Living Pest Free: The Ultimate Household Guide
How to Deal With Pests in Your Home
Our expert exterminators have compiled a comprehensive guide to common household pests, how to prevent their presence, and how to develop an action plan if you do encounter these pesky critters.
Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are a common household pest that you could see throughout the year. While bed bugs don’t pose a health threat to humans, they are tiny and persistent. It can be difficult to eradicate this problem properly without the help of an exterminator.
How Can I Tell If I Have Bed Bugs?
Spiders
These eight-legged creepy crawlers are a homeowner’s nightmare. They are a year-round pest in North Dakota and Minnesota as well.
Ants
Ants are known to spoil a picnic outside, but they can get in your home and wreak havoc indoors too. The best way to deal with an ant problem is to keep them from getting in the first place.
How to Keep Ants Out of My House?
Should I Get an Exterminator for Ants?
Mice and Other Rodents
Although you’ll see mice and other rodents year-round in North Dakota and Minnesota, you’ll see them in your home more commonly in the fall. They retreat indoors for warmth and shelter before the winter hits.
How Can I Tell if I Have Mice?
Bees, Hornets, and Wasps
Bees, hornets, and wasps are most common in Fargo, Moorhead and the Minnesota lakes area in the late summer and early fall. While these winged creatures all look similar, they are very different.
How Do I Get Rid of Wasps and Hornets?
Fruit Flies
Fruit flies zero in on moist, fermenting organic material, such as fruits and vegetables or in drains and garbage cans. They lay their eggs in these rotting areas. After the eggs hatch, they continue to feed on the waste material.
Asian Lady Beetles
During the fall, these pests will try to seek refuge indoors. You’ll know that you have an infestation when you see large numbers of beetles on your walls (interior or exterior), windows, or even on your ceilings and other surfaces in your Fargo, Moorhead or MN lakes area home.
Asian Lady Beetles vs. Ladybug
How to Get Rid of Asian Lady Beetles
Boxelder Bugs
Boxelder bugs get their name because you usually find them around Boxelder trees, which are native to North Dakota and Minnesota. They are black with reddish-orange markings on their backs. You’ll notice them most often in the fall and then again in the spring after the thaw.
How Do I Keep Boxelder Bugs Away?
Crickets
Crickets are most commonly identified by their long legs and the loud chirping noise that they make. They like warm, moist environments, so they will be drawn inside your home as the weather begins to cool in late summer and early fall in Fargo, Moorhead and the Minnesota lakes area.
How Can I Get Rid of Crickets?
Cockroaches
You could be plagued with cockroaches year-round in North Dakota and Minnesota. If you suspect that you’ve got cockroaches, you need to call your local exterminator right away. Cockroaches are unsanitary and can cause serious health problems to humans. They are particularly troublesome to people with respiratory issues. If you eat food that has become contaminated by cockroaches, you are at risk for food poisoning.
They are generally nocturnal, but you may see them during the day as well. They scatter and move quickly to avoid the light. They can also survive for long periods of time without food or water, and once you’ve got them in your home, it is extremely difficult and nearly impossible to remove them on your own. Considering what’s at stake, you really need to call in a professional pest control company for this bug.
Fleas
Fleas are a nuisance to humans but can cause health problems for pets. Fleas usually enter your home on pets and can be difficult to remove. It usually takes a few tries unless you call in an exterminator at the outset.
If you notice that your pet is scratching more than usual, is more restless, or if you see evidence of flea droppings on them, your home contains fleas. You may notice small red bites on yourself too.
Infographic courtesy of Full Scope Pest Control.
Hire the Help You Need to Get Rid of Pests Permanently
You work hard to maintain your MN Lakes area home. You don’t want to share your precious space with unwanted guests like pests. In North Dakota and Minnesota, a variety of pests may appear year-round or seasonally. If you end up with pests in your home, the building could sustain damage, and your family’s health and safety could even be at risk. Don’t waste any more time, call a trusted exterminator for peace of mind today!
