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How to Get Rid of Bugs in Your House Naturally 

Alyssa DiCrasto on 2023-04-19

How to Get Rid of Bugs in Your House Naturally 

Having pests in your home can be uncomfortable. Whether you’re a fan of nature or not, some bugs can be too much to live alongside. Most homes have around 100 different types of bugs living in them every day and most of them you won’t even know about. However, some bugs can be unpleasant to have around. Whether your home is filled with ants, spiders, cockroaches, fleas, termites, bed bugs, mosquitoes, or flies, there are ways to get rid of them naturally. Many of the products you can buy to kill bugs in the home contain nasty chemicals. These can be harmful to both humans and pets, so it’s usually best to avoid these where possible.

Here are some natural ways on how to get rid of bugs:

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Fleas Hate Salt

If you’ve got fleas in the home, it can make you feel itchy at the thought of them. Seeing a flea on your cat or dog can cause panic, but there are easy ways to naturally get rid of fleas in your home. If you have found a flea on your pet, you may also find them in areas of the home. Throw salt on problem areas and leave it for a day or two, then vacuum it up and repeat.

Soap the Ants

Ants can quickly take over your home. They usually start in the kitchen as they are attracted to food, but they can take over other areas. You may have tried several things to get rid of ants in the past with no success. However, using dish soap is a good way to exterminate them quickly. Ants can damage the wood in your home and can also contaminate food, so it’s best to get rid of them ASAP. Mix dish soap in a spray bottle and spray the solution in areas you’ve seen ants.

Use Herbs Against Flies

Flies can be very annoying, they can also contaminate food. Having flies in your home is rather unpleasant and it can be difficult to get rid of them. One great natural way to keep them away is to use basil. Having basil plants in problem areas can be a good solution as flies hate the stuff. If you don’t want to put basil plants around, dried basil around entrances such as doors and window frames can also be effective.

Get Rid of Spiders With Lemons and Limes

Whether you’re afraid of spiders or you just don’t want them in your home, there’s an easy way to keep them away. Most spiders are harmless, but if you live in an area with poisonous spiders, then it’s best to get rid of them. Squeezing some lemon or lime juice into a spray bottle with some water can be a great way to keep the spiders away. Just spray it in areas where you’ve seen them in your home.

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Use Baking Soda Against Bed Bugs

Bed bugs are very horrible to have in your home. They can also be very harmful and cover you in bites that can get infected. Many people try a variety of ways to get rid of bed bugs with little success. Instead of using chemicals against bed bugs, why not try baking soda? All you need to do is spread it over the bed and leave it to work its magic. Hoover the mattress every couple of days and repeat the process. The reason baking soda works is because it dries out the moisture in the bodies of the bed bugs, which kills them and prevents their breeding.

Kill Cockroaches With Oil and Syrup

Cockroaches can show up in even the cleanest of homes. If you’ve got them in yours, you’ll probably want to get rid of them fast. Before you reach for a chemical spray, however, why not try a natural solution. A chemical spray isn’t the best thing to use in your home, especially if you’ve got children or pets. Instead, try a natural trap. All you need to do is get an empty bottle and add some syrup to the bottom. Then, rub cooking oil around the top of the bottle. This will attract cockroaches and trap them in the bottle and simply kill them.

Use Garlic Against Mosquitos

Mosquitos are nasty, they spread diseases and they’re very unpleasant to have in your home. Fortunately, there is a natural way to get rid of them, with garlic. Garlic is poisonous to mosquitos and the smell of it also repels them. Crush some garlic and add it to water in a spray bottle. This solution will kill them if sprayed at them and will help prevent others from entering your home.

Orange Oil For Termites

Termites are pests that can cause damage to your home. They are often found in furniture or wooden furnishings and these are the things they can damage. To get rid of them quickly, use a rag to apply orange oil to the areas where you’ve seen them. If you are concerned they are deep inside the wood, then try injecting the oil in any cracks, or drill a small hole and inject it into the hole.

Call In a Professional 

Sometimes, DIY pest control is unsuccessful.

If you have a particularly severe problem then it can be hard to tackle.

The best thing to do when these methods don’t work is call in a professional. 

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3 Tips to Avoid Getting Bed Bugs

Pepper Moran on 2023-03-10

3 Tips to Avoid Getting Bed Bugs

Are you looking for tips to avoid getting bed bugs in your home? Whether you’re moving to a new house or apartment, or you travel often, chances are you’ve heard horror stories about how bed bugs can hitch rides home undetected, causing chaos and infestations as they go.

Thankfully, there are a few simple preventative measures that you can take to reduce your risk of infestation. Here are three simple and practical ways to avoid getting bed bugs so you can keep your home and loved ones safe from these stress-inducing, unwanted house guests.

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How do you get bed bugs?

Bed bugs can be challenging to eradicate once they take up residence in your home, so how do you get them?

Bed bugs have recently made a wide-scale resurgence. They are highly adaptive and resilient, good at hiding and spreading from place to place. As a result, bed bugs are commonly picked up during traveling in places like hotel rooms, buses, taxis, and planes.

Second-hand furniture and clothing can be potential vehicles for bed bug infestations, especially if the home they came from had an existing problem. Therefore, used furniture should be avoided whenever possible if you want to keep bed bugs away, and thrifted clothing should be put through the dryer on the highest setting possible as soon as it comes home.

It is also possible for bed bugs to come home from school, work, friends’ houses, and all kinds of other places and activities. Apartment buildings are especially susceptible to the spread of bed bugs, as the bugs can use the building’s structure to move from unit to unit. Even riding in someone else’s car is enough to bring bed bugs home.

3 All-natural tips to avoid getting bed bugs

Getting rid of bed bugs can be expensive, exhausting, and time consuming. Fortunately, there are some simple and all-natural ways to avoid bringing bed bugs into your home in the first place. All you’ll need is some knowledge and diligence, and these tips to avoid getting bed bugs.

Once you’re familiar with the basics of bed bug behavior and biology, you’ll know exactly how to spot them, ways to avoid them, and what to do if you find them inside.

1. Know the Signs of Bed Bugs

Avoiding bed bugs starts with knowing what they look like and how they behave. They can hide in various places, which has led to them becoming a significant public health concern.

Adult bed bugs are between 5-7mm in length. Females are slightly larger and rounder than males, but both are flat and oval-shaped with brownish-red coloring, six legs, and two antennae.

Bed bug adults start their development as eggs and progress through a series of molts as they grow. Young and developing bed bugs are called nymphs and are not the same color as adult bed bugs. Nymphs are different colors at different stages.

Why is this important? Bed bugs are good at hiding, so you may not immediately see the adults if the population hasn’t grown much. You could, however, spot eggs, molted bed bug skins, speckly blood stains, and small brown droppings. With a flashlight, you could even spot eggs and nymphs, especially around the buttons and seams of the mattress.

When infestations become heavy, you might notice a rich, musky-sweet smell that many find repulsive. So let’s just say bed bugs are not the type of guest you want hanging around your home.

2. Perform Regular Bed Bug Inspections

Are you looking for bed bugs regularly? Good idea, especially if you are at higher risk of catching them (due to travel, thrifting, or other circumstances). You can perform these inspections yourself or hire someone to come out semi-regularly. Either way, vacuum consistently with a bagged vacuum and dispose of the bag immediately afterward.

Of all the tips to avoid getting bed bugs, inspecting a room for bed bugs isn’t too tricky, but it will take patience and a keen eye for details. A flashlight might also be helpful. Start by inspecting:

Around the bed – Don’t forget to look over the frame, headboard, and boxspring too!
The mattress – Pull the fitted sheet off the mattress and inspect along the seams for activity.
Nightstand – Check the stand itself, as well as any books, electronics, and lampshades.
Counch or chairs – Look around any seams and under the cushions.

If you travel, watching for bed bugs while you fly, rideshare, or stay in a hotel room is a good idea. Hotels are major bed bug hotspots, so check your room before unpacking anything.

Inspecting a hotel room so thoroughly might seem over the top, but it’s worth it if it means not bringing a bed bug headache home. Speaking of home, once you return from your trip, inspect all luggage thoroughly before bringing it inside, and run clothing through the dryer on high heat.

3. Prevent and Detect Bed Bugs with Simple, All-Natural Solutions

Many people aren’t aware that mattress covers are a crucial part of bed bug prevention. Mattress covers should be high-quality and made from thick, tight-weave material to keep bed bugs out.

A mattress cover discourages bed bugs from settling around your bed, but you can also purchase special traps that go under the feet of your bed or stick to the sides of your bed frame. These will help you determine if bed bugs are present and you need to take action.

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How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs if They’re Already in Your House

If bed bugs are already a problem inside your home, get professional assistance immediately. It only takes one egg-laying female to cause a full-blown infestation. Bed bugs can be easy to miss, but things can get out of hand when not unaddressed and why these tips to avoid getting bed bugs are important.

When looking for professional bed bug assistance, don’t just choose the cheapest option, or treatment may not work. Instead, look for a company that uses an array of tools, including inspection and assessment, steam treatments, heat treatments, and targeted chemical treatments.

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