As the popular song says, "it’s the most wonderful time of the year!" Making your Louisville home festive inside and out, shopping for just the right gift for your loved ones, enjoying sweet treats, and homemade dinners - the Christmas season is the time of year we all look forward to. Unfortunately, there is one little detail that could put a little Scrooge into your celebrations! Pests love to hide in your Christmas decorations all year, and as you pull out the boxes you haven’t seen since this time last year, there is a chance you could introduce those pests into the rest of your home. Some of the most common Louisville pests to get into your Christmas decorations include mice, spiders, and silverfish, each with their own set of problems.
Cardboard boxes of decorations are the perfect place for mice and other rodents. You may see mice droppings or evidence of chewing on the box and decorations. When you move the box or start unpacking the decorations, you may even see the rodent run across the floor! Scary as an unexpected encounter may be, it's nothing compared to the damage and disease the mice can bring to your home. From contaminated food to urine and feces everywhere, to a quite shocking rate of reproduction, mice are a nightmare pest to have around.
Spiders can take up residence among your Christmas decoration storage, but they are also likely to come inside on holiday wreaths and freshly cut Christmas trees. Not only can the spiders themselves hitch a ride inside on the branches of your trees and wreaths, but they may lay eggs that can hatch once inside. It is rare that you will encounter a spider in the U.S. that has the ability to harm most people, but they will spread throughout the house if possible, leaving nasty cobwebs and appearing at the most inopportune moments. Beyond this, however, spiders will only last as long as they have food, so if you see spiders, you may want to be on the lookout for other pests as well.
Silverfish are commonly found in cardboard boxes. They love to eat paper and hide in damp, dark areas like boxes stored in sheds, attics, or basements, which makes them extremely common pests in your Christmas decorations. Silverfish can be hard to eliminate because they are both nocturnal and erratic in their habits, but leaving them alone could risk damage to treasured property or even contamination of your food supply, if not well secured.
Before bringing in a freshly cut Christmas tree or wreath, shake it out! It can shake the spiders right out of the branches, and hopefully any eggs that may be hiding among the pine as well. When storing your decorations this year, use plastic containers with airtight lids to keep pests from hiding inside. Beyond this, keeping your house properly sealed will prevent these pests from entering into your spaces in the first place. Finally, preventing Christmas-time pests can be assured with a year-round home pest control program. Action pest Control offers Louisville homeowners an all-inclusive solution to protect you and your family from more than 40 different pests, including those that love to hide among your Christmas decorations. Our Premier pest control solution covers all of the usual household pests, including mice, spiders, silverfish, and roaches, both indoors and within 40 feet of your home. Let Action Pest Control help you to have a wonderful time of year this year by keeping nasty and risky pests away from your home.