Every year thousands of homeowners undertake kitchen renovations for both practical and aesthetical reasons. Unfortunately, renovating your kitchen does not necessarily make it immune to common kitchen pests. Even if you have eliminated all dark nooks and crannies and installed brand new cabinets, it might not be quite enough to deter roaches, ants, and rodents from making it your playground.
These and other pests are known to find their way into even the best-designed kitchens where they contaminate food and spread bacteria. Luckily, all hope is not lost. Here are a few things you can do to keep your new kitchen pest-free.
Pest free kitchen: Dispose of Waste Regularly
Nothing attracts kitchen pests as quickly as food does. That is why it is essential to get rid of food scraps and general kitchen waste as swiftly as possible. It is also valuable to know what food is particularly potent pest magnets. Ants love sugary foods like honey, jelly, and syrup while cockroaches and rodents like to feast on peanut butter.
Scrape plates clean of leftovers after every meal and don’t leave your rubbish bin to overflow. Instead, take out the trash daily, making sure it is well-covered and inaccessible to pests. Washing your bins regularly with a quality antibacterial agent can further help keep ants, roaches, rodents, and other pests out of your kitchen.
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Eliminate Easy Access to Water for a pest free kitchen
Bugs and rodents not only look for homes with sufficient food but easy access to water as well. Once a pest finds a good source of both, it will become a lot harder to get rid of them. Although your plumbing was more than likely inspected during your renovations, you can never go wrong with inspecting your pipes and faucets on a regular basis.
Ensure your counters are dry after wiping them and invest in ant-proof food and water bowls for your pets to prevent pests from using them as an easy sustenance source.
Invest in Quality Airtight Containers
Where possible (and practical) food should be kept either in the fridge or freezer to prevent it from spoiling and to keep it out of reach of pests. Pantry items that cannot be refrigerated or frozen, like sugar, dry pasta, rice, and oats, should always be stored in airtight containers. This not only keeps the food items fresher, but also makes it much harder for pests to access them. When buying storage containers, opt for ones that don’t stain or retain odors, provide a truly airtight seals, and are easy to clean.
You can further reduce the risk of pests entering your kitchen by carefully inspecting all groceries before packing them away. Be on the lookout for any sign of damage to the packaging that might have been caused by bugs or rodents as well as rodent droppings. If you believe that your food may have been compromised, return it to the store immediately.
Photo by Kateryna Hliznitsova on Unsplash +
As much as a renovation can enhance the aesthetics and practicality of a kitchen, it can’t completely prevent pests from moving in. Thankfully, there are many things you can do to keep your kitchen free of ants, roaches, rodents, and other pests.
Cover by Jason Briscoe on Unsplash
