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Kitchens provide the perfect dining spot for pests

There’s nothing quite like the smell of cookies in the oven wafting through your home. You probably don’t count on adding pests to your invitation list when cooking for a family get-together or a holiday party however, but pests are just as attracted to certain odours as your guests.

As a result the kitchen can be a hotspot for unwanted guests, and its vital that you act to ensure the heart of your home doesn’t get invaded.

Read on below to find out about common kitchen pests, and how you can tackle them.

Ants

Foraging ants are attracted by food and water, and enter homes through the tiniest of cracks to scavenge for crumbs, oil or grease spills, sugar, and other edible items found in kitchen pantries.

Ants aren’t just unsightly, they can also contaminate your food and even spread diseases.

To prevent an ant invasion in your kitchen:

  • Keep your surfaces and floors clean and sanitary.
  • Store food in tightly-sealed containers.
  • Clean up crumbs and spills promptly.
  • Make sure to rinse food containers before recycling.
  • Keeping your home well maintained, with all cracks and potential entry points sealed, will also help.

House Flies

House Flies breed on garbage and rotting food so often invade the kitchen.

From garbage cans to the spaces between appliances, they can set up home in your kitchen where they’ll not only cause a nuisance but also potentially spread disease.

To prevent house flies wreaking havoc with your health and home:

  • Clean all drains and sink areas.
  • Keep all fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator or a paper bag.
  • Quickly dispose of fruit and vegetables that are overripe.
  • Make sure to close the lids on all garbage and waste containers.
  • Remove waste promptly.
  • Replace any broken windows and fly screens.

Rodents

Rats and mice invade homes seeking food, water and warmth, frequently gaining entry under roofing tiles via the rain gutters. Rodents can squeeze through tiny holes and cracks, and when they do, they will probably head straight for your kitchen and eat anything they can find.

Rodents contaminate food, can introduce parasites, and can transmit serious diseases to humans. Rats and mice will also do physical damage to your home, gnawing on materials, burrowing through walls and chewing through electrical wiring.

To prevent a rodent invasion in your kitchen:

  • Keep food preparation areas clean.
  • Sweep floors regularly.
  • Clean up spills and crumbs immediately.
  • Clean and rotate dumpsters regularly, and make sure trash cans are covered tightly.
  • Sealing any cracks where rodents may get in is also crucial.

Cockroaches

Once indoors, cockroaches will scavenge virtually anything, including glue, leather, fabric, soap, toothpaste – and of course the common pantry items you keep around your kitchen.

These pests create an unsanitary situation and can spread harmful bacteria. Eating food contaminated by cockroaches may cause food poisoning, while cockroach faeces can negatively affect your health, particularly if you have asthma.

To stop cockroaches invading your kitchen:

  • Clean and vacuum regularly.
  • Store food in tightly-sealed containers.
  • Make sure cupboards remain dry.
  • Clean surfaces and sweep floors to remove crumbs.
  • Seal crevices and openings in walls and floors.
  • Fix any leaky faucets and cracks in the plumbing, and use a dehumidifier to reduce moisture.

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