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DIY Garage Pest Control

By DoMyOwn staff

Properly controlling pests in your garage can decrease the chances of an infestation in your home. Learn the basics here.

 DIY Garage Pest Control Video Play

Video Transcript

Hi this is Kara with DoMyOwn.com. Today we're going to discuss the basics of garage pest control. Some of the most common garage pests to look out for are going to be rodents, termites, spiders, flies, silverfish, and roaches. All of those pests can easily invade a garage.

Keep in mind as we're in the winter months, rodents taking harborage in your garage is going to be your main concern and prevention is going to be key. Garages are warm, dark moist with plenty of materials that rodents can use for nesting materials.

Smells may be also tempting as the reason why pests will enter into your garage you've got garbage plants spills and other stored items that will attract them. Garages offer protection also from frigid winters, summer heat, and severe weather. You may be wondering when you should treat for pests in your garage. The timing can vary based on what region you're in. For instance, temperatures are going to drop a lot sooner in Chicago than they would in Florida.

Treating with insecticides after a frost or hard freeze aren't going to be as effective. That's not to say you still may not occasionally see insects inside the home as they're trying to escape the elements outside. Glue boards can be used year round inside to monitor rodents insects and activity all around.

Eliminating their access points to the home is going to be crucial when eliminating harborage in your garage. When doing your inspection, you want to check around windows and doors. Check the weather stripping for any cracks or holes. If you see any of these, you want to be sure to fill those with a silicone-based caulk, steel wool, or copper mesh.

Another important prevention technique for garage pest is to clean and organize. You want to be sure you organize storage items and keep them off the floor. You can consider using plastic containers other than cardboard boxes. Mice and silverfish can hide in cardboard more easily than plastic. Vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping the garage regularly is a great prevention technique. This helps eliminate food crumbs, spiderwebs, and their eggs.

If you store your garbage in the garage, be sure that the trash bags are sealed- do not leave it out in the open. Spray an insecticide label for garage pests around doors, windows, walls, cracks, in the foundation, and any other entry point. For garage pest control, you want to follow the application per the product label.

When it comes to controlling pests in your garage, rodent control is going to be one of your main points and prevention again is going to be key. Rodent snap traps provide an advantage is that you can control where the rodent dies and therefore it can easily be removed. Please visit our website for more useful tools such as great articles and videos on proper rodent snap trap placement. It is ideal to place bait stations for rodents outdoors only because there is no guarantee on where the rodent may die after consuming a lethal amount of bait.

When using an insect glue board to monitor activity inside a garage, one key point is to be sure the glue board is folded over with the sticky side facing in. This prevents people from stepping on the glue board but also keeps dust and debris from getting on the glue board which in turn could reduce its effectiveness.

When it comes to checking entry points into the home, garage door maintenance is going to be one key point you don't want to overlook. Installing a garage door guard will help keep pests out and be sure to seal any cracks on your door or around the door frame and repair if necessary.

Thanks for watching! Be sure to like comment and subscribe below. We're always happy to help at DoMyOwn.com for any pest control needs you may have.