Pests invading a rental property can cause all sorts of trouble. No one wants a home overrun with creepy crawlies, not to mention the sanitation and health problems they could bring. While pest control is usually the concern of the renters, keeping your single-family rental homes free of common pests should be a significant portion of your regular maintenance program and one that you should help your renters with conducting.
But, spraying harmful chemicals in and around a property is not always the best option. Residents with pets and children might be concerned about pesticides affecting their loved ones, and residents with certain health problems could be at risk too. Should this be the case, then natural remedies for pest control is for you. Some skilled exterminators profess to use natural products, and those are worth doing more research and perhaps listing preferred providers for your residents to refer to. However, there are other things you and your residents can do to keep your Brookland rental homes pest-free in a natural and safe manner.
A natural means to control access points for insects around the home is to utilize coffee grounds. Many household pests are repulsed by the smell, and so sprinkling your used coffee grounds in spots where you believe the bugs are coming in could be just as useful as a spray.
If you discover aphids eating your landscaping in your yard, try burying a banana peel beside the affected plant. This will enrich the soil and also keep your yard bug-free.
If fruit flies in the kitchen are a nuisance, try using apple cider vinegar to eliminate them. Simply put some apple cider vinegar in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and poke a few small holes on top. The vinegar will draw them in, but they will be trapped under the plastic. No more fruit flies!
To deter other kinds of flies, consider keeping a pot of sweet basil next to the entrance. Rosemary and sage are two other herbs that help repel mosquitos, a small anti-pest herb garden in the making.
Ants are another pest that’s common and can be tough to get rid of. Try pouring cornmeal in little mounds where you’ve found ants, inside and out. The ants will consume the cornmeal but won’t be able to digest it and are going to eventually die out. Another inexpensive and successful remedy is to mix dish soap with water in a spray bottle and spray the ants and their point of entry. Others include peppermint oil or leaves, which is effective in keeping mice at bay as well.
Effective pest control doesn’t need to be pricey or a health hazard. Nonetheless, if your Brookland rental home does get invaded, you should get a property management company that can help find the best solutions to unwanted pests. At Real Property Management DC Metro, we provide personalized and comprehensive property maintenance that is guaranteed to safeguard your real estate investment, whether from pests or anything else that could cause your property value to go down. For more information, please contact us online or call us at 202-269-0303 today!
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