empty spaces. Made from recycled paper, it will help keep your home warmer or cooler as the season dictates. This environmentally-friendly product is an efficient way to prevent pests and insulate your home at the same time.

Also Read: The Best Ways to Get Rid of Mice this Spring

Insulating with T.A.P. is a great way to prevent house mice, rats, and countless other insects and pests. The environmentally-safe, EPA-registered insulation will give you peace of mind knowing it is a safe pest-control option.

Know The Signs

If perhaps you got a late start winterizing your home and you are worried about rodents, look for signs they may be inside your home. Have you seen mouse droppings or gnaw marks in your home? Odor, footprints, and damaged items can also be signs that rodents are using your house as their home.

If house mice are living inside, or you discover a rat nest, don’t panic. You can take steps to remove them from your home, and still winterize to prevent further invasion.

Traps and Baits

Traps or bait can be an effective way to eliminate rodents from your home. However, when using these products, safety is a vital consideration. If you have kids or pets, be very cautious about where you place traps, and whether or not you want to use poison of any type.

Keeping household members and pets safe while catching these unwanted pests is a priority, so ensure that the traps are out of reach of children or pets, and safely contain the bait in a bait station.

Call the Professionals

If winterizing your house seems like a daunting task, or you’re already dealing with mice in your home, it may be time to consult the professionals. Environmental Pest Management will create a personalized plan for your home that’s safe, effective, and environmentally conscientious.

Also Read: What’s The Best Method of Pest Control for Apartments?

Environmental Pest Management will focus on the outside of your home and how to prevent pests from entering. They will also create a safe plan for the interior of your home regarding proper placement of traps and how to monitor them.

T.A.P. Pest Control Insulation is also one of their specialties. Not only will they install the insulation, but they can also remove any soiled or damaged insulation. They will then sanitize your attic before laying the new T.A.P. insulation for you.

Stop worrying about how you’ll handle any unwanted pests this winter, and contact Environmental Pest Management for a free inspection today. They will assess your home and put together the right plan for you, always with safety and environmentally friendly practices in mind.

You’ll love the peace of mind that comes with their services, and appreciate their commitment to the environment.