Our pantries are natural targets for pests looking for an easy snack. However, certain types of pests, which we lump into the category of pantry pests, thrive when living in our cupboards and closets. Avoiding these pests takes early prevention, paying careful attention to the ways they can be introduced to your home, and often requires regular inspections and treatments from A Step Above Pest Control. By reaching out for affordable and effective pest control in Los Angeles, you can make sure pantry pests are never an issue in your home.
What Kind Of Pests Can Invade Your Pantry?
This category of pantry pest includes insects like moths, beetles, and their larvae, which can invade your home or even sneak into your home by hiding inside store-bought goods without you realizing it. These bugs typically eat oats and grains, including cereals, but certain pantry pests can be attracted to other products we don’t think of as food, like tobacco.
Of course, other pests like ants and rodents can also be attracted to pantries or cupboards since these are the areas where our food is stored. In fact, all kinds of pests can chew through packaging and contaminate your stored goods. That’s why it’s important to take preventative steps to protect your home from invasions, including regularly checking your pantries for signs of pests.
Signs You Could Be Dealing With Pantry Pests
When it comes to pantry pests, the first and only sign that homeowners get that they have an infestation is often seeing the pests themselves. You may open up a container of food to find small Indian meal moths or pantry beetles crawling around inside. You may also spot their smaller larvae, which gorge themselves on food sources to grow into mature adults. Where there are pests, there are also eggs, but sifting through contaminated food to find them can be all but impossible. Instead, people often just throw away that food and carry on, but the problem can easily spill outside the confines of that one bag or box, which is why broader inspections of your home are so important. To truly spot the signs of a pantry pest inspection, turn to the pest control professionals.
Tips & Tricks To Combat A Pantry Pest Problem
No one likes the thought of their food being contaminated, which is why people often turn to pantry pest traps, which can be bought at most department stores, as a way of combating a pantry pest infestation. However, store-bought methods often won’t address the entire problem, so the best thing you can do for your home—aside from calling the professionals—is to keep up with these prevention tips:
- Inspect Food Packaging. When you buy food items, you should inspect the packages they come in for holes or punctures that might indicate contamination.
- Use Sealable Containers. One way you can inspect the contents of a food package and help ensure your goods are stored securely is to transfer grains, starches, and other dry food products into your own sealable containers.
- Discard Infested Food Items. If you do notice contaminated food, throw it away immediately and then inspect and clean around the pantry or cupboard it came from.
To effectively combat a pantry pest problem, it’s better to have a trained pair of eyes to walk you through what to look for. Turn to A Step Above Pest Control if you suspect pantry pests in your home.
Consult The Professionals To Handle Pantry Pests In Los Angeles
Pantry pest control products that you buy from the store may work to kill a couple bugs, but chances are these methods won’t actually eliminate the problem. Even if a product eliminates nearly all the bugs in your home, it only takes a handful of surviving pests to replenish the population. As new eggs hatch into larvae or as larvae change into mature adult beetles or moths, the infestation will come right back.
To truly get rid of and control pantry pests in Los Angeles, turn to the pros who know how to completely eradicate the population of pantry pests in your kitchen and inspect your home for other areas where the problem might have spread. Contact A Step Above Pest Control today to get true pantry pest protection.