How to Keep Your Holidays Pest-Free

Simple Tips to Keep Your Home Pest-Free This Holiday Season

Holiday decorating can enhance a home’s aesthetics, warming it up with lights and greenery, but could festive decorations be inviting in more than just the holiday spirit?

To avoid unwanted house-guests such as rodents and spiders, we encourage homeowners to clean off their holiday decorations and check for signs of pests before bringing them down from the attic, in from the garage, or up from the basement.  Mites and moths have been known to nest in live greens like trees, wreaths, and garlands, which often end up being used to decorate the home during the holidays. Homeowners should inspect these items for evidence of pests and shake them out before bringing them indoors. This will help to minimize any chance of an infestation in your home.

“To avoid bringing pest infested decorations inside the home, carefully inspect trees and wreaths, and give them a good shake outside prior to bringing them in,” said Catseye President Joe Dingwall. “Look for telltale signs, like gnaw marks, droppings, and spider egg sacs, on items you take out of storage from your garage or attic. When the holidays are over, it’s important to store any decorations you intend to reuse in sealed containers.”

Follow these tips to prevent pests from invading your holiday decor:

• Shake off trees, wreaths, and garlands and carefully inspect them for pests or eggs that may be hiding in the branches before bringing them inside.

• Don’t leave food out or uncovered.

• Store firewood on a raised structure that is located at least 15 feet away from the home and brush off the wood before bringing it indoors.

• After pulling decorations out of storage, unpack them outdoors to check for pests, such as mice. Look inside boxes for rodent droppings or gnaw marks, especially on strings of lights to ensure the wires aren’t damaged.

• When storing decorations after the holiday season, use durable, sealed containers that pests can’t chew through instead of cardboard boxes or plastic bags.

These simple guidelines will make holiday decorating a seamless, pest-free process year to year.

If you suspect an infestation, contact us for a free inspection. Happy Holidays!