Spring Cleaning at Home: Pest Dangers You Should Know

Digging up unexpected treasures in homes while sprucing up for the festivities is common when you find something valuable and of memento in that dark little corner… stashed away in the thick of dust and abandoned cobwebs.

What you don’t want to find in these places are creatures and creepy crawlies which can make your heart jump for a second and which you think can be potentially harmful and dangerous to you and your family.

We prepared for you 3 danger pests you should be aware of before you embark on cleaning out the house. Get ready for these and know how to handle them when you cross paths with them.

1st Pest Danger: Lo and behold! Broken furniture pieces…

• Scenario: When discarding bulky furniture pieces, cleaning up wooden areas and trying to force- open tight doors and windows which are hardly used.
• Danger pest: Termites (‘White ants’)
• Danger posed: Watch out for termite ridden wood pieces that may crumble on you… Weakened structure and empty-hearted wooden pieces crumble easily at a slightest touch. Your health & safety can be compromised with falling debris.
• Why are termites dangerous? Opening tight doors and windows pose a risk when doors and windows that are attacked by termites could come off into pieces. Doors and windows become tight fitting in a case of termite infestation. Termites widely known as ‘white ants’ in Singapore, they feed mainly on wooden and cellulose materials. Eating from the inside-out, this means that termite damage cannot be seen from the outside. Termite repair can be costly due to the extensive damage that often resulted.

There are some risks involved in DIY termite treatment at home and even local myths surrounding termite treatment options.

Termite treatment at home has to be safe especially with children at home, and there are various professional pest control companies in Singapore which carry out safe termite treatment.

Having a termite warranty with a pest control company in Singapore can potentially raise your property value. Find out more on your termite treatment options here.

2nd Pest Danger: Revisiting your DIY cockroach traps

• Scenario: Cleaning out creaks and nooks of your cupboards, drawers. Dark corners in storage rooms, underneath staircases… While doing so, you find both dead and live cockroaches sticking on the previous DIY cockroach traps you have placed.
• Danger pest: Cockroaches
• Danger posed: Unexpected cockroach hiding places, harmful cockroach droppings, and contaminated surfaces they crawled on.
  Beware of having one jumping out on you!
• Why are cockroaches dangerous? Cockroaches like to hide and rest in dark places to avoid humans. They crawl out of the same hiding place at the same time daily regardless of lighting conditions.

There is also a chance that you may accidentally sweep out egg cases and stir the resting areas for cockroaches. Egg cases laid by female cockroaches known as ‘oothecae’, are oval, brownish and long-shaped. An infestation is definitely going on when ‘oothecae’ are found!

While dealing with dead or live cockroaches sticking onto your cockroach traps can be nerve wrecking, be careful not to touch cockroach droppings as they possibly contain harmful microorganisms.

What are some more dangers cockroaches could possibly pose? Read more here

3rd Pest Danger: I have ants in my house!

• Scenario: Shifting around wooden home furniture, there are accidental nesting places for carpenter ants.
• Danger pest: Huge black carpenter ants
• Danger posed: Getting a painful stinging ant bite
• Why are ants dangerous? If you have ever experienced a painful ant bite before, it can be stinging on the skin and a red itchy welt will also develop around the bitten area. Although localised, the painful ant bite may take at least up to a day for the swell to go down!

With ants weighing less than 5mg, they can crawl on you without you knowing until a painful bite is executed.

Especially for carpenter ants in the house, they are capable of executing painful bites to humans. Black carpenter ants can be found in Singapore homes nesting in pieces of wood. Woods with moisture problem are prone to such attacks by black ants.

You would wonder… what do I do if I have ants in my house? Especially with carpenter ants in the house, they are typically more challenging to handle than the usual house ants. Professional ant control by a pest control company in Singapore can help to alleviate your ant worries.

Here are some DIY tips you could use at home.