No one loves finding a bug!
(Well, okay, aside from etymologists, Timon & Pumbaa, bats, birds, and some other animals too…)
Unexpected ‘Visitors’: How to Prevent and Address Pests in and around your place.
But the rest of us… don’t love finding a bug!
Living in Bloomington means living in an urbanized forest, something we take much pride in. It means our town is built around nature which allows for the beautiful fall leaves and clean air we all enjoy. Unfortunately, this also means critters and bugs. Although amazing for our ecosystem, being in your home is not so… amazing.
Spiders, crickets, ‘sprickets,’ and cockroaches, oh my. Silverfish, centipedes, millipedes, and more! Good ol’ Indiana has them all!
Good bugs, ‘bad’ bugs, big bugs, small bugs. Just about every kind of bug!
So, you should not at all be surprised to find some in your place!
But there are things you can do to reduce the likelihood that you will bring them in, or they will find their own way in!
Also, certain times of year, certain bugs are more likely to try to come on inside!
Spring (mostly) but possibly fall too! ANTS!
Spring is one of the times of year that you may see a large number of little black ants invade your apartment or home. Summer weather changes, rains after drought, and spring rains among other things can drive them out, seeking new homes and food! But its usually easy to get rid of them… by removing food sources AND with a little help from ant bait!
What can you do about ants? Terro… Terro… Terro…
Terro is the brand name of a bait that works great with little black ants. Use it. DON’T use insect spray. That gets chemicals everywhere and you end up just killing the ones you see when there are thousands more in the colony somewhere–not necessarily even in your place! Instead, use Terro.
Here’s a great FAQ about Little Black Ants, courtesy of The Spruce.
https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-get-rid-of-ants-2656468
BIG BLACK ANTS (or winged ones)?
If you have BIGGER ants, these may be carpenter ants, and they require a different bait. Send us a note with a few pics, and be sure to have something in the image for context (like a coin) so we can tell how big they are. Carpenter ants are a bigger deal and can harm the home. 1-2 would be just scouts but if you kill them and see more each day, especially around moist areas, don’t wait, send a note! Winged “ants” could be termites, especially in spring (called “swarmers”) so we definitely want to know about those too!
Spiders.
I get it… spiders freak people out. But… spiders… are “good” insects. They are nature’s pest control team! Now, some spiders can bite, and Indiana even has a two venomous ones, but those are shy so you are not likely to run into them, just be aware. Personally, if I see a spider outside, I leave it be. If its inside, I use tissue or something to move it outside.
Other bugs. Changes in season will bring a lot of other insects out in search of a summer or winter home. If its just an occasional bug, don’t freak out. Remove it. Squash it (yuck, we know…) or move it outside… if you have a few, or more, and would like to treat them, see below about DIY barrier sprays. If you aren’t sure what it is, you can send a pic to us. We aren’t experts, but we are happy to take a look or… just use Google Lens search or even the info (i) on an iphone photo to see if you can find it rapido! BUT… like all things AI… don’t freak out on the results. If its something concerning. best bet it to CAREFULLY get one or more into a plastic baggie (i.e.. don’t squash them) and call experts to identify it.
Oh, and if you’ve managed to start hosting a cockroach party (what the south loves to call “Palmetto Bugs”) and are seeing those frequently, you should clean up food crumbs everywhere, yes even under and behind the fridge and appliances (and couches!) because as with most pests, they are there to eat, no food, no survival… and consider using roach baits (like ant bait, but for roaches). There are even some for BOTH ants and roaches, though YMMV as I’ve never used them.
RAIN and Weather Changes
Heavy rains, especially in spring and fall, accompanied by weather changes… think rain shower than brings in cold weather in the fall! These cause all sorts of critters to try to find a place to shelter for the winter… and your place seems like a nice cozy option. So know that when weather changes in the spring or fall, you should expect some invasion. It happens to all of us. In addition to addressing ants as described above, you can consider, if you see more than a few, DIY a barrier for other creatures.
DIY Pest Prevention and Control
So what can you do?
Avoid bringing in and keeping cardboard boxes. These are favorite hiding spots… plus eggs can come in on them and hatch later, delivering an unwanted bonus to your package when you least expect it.
Take out trash and recycling sooner rather than later. Leaving it hanging around guarantees a nice breeding ground for potential newfound friends. This is true for everything, including those awful fruit flies we all battle late summer and early fall.
Clean sink and garbage disposal (if you have one). So speaking of fruit flies. They LOVE your kitchen sink. Give it a good cleaning!
Use Terro (for ants). This is for treating when you see ants. Terro, noted above, is a non-toxic way to wipe out a colony. Don’t every use sprays for ants. At best it will kill the ones you spray, and not the colony, so they will just keeping coming back. Worse, ants are smart, they find away around spray barriers.
Use a DIY barrier spray. BUT for other kinds of bugs, if you want to keep them out, you can use a barrier spray, available at most stores (including Walmart and Target). One of the off the shelf insecticides you can use is Ortho Home Defense, but be sure to follow the label! Personally, if its just a single bug from time to time, nuking the home or apartment with insecticide (read: poison) may not be the best choice. And always be mindful of how an insecticide might affect any pets you may have.
Contact a third-party pest control co. Really worried? We can recommend some third party pest control cos to help you out. But in most cases, keeping a clean place, and handling the above, will make it less likely you’ll be continually hosting unwanted visitors.
Hope this all helps! How can we help?
Hopefully you don’t find a bug. Odds are, though, you will! We hope some of this helps you prevent them, and address them if you find them. Please let us know how we can help you and any unwanted visitors you may have (of the insect variety–we can’t help as much with relatives, friends, friends’ friends….). Thanks for staying with us!