With summer coming up it is inevitable that you will probably be facing more pests around your home or business. Due to the warmer weather and having your home more open, you will welcome pests into your home environment. These pesky pests are often very hard to remove safely, as DIY methods involve the application of harmful pesticides and chemicals. In order to safely carry out pest control in your home you have two options, either call in a team of professionals such as Endeavour Property Services, who are pest control experts in Auckland, or you can do it yourself. If you opt to do it yourself find out how to do so safely below.
Focus on prevention first
One of the most important tips when it comes to pest control is to focus on prevention before you start using pest control treatments. This is because it is important to find out the cause of the pest infestation before you start treatment. As often there are easy steps you can take to prevent pests entering your home, for example cleaning benchtops regularly and taking out the rubbish often. As if you jump straight to applying pesticides, often the problem will reoccur as you have not fixed the cause of the problem itself. Also through focussing on prevention before treatment you protect yourself and your family from unnecessary disruption to your home caused by pest control treatments.
Protect yourself
If you are going to take the DIY approach to pest control, it is important to protect yourself from exposure to harmful pest control pesticides. Exposure commonly occurs through inhalations, skin contact or eye contact. So, it is important to protect yourself and get properly prepared before undertaking any pesticide application. Some simple steps you can take to protect yourself are; protecting your skin through wearing long sleeved tops and full-length pants when applying the products, as well as wearing covered in shoes and chemical resistant gloves. These steps help to prevent exposure to harmful pesticides, as often people forget how toxic and dangerous pest control pesticides treatments are even those that can be purchased at your local store.
Protect your pets
When undertaking DIY pest control it is important to also protect the health of your pets. If you are spraying for pests in your home for example it is important to upturn and empty pet’s food and water bowls before treatment. As well as putting away any toys and bedding before you start the treatment. In addition to ensuring your pets do not have access to the treated area until the product is completely dry and has been well ventilated. As our pets are naturally curious and can often lick or accidentally ingest these harmful chemicals. It is also important to cover fish tanks and fish ponds to prevent liquid and vapours from contaminating the water. Also, if you are a bird owner, make sure you have somewhere safe to take your birds until the treatment is finished and the home is well ventilated again. As bird have extremely sensitive respiratory systems, so must be protected from breathing in fumes and vapours from the use of DIY pesticides.
Safely dispose of left over pesticides
One thing that is often forgotten when it comes to DIY pest control is how you dispose of any left-over pesticides and pesticides packaging. Many individuals incorrectly dispose of left over pesticides by tipping them down the drain or flushing them down the toilet. Although this is not a good idea as it can put a strain on your areas water treatment plant. It is much safer to take left of pesticides to a hazardous waste centre, so they are safely disposed of and do not end of contaminating water ways or harming animals along the way. It is also important to consider how you dispose of empty pesticides containers, as although they look empty the plastic can hold toxic residue. Which is why it is recommended to triple wash containers before disposing of them in your household rubbish.
Always follow label directions
It is important to always thoroughly read the label directions on any pest control product before you use it in your home. As the labels will contain detailed information on how to safely use the product as well as stating any hazards associated with the product. One of the things which is often overlooked when it comes to DIY pest control is following the directions of how much product to apply on the packaging. As often people have the mentality that more product will do a better job. But in reality, applying more pesticide than that recommended on the packing can not only waste money but it can harm our pets, family and the environment.
Safely store pesticides
Another important thing to consider when using DIY pest control products is how to safely store them. It is important to keep these products out of reach of children and pets, through storing them in a locked cupboard or a high out of reach shelf. Also ensure that you follow the instructions on the packaging about how to safely store the pesticide, as some products may need to be stored in a cool dry location. Another tip which is often overlooked is to always store products in their original containers and never remove labels on the packaging. This is because the packaging contains important warnings and instructions about how to safely use the products. If they are stored in other containers they could be easily mistaken for other products which could be dangerous or deadly.