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5 Most Common Household Pests and How to Control Them


These tiny white, tan, or black bugs are known for attacking the lumber that is used to build homes but can also be a hazard to books, furniture, and food products deeper within a home’s structure. The queen termite can lay thousands of eggs in a single day leading to exponential damage to your home. If you see swarms of small winged insects in the spring or fall or find tunneling, darkening, or blistering in wood, you may have a termite infestation.

There are many species of termites and the methods for ridding your home of them will depend on which type you have, but no matter what type of termites have infested your home, professional removal of them is typically required. In order to help prevent them from getting in in the first place, keep wood 12-inches above ground and properly ventilate the structure so that is doesn’t retain moisture which is a common draw for termites. Some types of wood are more resistant to termites than others so when building new construction, select termite resistant woods such as cedar, redwood, and white oak.