Yesterday, with the start of National Inspect and Protect Week, we encouraged everyone to “INvestigate” their homes as part of the INSPECT (INvestigate, Study, Prepare, Eliminate, Clean and Treat) process. Today, the next steps in the INSPECT process are to study these problems and prepare to take action against them.
You never know what that tiny pest crawling around your kitchen floor might be, especially since many pests appear different throughout the various stages in their life cycles. Common household pests are known to carry disease, which could be harmful to your family and pets. Being able to accurately identify pests within your home is an important first step in treating the problem.
By studying, you will equip yourself with the knowledge needed to confidently recognize household pests, realize the possible damage they can cause to your health and home, and understand how to better prepare for implementing the proper control procedure.
You will want to find out which pests are prone to your region, what they look like, the damage the can cause, what attracts them to your home, how to control them and how to prevent future infestations. Gathering thorough and helpful information on these topics will help you prepare for successful treatment. It might take a little extra time and effort to gather useful information from various sources, but a good place to start is by visiting your local lawn and garden store, contacting your local extension office or researching information from trusted sources on the Internet.
Our website, www.debugthemyths.com, hosts an assortment of tools that can help you with studying and preparing for household pest problems. Here you will find information from our team of specialists, receive answers to commonly asked pest questions, submit images of pests for proper identification from our team of experts, learn about state and local policies, and discover much more. The universities of Florida and Virginia Tech are great additional resources for review and management of common household pests.
Studying and preparing are fundamental elements in understanding how to implement suitable treatment options and eliminate pesky problems.
Visit the Debug the Myths site for even more tips on identifying pests and watch extension specialist Janet Hurley’s video of the day for information on how to better study and prepare for pest invasions.
