How to Pest Proof Home For Fall and Winter

This page is a general DIY guide for preventing and controlling pests that invade your home during the fall and winter season. Here you can find detailed pest control care steps and recommended products for various pests you might encounter in the fall and winter season.

Each year with the arrival of cooler weather such as fall and winter homeowners are beginning to winterize their homes. These drop of temperatures are often prone to ants, cluster flies, ladybugs, stink bugs, boxelders, cockroaches, rats, and mice seeking shelter in the warm environment of your home. Insects and rodents can find a way into your home during the fall and winter through the smallest opening, void, crawl spaces, or cracks.

Once inside, these unwanted guests can contaminate food, spread diseases, and create structural damages in search of food or creating a suitable habitat until the weather become warm. However, there is the risk of insects and rodents becoming adapted to the interior of your home and attracting other members of its species. Pest proofing your home is the most efficient pest management method to keeping these pests out and to also prevent future infestations.

As you inspect the exterior and interior of your homes foundation, you may want to consider following this DIY guide to decrease the use of insecticides and rodenticide products. Not only will this keep pests out of your home, but it will also work to preserve heat and your personal safety from pest activity. Follow this DIY guide to learn how to protect your home from insect and rodent activity and prevent infestations through our recommended steps and products

Clean Kitchen and Remove Food Sources

Your home, particularly the kitchen, has water and food sources that most pests need to survive. Keeping your home clean will help to make it less appealing to overwintering pests that may cause disease or damage to your home. Avoid leaving any food products out for long periods of time or uncovered from their original packaging as this aroma attracts pests such as cockroaches, rats, and mice onto or into desired areas.

Pests such as rats and mice try their hardest to nibble into food containers with their claws or teeth. If not placed in a plastic container, then food is at risked for rodents and insects to get into. Take a rag with soap and clean surfaces containing food crumbs such as counters. Sweep and vacuum areas where food is kept or eaten. Take out trash and uneaten and expired food to sealed outdoor bin or dumpster.

Treat Hard to Reach Places

Since the most common way for insects to enter your home is from the outside, you will want to spray an expanding foaming aerosol such as FiPro Foaming Aerosol. This product is ideal for eliminating and preventing insects such as boxelder, ants, cluster flies, and other types of wood destroying insects.

FiPro Foaming Aerosol is a non-repellent foaming aerosol that will penetrate small crack and crevices, voids, and other areas where insects may harbor, use as a breeding ground, or travel. Once areas have been treated with this product insects do not become aware of its prescence and end up taking it back to other members of its species to ensure a complete elimination.

To use, you will need to shake the FiPro Foaming Aerosol can thoroughly, then push the included injection straw into the crack and crevice inside and outside of your home. Spray along the length of the crack and crevice where you have seen insects or believe may use for travel. Usually, this will be around window frames, under the sink, in baseboards, and anwhere where there are openings or voids. Spray long enough for the product to expand and cover the treated areas.

Seal Cracks and Openings

Walk around the entire outside perimeter of your home and take the appropriate steps to seal any visible gaps, holes, and cracks you may find. Materials such as Stuf-Fit Copper Mesh and caulk are ideal for chewing pests such as rats, mice, and seclude other pests like insects from entering.

Stuf-Fit Copper Mesh is a breathable and unchewable material that can be placed in between caulk and your homes foundation. Besides keeping pests out this action helps to circulate warmer air into the home.

Clear Clutter In and Around Home

The fall and winter months are prone to leaf litter and other debris fallen from trees or shrubs. Unfortunately, insects and rodents will be looking for these type of conditions to create their homes in.

Check your homes gutters as this can also collect foliage and create insect habitats. Eliminate these potential insect habitats by raking your yard. With a glove covered hand remove leaf clutter in your gutter and downspouts. Dispose of fallen leaves, branches, and other foliage debris in your outdoor trash can.

Pull storage containers away from any wall in your home to lessen pathways for insect and rodent travel. In particular, rodents are shy and cautious creatures that travel underneath appliances or objects and against the wall. Personal belongings stored in cardboard boxes are at risk for pests so it best to store in plastic storage containers. Materials such as these create difficulties for pests trying to scout, gnaw, or burrow.

You may need to use a Solutions Professional Rat/Mouse Glue Tray for persistent pests in attic, basement, and other storage areas. Despite its name, this peanut butter scented glue trap eliminates crawling insects in a fast and hands free manner. Place Solutions Professional Rat/Mouse Glue Tray against the side of the wall, storage containers, and areas prone to high activity.

Store Trash and Firewood Away From Home

Ladybugs, stink bugs, boxelders, cockroaches, rat, and mice like to hide in firewood piles and the damp ground underneath. Keep firewood stacked on an elevated surface or on the top of a concrete slab.

If you have multiple firewood piles, you might want to consider a metal stand to keep the wood piled neatly and off the ground where overwintering pests could inhibit. For numerous firewood piles you will have to stack several feet away from your home and cover with a tarp.

Outdoor trashcans will also need to be stored several feet from your home or at the end of your driveway. Make sure these containers are tightly sealed as larger pests such as foxes become hungry and may forage in your trash. Leading to unwanted waste and further infestations of other larger pests.

Rats and mice are a common outdoor pests that forage or live near these areas. Populations and activity can be more frequently noticed during the cooler weather. For this reason, you may want to consider using Eradication Rodent Bait Blocks that mimics food, but is actually poisonous. Due to this toxicity, you will need to place these baits inside a tamper proof bait station such as the Solutions Rat and Mouse Bait Station. Place loaded bait stations near afflicted sites while wearing gloves to avoid leaving your scent on the trap.

Create Insecticidal Perimeter

Spray a long-lasting residual insecticide on the outside surface of your home prior to the fall and winter season. We recommend using Supreme IT, it is a liquid insecticide that can treat a broad variety of pests such as flies, ants, stink bugs, boxelder, cockroaches and last for 90 days after application.

To determine how much Supreme IT to use you will need to calculate the square footage of your property. To find this, you will measure the length and width of the treatment area in feet and multiply together (length X width = square footage). A general application of Supreme IT is 1 oz. of product per gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft.

In a handheld pump sprayer or backpack sprayer, mix half the required amount of water, add the appropriate amount of Supreme IT, then pour in the remaining half of water. Close the lid to the spray tank and shake to ensure an even mixture. Spray your entire yard on a fan setting to easily coat the top and bottom of foliage leaves.

Next, perform a barrier treatment around your homes perimeter when rainfall or wind is not predicted for at least 24 hours. Spray 3 feet up and out from the homes foundation as well as around window, doors, eaves, and plumbing and electrical penetrations.

Key Takeaways

Pests that Commonly Invade Homes During the Fall and Winter Season

• Insects such as ants, cluster flies, ladybugs, stink bugs, boxelders, cockroaches will invade areas containing moisture and food. Other non-insects pests such as rats and mice will also invade your home for the same reasons.

What is the First Thing to Do in Pest Proofing Your Home

• Inspection is the first thing to do when pest proofing your home for fall and winter. Once this completed, you will know where pests are invading your home as well as where to apply insecticide or rodenticide products.

When Do Rodents and Insects Invade Your Home for Fall and Winter Season

• Rodents and insects will come into your home when there has been consistent rainfall, and cooler or freezing weather.