We’ve all been guilty of it. Everybody’s lost track of the food in their refrigerator and their pantry, not sure if certain things are expired or not. Sure, some things are more obvious when they’ve spoiled. Fruit, veggies, and dairy in particular. Other long-lasting food like cans and dried foods, can keep in your home for weeks, even months. We might forget all about them, but hungry pests certainly don’t. Even if your foods are perfectly good, determined pests will still find their way inside your kitchen cupboards. If you aren’t careful, a few careless mistakes could lead to a residential pest control problem right inside your kitchen.

Who Are the Common Offenders?

Certain pests are more common than others. These are the ones you’ll need to look out for.

Cockroaches – These insects can quickly take over your kitchen if you allow them to. The sight of a cockroach scurrying across our floor is normally enough to panic and disgust us. If you find them in the same place that you eat from, you might get very worried very quickly. You would have good reason to. Cockroaches carry all sorts of infection and parasites. If they get into your food and leave behind droppings, you could develop an allergic reaction or suffer from food poisoning.

Rodents – Quite a few Canadian cities feature in the list of ‘most rat-infested cities in North America’ unfortunately. They’re clever animals and won’t waste a second if you accidentally create an easy path to your food. Like cockroaches, rats carry diseases and they’ll bring these into your home with them. Even worse, they could bring other pests like fleas and lice with them. Mice and rats are also notoriously quick breeders. Spot them too late and you’re likely to have a big residential pest control problem on your hands.

Fruit Flies – Pests which are common throughout kitchens in Ontario. They’re capable of locating fermenting fruit from a great distance and thanks to their super-small size, can sneak through even the tiniest of cracks. 

How to Keep Pests Out

There are a few straightforward practices you can adopt to reduce the chances of finding pests in your kitchen and cupboards. The first piece of advice is to keep your kitchen surfaces as clean as possible. This involves wiping away spills and food crumbs at the earliest opportunity and wiping down surfaces regularly. You may want to extend this to dining tables and shelves too. It’s a good idea to clean dirty dishes as soon as possible as well.

Food storage is important too, make sure that you store opened and prepared foods in sealed, airtight containers. Dispose of your waste properly and keep your outdoor waste sealed with a lid. Don’t bring any products with damaged packaging home from the grocery stores, and make sure to regularly check your fresh fruit for signs of decay.

Give Truly Nolen a Call

Unfortunately, sometimes, no matter what you do, pests will find a way inside your home. If you’ve found yourself with a residential pest control problem, give our Truly Nolen team a call. There’s nothing we haven’t seen before when it comes to pests and we’ll know how to quickly locate and identify your pest.

We use effective strategies and machinery to safely remove pests from your home. Once we’re done, your home will be futureproofed against future infestations too. Call us today for a free quote and see how we can help.