You go to your backyard to enjoy some time outside with your family, maybe enjoying some barbecue together. Or maybe you’ve decided to spend a weekend out in the woods to camp, and the trails are simply calling your name. There’s only one problem, and it’s a little one. But then comes another one. By the time they swarm you, you suddenly have a huge problem!

Where Do Mosquitoes Come From?

Did you know that only female mosquitoes bite? The purpose of this is to gain the nourishment they need to lay eggs. They lay their eggs in standing water, allowing their larva to hatch floating until they emerge as new mosquitoes.

The best way to get rid of mosquitoes at home is to remove all sources of egg-laying. If you have birdbaths, kiddie pools, buckets, clogged drain pipes, and even folded tarps and awnings after rain, dry them quickly. Eggs hatch within 24 to 48 hours, making them a terror if you have many sources of standing water.

How Do I Get Rid of Them at Home?

There are several other options for mosquito control near your home. The first is a surprisingly effective one: if you have a water feature, consider stocking it with minnows and other fish. They love eating mosquito larva!

Another option is to drop a BT tablet into pools (also called mosquito dunks). These chemicals break down mosquito larva before they hatch. Clean your gutters if they are clogged, as collected rainwater is an easily-ignored place where mosquitoes can spawn. You can also avoid overwatering your lawn to stop mosquitoes from hatching right in your grass.

How Do I Get Rid of Them While Camping?

You may have heard that campfire smoke keeps mosquitoes away. This is 100% true, but campfire smoke only drifts so far. Citronella candles are slightly useful, but they only repel insects from a few feet away. The best way to keep mosquitoes away from you personally is to spray yourself with bug repellant, preferably a repellent with 20% DEET or higher.

This potent chemical is harmless to humans but irritating to many different bugs, including mosquitoes. Repellent with 25% DEET can last up to ten hours unless removed with water or sweated away. It should be applied to clothing or any exposed skin. On top of repellant, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants. Be careful applying repellent to children, especially their faces or hands that may enter their mouths.

Safe and Effective Mosquito Control

For an extra layer of protection around your home, call the experts at H2 Pest Control! We use proven mosquito control treatments that get rid of mosquitoes for good, all while keeping you and your family safe. Contact us for a free home inspection and estimate!

1. Research and examine your local area.

While all sorts of pests live in Utah and Salt Lake counties and can threaten your new home, you will probably be surveying your new land anyway. You may as well have a pest control specialist inspect your property as well to ensure nothing can take you by surprise. Some insurance companies offer these types of inspections for free as part of their overall package, but selecting a company that specializes in pest control management like H2 can provide greater assurance that problems will be identified beforehand.

2. Double-check everything you pack with you.

This may seem like a simple and silly thing to check, but you would be surprised at how many families take their pest problems with them when they move. If you have boxes or bags that have sat in the attic or garage for a long time, they may already have ants, spiders, or other creepy crawlies living inside. You may already be on a time crunch to move, but taking the time to inspect every box (especially as you decide what to take and what to throw away) can save you in the long run.

3. Deep clean carpets and other surfaces.

Brand-new carpets and interior surfaces may appear spotless and clean when construction is complete, but you never know what the construction workers might have brought in with them as they worked. Performing a deep clean of your carpets with steam cleaners or hiring a cleaning company to perform one for you can help ensure ants, spiders, and other pests don’t start living beneath your feet.

4. Keep the area clean.

After the construction of your new home is complete, clean up your yard as quickly and thoroughly as possible. This means clearing debris left behind from the build, pruning trees and throwing away green waste, mowing the lawn, and weeding. Obviously this gives critters fewer locations to live, but it can also help you discover where pests might hide in the future.

Building a new home is a great step for your family! Before and after your home’s construction, get in contact with your pest control team at H2 Pest Control in Lehi, Utah. We also serve Eagle Mountain and all surrounding areas in Utah County and southern Salt Lake County. Protect your investment before you even walk through the door. You’ll be glad you did!

Frequent Inspections

Be sure to schedule frequent pest inspections performed by trusted and professional, local pest control experts familiar with the types of pests your property is up against. You may think your home or business is pest-free, but pests can hide in building foundations, roofs, insulation, carpet, cabinets, cracks, window seals, etc. where you’re not always likely to see them. Don’t wait until these pests come to light and you have a major infestation on your hands. Be prepared with proactive pest control strategies to keep pests and bugs out before they ever have the chance to enter.

Our experts at H2 have the experience and knowledge to check the places where various pests like to hide. They can perform regular indoor and outdoor spraying and other pest control methods (rodent poison, wasp traps, mosquito netting) in these areas to thoroughly protect you and your property from uninvited critters.

Keep An Eye Out

Be educated and aware of the signs of various pests. Droppings, chewed belongings, dirt piles, eroded wood, and even skin irritation can be signs of a pest issue. Mice tend to chew things like cardboard and drywall. Skunks and similar animals are seen in these types of newly constructed areas and often burrow beneath houses or in bushes near water sources like creeks. Eroded wood can signal a termite problem, while dirt piles in and outside of the home are a good indication of an ant problem. Skin irritation can be a sign of bed bugs, lice, or fleas often brought into the house by pets.

Be vigilant in keeping an eye out for these kinds of warning signs of pest problems. Remember, it’s easier (and cheaper) to proactively keep out pests than it is to treat them once an infestation has taken hold.

Preventative Measures

It’s easier for pests to infiltrate a dirty home. It’s also easier for you to overlook pests in a dirty home full of clutter and mess. Naturally, pests will be drawn to a home with easily accessible food. Excessive clutter in yards, garages, and homes, also invites pests that find it easier to hide and build homes in such clutter. Pests like rodents, spiders, and ants are more likely to visit your home or business if food is not properly stored and packaged.

Keep a clean home or business to avoid helping nasty pests find their way in. Frequently vacuum carpet and sweep/mop hard floors, taking extra care to get in the corners and under things like cabinets and chairs. Regularly clean and sanitize countertops, dust window seals, and check to ensure that cabinets, pantries, closets, and bathrooms are absent of mold, food crumbs, smelly garbage that may attract pests, dirt, and pet hair.

Avoid excessive clutter such as boxes, outdoor equipment, unsealed food storage, etc. where critters like mice and spiders are more likely to attain residence without your knowing. Keep boxes and storage sealed, against walls, and in cold areas like garages or cold storage as much as possible to avoid warm-blooded pests and bugs.

H2 Will Come to You!

Contact H2 Pest Control in Northern Utah today for experienced local advice, pest control, and extermination services. We’re the friendly and professional experts you can count on to keep your business, home, and family protected from unwanted pests year-round in 2020!

Red Spiders in Utah

If it’s tiny red spiders you’re seeing, they’re most likely clover mites, a close relative of spiders. Clover mites aren’t much larger than the head of a pin and are harmless except for the bright red stain they leave behind when squashed.

However, the terrifying-looking fella with the red body that you saw is very likely the red woodlouse spider, a quite common Utah red spider. The bright red color makes them easy to spot as does their large size compared to other spider species.

The red woodlouse spider is named after its color and prey of choice. This type of spider doesn’t build a web to catch its food, rather it is a nocturnal hunter. The male woodlouse spider measures around 1/3″ in size, while the female measures around 1/2″. Both are easily recognizable by the glossy, deep red hue of their upper bodies. While she doesn’t spin a web, the female woodlouse spider will construct a cocoon to lay her eggs in. She will lay approximately 70 eggs at a time, making early detection and removal of woodlouse spiders crucial to preventing an infestation.

Are Red Woodlouse Spiders Poisonous?

In general, avoiding woodlouse spiders is a good idea. While they are not poisonous, they can deliver a painful bite thanks to their large chelicerae, or jaws. The most common result of a red woodlouse spider bite is an itching sensation around the site of the bite which goes away after an hour or two. You may know this spider from nature documentaries: they are one of the spiders that bite their prey and basically drink their liquified insides. Pretty gross, right?

Not all Utah spiders are dangerous to humans, but what about red spiders? Learn more about the common red woodlouse spider that might have made its way into your home.

How Can I Get Rid of Red Spiders?

Red woodlouse spiders are most often found in basements as they prefer damp, high humidity areas when they set up camp inside a house. You can keep these invaders out of your home by checking for gaps and cracks around the exterior of the house and sealing them up with caulk or some other type of patching material. Make sure there are no damp areas near your house such as wood or leaf piles, mulch, etc.

If you discover that you have an infestation of red spiders in your home, the best course of action is to call an exterminator like those at H2 Pest Control. We can effectively get rid of them for you using a combination of spider control treatments including spider traps and repellent.

Whether they are dangerous or not, no one wants to have a spider infestation in their home or around their family. H2 Pest Control is at your service for Utah pest control in locations such as Lehi and Eagle Mountain, UT. Spider control is not a problem for us. Call or contact us for an appointment with one of our professional exterminators. Keep your family safe and keep your home free of the red woodlouse spider and other creepy-crawly invaders.

While some think that rats and mice are cuddly, cute pets, the dangers of having rodents in your home cannot be understated! Now that the weather is becoming colder, these little critters will look for weaknesses in the exterior of your home and quickly set up camp near a reliable food source. From here, an infestation can quickly spiral out of control, causing all sorts of unforeseen issues and hidden dangers to you, your home, and your family.

Mice have habits such as gnawing on electrical wires, raiding pantries and kitchen cabinets, burrowing into attic insulation, and even shredding paper and cardboard items. With these pervasive problems causing issues that become larger over time, it is important to recognize these dangers to alert local pest control services for rodent control and elimination.

How mice can be a danger to you and your property:

1. Mice can bring disease

Mice have habits that make them the perfect hosts for disease and pathogens that can be extremely damaging to humans. Most of this disease is spread through food contamination and the excrement that they leave as they travel through your walls. Possible diseases that could be contracted are:

• Weil’s disease
• Leptospirosis
• Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
• Murine Typhus
• Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis
• Rabies, Salmonella
• Trichinellosis
• Rickettsialpox
• Tularemia

This list alone should be alarming enough to call in pest control services that specialize in mice removal. Read on to see more of the potential dangers that you can encounter as a result of having mice in your home.

2. Mice can trigger dangerous allergies

Rodents play a major role in triggering dangerous allergies. According to recent studies, the presence of mouse urine triggered an allergic response in at least 35% of homes. Exposures to mouse allergens are a main cause of the development of asthma in both children and adults. These health risks are very real, and you as a homeowner should never attempt to clean up feces yourself; call in an exterminator to administer rodent control.

3. Mice can cause damage to insulation

Mice, like us, are looking for a warm place to nest in the winter. They will burrow into the attic and wall insulation, compromising the heating and cooling ability of your home. Mouse urine and feces can further break down the insulation, rendering it ineffective and causing your heating and cooling bills to spike. If you hear the pitter-patter of little feet in your walls, call in a pest control expert to accurately diagnose and treat your issue.

4. Mice can cause damage to wiring

Lots of home fires can be attributed to faulty or compromised wiring. If your infestation has mice running through your walls, you most likely will eventually have a breakdown of wiring within your walls as well. Wires can overload, short circuit, and cause a fire. Do not attempt to deal with wall invaders yourself; call in an expert to diagnose and repair faulty wiring, keeping you and your family safe from harm.

5. Mice can cause damage to you if they are underfoot

Many a careless fall has resulted from the misplaced foot of an unsuspecting homeowner that happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Nothing is quite so stressful as stepping on these little creatures and having an accident as a result of trying to avoid them. Don’t let this happen to you; before you see telltale signs of an infestation, do what you can to prevent them from overrunning your home.

When it comes to pest control, the proactive solution is the best solution. Avoiding bugs and pests before they ever come to light may seem like an impossible feat, but experts like those at H2 Pest Control have the experience and know-how to make it happen.

Proactive Pest Control

Most people don’t think about pests until they surface and become something of an issue. Generally, it’s not until common pests like fire ants, spiders, and rodents come to light that people take the necessary action to kill off these uninvited critters. But what if you could avoid these pests before they ever become a problem?

Year-Round Pest Defense

Proactive, year-round pest control practices are the best way to completely protect yourself, your family, and your home from unwanted pests. Once you can actually see recurring pests within or around your home, there’s usually already a massive infestation below the surface and on its way. Sprays and treatments that only target these visible pests, aren’t solving the issue at the root of the problem and won’t provide lasting results.

Continually spraying these new intruders that surface is how many pest control companies make their money. They don’t actually identify or solve the cause of the problem, so bugs and pests keep coming and you’ll keep shelling out for spraying services.

Stop Bugs Before They Hatch

So how do we stop this pesky cycle? We proactively avoid pest problems before they have the chance to become larger issues. With year-round pest control procedures, you’ll consistently keep pests at bay and avoid having to deal with them.

Don’t wait until pests and bugs start to become visible in the spring to take action. Kill off bug populations before they even hatch with off-season pest control that disrupts breeding cycles with preventative poisons with delayed effects. Pests track these substances back to their nests, spreading it to others, effectively killing them before they have the chance to lay more eggs.

Save Money, Time, and Pest Encounters

Fighting pest problems on a case-by-case basis will not only be more expensive, but inevitably lead to more hassle and more run-ins with pests. When fighting bugs, simply avoiding them in the first place with preventative practices will save you time, money, and stress. Preventative practices are best achieved with recurring treatments offered year-round to stop bugs from producing or showing up during their peak season.

If you wait to treat bugs and pests after they appear, it means your defenses have been down long enough for them to invade. Year-round pest control treatments create a consistently strong barrier around your property so pests never have the chance to enter.

Don’t Let Your Guard Down

One thing to be aware of is this: if preventative pest control practices are working as they should, you may not see a surplus of pests and therefore think that pest control services are no longer needed. When the maintenance stops and bugs reappear, you’ll have to enlist retroactive pest control services, spraying and killing the bugs that have already produced a sizable enough population to the point of becoming visible.

Utah Year-Round Pest Control

Particularly in Utah, frigid winters may give the impression of safety from bugs. However, pests are only waiting for mildly warmer weather to take effect. Exterminating bug and rodent populations at their most vulnerable is the best way to avoid a spring attack. Spring comes with rain which can sustain huge populations of mosquitoes, insects, snakes, and other pests that thrive in swampy conditions. The summer heat in Utah brings roaches, beetles, ants, and other bugs attracted to dry heat.

The best time to treat pests is now with year-round, proactive solutions that consistently maintain strong pest barriers and diminish pest reproduction. Call the friendly pest control experts at H2 Pest Control in Lehi, Utah today for the best in complete pest protection for your home.

When the moon rises during this dark and scary time of year, many forces are at work to fill us with fear. We talk of ghosts and banshees, but there are very real threats within the walls of our own homes including fearsome-looking and dangerous pests that can endanger our family’s safety.

Sometimes, you may hear scratching or scurrying in the ceiling, notice cobwebs in corners, or see pests running for cover when you turn on the light. At other times, though, you may miss the signs until these pests have already infested your living or working space.

Quick pest control is a lifesaver to remove the pest threats as soon as possible. The sooner such scary pests are removed, the better in order to protect your home or commercial property from structural damage and its inhabitants from disease. Here are 5 Utah pests in particular that can be scary to encounter and should be eradicated as soon as you notice them.

1. Rodents

For being such notorious pests, for many people, mice, rats, and other rodents are considered cute pets rather than pests. However, rodents can cause serious damage to the interior and exterior structure of a home. Their nests have been known to cause house fires from their flammable debris in close proximity to chewed electrical wires. Their strong teeth chew holes all around homes, not to mention what they chew through within the walls of your house.

Mice also may steal food, contaminate homes, and spread disease dangerous to your health. Voles are some of the most dangerous rodents, being able to spread very serious, even fatal, diseases while tearing up lawns and landscaping.

2. Spiders

Despite their relatively quiet nature and their heightened popularity during the spookiest time of year, spiders are one creature that we must still fear. You may find them lurking In the corners of your home, along walls, or in dark and hidden spaces.

Although some spiders may be considered friendly and useful for taking care of other pests, black widows, wolf spiders, and hobo spiders can be dangerous due to their poisonous bites. They usually only bite when aggravated, but their venom can cause major health complications. Wolf and hobo spiders may not cause you serious harm unless you have an allergic reaction to their bites, but a black widow’s bite can be deadly for small children and older adults.

3. Ants

Whenever food is left out, or even stored in cupboards without a sealed container, it can be an invitation for ants. Black carpenter ants are a massive threat to Utah homeowners by burrowing holes and tunnels within wooden frames for a weakened structure. Sometimes referred to as sugar ants because of their attraction to sugary substances, these pests can become a large problem quickly at this time of year with all the Halloween candy and holiday sweets inside. Once in, black ants can ruin food and make it inedible.

Another threatening ant species to watch for is the fire ant. One bite from a fire ant can cause great harm to those with allergies, even causing death in some. These will be located generally outside, but within close proximity of homes.

4. Wasps

Wasps are another threat to keep in mind that may be lurking near your home. They can be quite deadly, even just touching their hive. They are easy to aggravate if disturbed as well. A wasp sting can be deadly to those that are allergic to wasps. Signs of an allergic reaction are extreme swelling, inflammation, and itching, in which case an individual should be taken to the hospital.

Don’t attempt to complete wasp nest removal on your own. Pest control professionals in Lehi, Eagle Mountain, and other Utah County location know the proper techniques to remove hives safely and completely.

5. Centipedes

Centipedes aren’t as common as some of these other scary pests in Utah. Despite their frightening appearance, the smallest of centipedes are more cuddly than deadly. Centipedes usually aren’t dangerous, but a bite from a larger centipede can cause serious pain or even be deadly due to the poison in their bites.

In the chance you spot a large centipede, don’t wait to call professional pest control services like those from H2 Pest Control who can remove centipedes thoroughly with the least amount of danger.

H2 Pest Control Services

From raccoons and rodents to ants and spiders, keep your home or business protected from the scary pests that may cause harm to you or your property. For properties in Utah and Salt Lake Counties including Eagle Mountain and Lehi, UT, call H2 Pest Control for pest removal. Our eco-friendly treatments give your home strong pest protection without exposing your family to harmful substances.

When pests are invading, contact our pest control specialists to calm your fears, especially on a spooky Halloween night. We’re available around the clock for quicker service and safer homes.

Spider season is well underway. This is the time of year when spiders, in search of a mate, often find their way indoors before breeding. One such spider is the all-too-common hobo spider.

If you’re not familiar with common spiders in Utah, seeing a hobo spider in your home may be a little frightening. Keep reading to learn how to identify hobo spiders when you see them and how to protect against them by being aware of these important hobo spider facts.

How Can You Tell the Difference Between Hobo and Brown Recluse Spiders?

Many people initially misidentify hobo spiders as brown recluse spiders for their similar brown color. But the brown recluse spider is much more dangerous than a hobo spider.

You’ll be able to tell them apart by the hobo spider’s distinct design down their abdomen which includes a yellowish-tan stripe down the middle and a V- or chevron-like pattern coming out from the stripe. This is as opposed to brown recluse spiders that are known for a shape that looks like a violin on their abdomens.

Hobo spiders’ long legs are also completely brown with no spots or bands to be seen near their joints.

Do Hobo Spiders Climb?

One piece of good news is that you won’t see many if any hobo spiders up on your ceiling or in high places. They are not great climbers and generally tend to stay on the ground.

One key clue that you have hobo spiders in your house instead of another spider species are their funnel-shaped webs that remain close to the ground. Other spiders will spin webs in high nooks and crannies, but hobo spider webs will be found on the lower levels of a house as they keep to corners and hidden spots near the floor.

Do Hobo Spiders Bite, and is it Dangerous?

The big question homeowners have, particularly those with young children, is concerning the hobo spider’s bite. Generally, hobo spiders are not aggressive and will not bite humans unless they feel threatened. Get too close to a hobo spider’s funnel web and they might lash out.

They are more prone to bite during breeding season and if you get too close to one of their egg sacs. It’s a good rule, especially if you have children or pets wandering around, to call a pest control company or spider exterminator as soon as you notice these webs

Whether or not their bite is dangerous to humans currently is up for debate. Recent research shows that hobo spiders are not as venomous as was once believed. They’ve even been removed from the venomous spiders list from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The effects of a hobo spider bite will be more severe in younger children, but usually the result is only minor swelling and redness around the area. Brown recluse spiders, on the other hand, have a dangerous bite that will begin to kill cells until the skin and muscle deteriorates.

Should you experience severe symptoms such as those deteriorating lesions, difficulty breathing, lightheadedness, or nausea, please see a medical professional as soon as possible.

How Do I Keep Hobo Spiders Out of My House?

Is your home prepared to fight off hobo spiders, one of the most common spiders in Utah? If not, it’s not too late to put up spider control measures around your home in Lehi, Eagle Mountain, or another Utah location.

Be sure to clean up clutter, such as discarded clothes or piles of shoes on the floor where hobo spiders love to hide. Also, seal up cracks around doorways, windows, and baseboards where hobo spiders can crawl inside. Spraying natural spider repellent is another good measure to take to put up a barrier around your home.

For the ultimate spider control, contact H2 Pest Control! We’ll do a complete home inspection to address any factors that may be letting spiders indoors. Afterwards, our spider exterminators will seal cracks, lay out spider traps, and use safe spider spray specifically for hobo spiders and other pests you have. Live spider-free this fall with H2 Pest Control!

They may be small, but insects can pack a powerful punch with their painful bites and stings. It’s no wonder why people try to avoid and repel these biting and stinging pests as much as possible.

To keep hornets, wasps, yellow jackets, bees, spiders, ants, mosquitoes, and other pests at a considerable distance, we have a few tips to help. Avoid painful bites and stings especially as summer is winding down and fall is drawing closer. This is the time of year when many pests like biting hobo and yellhobo and yellow sac spidersow sac spiders are more abundant and seeking shelter in your home.

Before that happens, protect your Utah property with professional pest control from the experts at H2 Pest Control, and be sure to follow the tips below.

Keep Still

Our instinct when a bee comes buzzing our way is to swat it away, but that may not be the best approach. Some stinging and biting insects will interpret your swings at them as a challenge and become more aggressive.

The better tactic, then, is to remain calm and still, moving out of the way and to another location slowly and without threatening the insect.

Choose Clothing Wisely

What clothing you wear also can be an easy way to invite or prevent insect bites and stings. When going outside, particularly in long grass or strongly wooded areas, wear long sleeves and pants that cover more skin. The less skin you expose, the fewer chances you give bugs to bite or sting you.

Shoes are also a must. Many insects, even flying ones like wasps and bees, remain close to the ground. Throw on some sandals, or better yet closed-toe shoes, to keep your feet and ankles protected from their bites.

Chill Out

While long sleeves can help, be careful not to heat up too much when outside by wearing too much clothing. Pests are attracted to hot and moist environments, meaning they will be drawn to you when you’re sweating.

Cool down when you can, especially if you are exerting yourself from exercise or are going out on a hot day. Bring cold water with you, take breaks, find a shady spot to rest, and wear clothing appropriate for the weather conditions.

Tone Down

Speaking of clothes, bright colors and floral patterns may also attract biting or stinging insects. They will be naturally drawn to brighter clothing that resembles the same colors found in the flowers they love. Instead, wear muted colors like earthy browns and greens or neutral tones to draw less attention to yourself.

For similar reasons, putting on your favorite perfume or scented lotion when you go out may be a bad idea. Wasps, bees, and other insects will be lured to these fragrances that remind them of flowers or sweet and sugary substances. Tone it down with unscented products for a day out in the mountains or elsewhere.

Repel Pests

It may go without saying, but one of the most effective ways to prevent painful pest bites or stings is with a strong insect repellent. Wear bug repellent and reapply it often for your best defense against pests.

If you’re staying close to home, protect your property from biting and stinging pests with pest control treatments and repellent sprays. Keep in mind, though, that some “strong” repellents are filled with chemicals harmful to the environment and your health. Other eco-friendly repellents provide you with the same protection without endangering you, your family, or the environment around you.

H2 Pest Control is proud to use such eco-friendly repellents and pest treatments exclusively. We offer total home pest control that will keep wasps, bees, scorpions, spiders, ants, and other stinging or biting pests away for good, free of any harmful toxins.

Contact us for a free inspection and quote today!

No one wants a mouse in the house. That single mouse within a matter of weeks can lead to a whole string of mice infesting your home and destroying your peace of mind.

And while mice are very active and out and about during the summer, it’s the weeks leading up to fall when they begin making preparations to hole themselves in for the winter ahead. You don’t want to be left without proper mice control in place before autumn is here.

But there are steps you can take now to curb a mice infestation in its tracks. Prepare and protect your home with these 6 effective ways to prevent and get rid of mice.

1. Keep Mice Out By Maintaining Your Landscaping

Summer’s the perfect time to tackle all those outdoor projects you held off during the winter. But keeping your landscaping clear of clutter will do more than just give your yard great curb appeal.

Before mice make their way into your home, they will seek out shelter in the area surrounding it. That could be under piles of leaves or hidden among tall and unmowed grass, untrimmed bushes, and shrubbery.

A good rule of thumb is to keep a sensible distance between your home and any plants. Creating a wide gap may help keep mice confined to the outdoors. Keep them off your property by trimming down foliage, trees, and other plants that act as a shelter to rodents and pests. Don’t give them a place to stay!

2. Look for (and Address) Standing Water Sources

Don’t give them a replenishing water source either. Whether that’s a leaky outdoor faucet or a pool of water collecting in your gutters, such standing water should be removed and the problem causing it fixed fast.

Water is one of those basic necessities mice look for when seeking a place to nest. If you offer it to them freely, why wouldn’t they want to stay? They may first be drawn to water sources outside, but check inside your home too for any leaks.

3. Clean and Clear Away All Food Sources

The same goes for food sources. Leftover crumbs on the floor, food scraps on dirty dishes, an unsealed garbage can, and open food containers are just inviting mice indoors. They need a place where food will be readily available to them, especially once fall and winter arrive and food outside is scarce.

Cleaning up after meals will be vitally important, but so will keeping any other food or trash in containers that seal tight. You may want to invest in glass or strong plastic containers to hold cereal, pretzels, flour, sugar, or other food with an open container. Don’t forget to set up pet food in a secure container either!

It’s a pain to wipe down counters and tables, vacuum, sweep, clean the dishes, and take out the trash so frequently. But our mice control specialists have seen for themselves what a difference cleaning up food can make for stopping and preventing an infestation.

4. Tidy Up Inside and Out

You don’t need to go full Marie Kondo, but get rid of clutter that again offers a safe refuge for mice. Garages, sheds, basements, and attics are notorious for collecting clutter. Regularly go through these and other areas around your home where boxes and a hodgepodge of miscellaneous items pile up.

Mice have strong teeth that can chew through cardboard boxes and plastic bags. Store items you do choose to keep in plastic bins instead. These can be easily stacked up for less of a mice and won’t give access to mice.

5. Caulk Holes and Cracks to Stop Mice from Entering In

Even the smallest holes can let in a mouse. They can squeeze into tiny spaces, meaning that any cracks, gaps, or holes leading into your home should be sealed well in advance of fall.

Use waterproof caulking for cracks in your foundation, around pipes and HVAC ducts, and at other structural points throughout your home. New weatherstrips can help fill the gaps around window and door frames to protect those entry points.

6. Don’t Go Without Professional Mice Control

Professional pest control companies can inspect your home for such entry points and other factors that may incite a mice infestation. But more importantly, they can apply other protective measures and lay mice bait and traps to remove the problem entirely.

Yet many homeowners rely solely on DIY mouse control instead. They may catch a mouse here or there, but the real problem remains.

Take the above measures and call a pest control company if you want to get rid of mice, rats, voles, and other rodents completely. H2 Pest Control is one such company with years of experience in controlling and removing mice populations in Eagle Mountain UT, Lehi UT, and other surrounding Utah locations. But we also only use eco friendly solutions with natural and environmentally friendly pest control. These solutions are safe for small children and pets, protecting your home from mice without putting your family at risk of exposure to toxic substances.

Make your move and stop mice this summer before their fall exodus into your home begins. Call or contact H2 Pest Control for a mice and pest inspection! We’ll devise a plan specifically for your home to crush any mice infestation now and in future months.