Pest Library

What You Need To Know About Pests In Inglewood, California

Many pests live throughout California and will try to take advantage of the food, water, and shelter your property can provide them. From tiny ants to large rats, guarding your home against the pests in Inglewood and the surrounding areas is essential. We have put together a helpful pest guide to help you learn more about our region's most common pests and how to keep them at bay.

Ants

Ants are small insects that most people can quickly identify. They have short bent antennae, six legs, and three defined body segments. Ants are well-known because they are regular visitors to our California properties. Our properties offer ants the things they want, and they won't hesitate to take advantage. 

• Food Sources: Trash cans, gardens, fruit trees, pet food, and outdoor eating areas
• Water Sources: Leaky hoses, clogged gutters, and overwatered gardens
• Nesting Sites: Wall voids, the soil under landscaping ties, mulch, rocks, or open sunny areas

Once ants realize they can have their basic needs met on your property, they will keep returning. 

Three of the most common species of ants in our region are the Argentine ant, crazy ant, and fire ant. Like most ants that find their way to our properties, crazy ants are nuisance ants. While nuisance ants don't cause significant issues, they will contaminate food and surfaces with bacteria, and you should always quickly remove them from your home. Fire ants and Argentine ants both pose health risks to people. Fire ants are aggressive and deliver painful venom-filled stings. Their venom is potent enough to trigger severe allergic reactions. Argentine ants spread disease-causing pathogens and, in health care facilities, infest IV bags and patient wounds as they search for sources of water.

Ants are difficult to control; they are small and can find their way into our homes through tiny openings. In order to help keep ants out of your house, it is important to inspect the exterior and make any necessary repairs often. Caulk cracks in the foundation, replace worm weatherstripping and door sweeps, place screens over vents, and seal spaces around wires and cables entering your home. For more information about ant control, call today. 

Bed Bugs

A bed bug infestation can happen in any of our homes. Whether your home has pets, kids, a lot of clutter, or is immaculate, bed bugs can become a problem in your Inglewood house. Bed bugs are indoor pests that move from structure to structure with the help of people. They will hitchhike on our clothing, luggage, bags, secondhand items, and other belongings. In addition, their increased resistance to pesticides makes them challenging to control. Bed bugs are small insects that feed on the blood of humans and animals like rodents, cats, dogs, and birds. Bed bugs are most active at night and typically bite and feed while their hosts sleep. While bed bugs are not known to transmit disease, their bites can be itchy and uncomfortable. Also, their presence in our homes can make people uncomfortable and cause interrupted sleep. 

You can take several preventative measures to stop bed bugs from taking over your home.

• Before bringing secondhand items inside your house, thoroughly inspect them for signs of bed bugs.
• Place bed-bug-proof covers over your family's mattresses. 
• Vacuum and dust regularly.
• Regularly check bed bug hot spots in your home like upholstered furniture, spaces behind wall hangings, outlets, cracks in wooden furniture, and cluttered areas. 

We can provide you with local pest control for bed bugs. Call today to learn about our bed bug control options. 

Cockroaches

The most common types of cockroaches to invade California homes are German cockroaches, American cockroaches, and Oriental cockroaches. American cockroaches are large reddish-brown roaches that thrive in warm, humid locations inside and outside our homes. They are the largest cockroaches to find their way into structures across the United States. German cockroaches are small, fast-moving creatures that have adapted to living indoors with people. They thrive in the warmth and humidity our home's kitchens, bathrooms, and wall voids provide. Oriental cockroaches have high moisture needs and are often called water bugs. They like to gather around drains, pipes, and other wet areas. 

Cockroaches are dangerous, and we should never tolerate their presence in or around our homes. Roaches are scavengers and feed on decaying plant and animal matter. They naturally come into contact with a lot of bacteria, parasites, and disease-causing pathogens. In our homes, they spread illnesses, contaminate food, cause allergic reactions, and make us uneasy. 

One of the best ways to control cockroach activity and make your property less attractive to these pests is to reduce excess moisture in and around your home. Repair leaky pipes, ensure your home has adequate ventilation, and ensure gutters are working correctly. Dehumidifiers are another helpful tool to win the fight against excess moisture in your home. Other steps to control cockroaches include keeping lids on trash cans, maintaining a clean kitchen, and properly storing your family's food. For more information about professional cockroach control, contact us today.

Fleas

Fleas are small insects that feed on the blood of warm-blooded animals. Though they have a very short lifespan, their ability to breed quickly allows them to be very successful, quickly taking over any indoor or outdoor space. The most common way an infestation begins is after wild animals, rodents, or pets bring them to your property.

Fleas become problematic in our homes because both people and our pets can provide them with a source of food. While fleas prefer to feed on the blood of animals, if people are all that is available, they will happily bite us and consume our blood. Their bites are annoying and can cause an unsightly and uncomfortable rash. Another issue with these pests is that they are small; being only the size of a speck of dirt, you can easily miss them until their numbers become too large to ignore.

If you own pets, one of the best ways to keep fleas out of your home is to place them on a year-round pest control program. Regular yard maintenance and making your yard as unattractive to rodents and wild animals as possible also help to keep these parasitic pests off your property. In your home, regularly vacuum to pick up stray fleas before they have the chance to take over. For help eliminating fleas, contact us today.

Rodents

Many pests become a problem in our Inglewood homes; mice and rats are some of the most problematic. These two types of rodents realize the benefits of living near people. As long as they have their needs met, they will stay and make themselves at home. Though rodents may want to call your house home, you can't let that happen. Mice and rats spread diseases, contaminate food, cause structural damage, and destroy personal property. 

Mice and rats can easily squeeze their bodies through small openings that develop in our home's exterior. They move into our homes while searching for food sources and safe shelter for nesting spots. Once inside, they quickly begin to breed and take over your house. Some of their favorite hiding spots include basements, attics, cabinets and closets, wall voids, and piles of clutter. 

Avoiding problems with rodents is difficult. They want to live with us. Doing the following things around your property can help you avoid problems with these pests.

• Trim landscaping back away from your home and maintain your lawn. 
• Keep lids on trash cans, remove bird feeders, and keep outdoor eating areas free of leftover food.
• Repair or cover openings that can provide rodents with entry points into your home.
• Remove areas of standing water from your property.

If you are tired of worrying about rodents, reach out today and learn about rodent control in Inglewood. 

Spiders

Spiders have two body segments, eight legs, many eyes, and lack wings and antennae. Spiders produce venom that they use to paralyze their insect prey. Most spiders, like common house spiders, only have venom potent enough to harm their prey, not us. However, our region has two species of dangerous spiders we need to guard our properties against; the black widow and the brown recluse. When dangerous spiders bite, they have venom potent enough to harm a person.

Spiders are helpful to the ecosystem but unwanted in our homes. These predatory arachnids help reduce populations of dangerous insects and garden pests. Spiders live in areas where their prey is plentiful, so if you see large numbers of spiders in or around your home, you need to address the overall pest problem on your property. 

Removing clutter inside and outside your home is essential to control spider populations. These reclusive creatures like to stay hidden, so the more hiding spots in and around your home, the longer it will take for you to discover a problem with these pests. To prevent spiders from moving into your house, make sure screens, weatherstripping, and door sweeps are intact. It is also important to regularly inspect your foundation and roofline, sealing any openings you discover. For professional spider control, reach out now. 

Trusted Solutions For All Of Your Pest Problems

For help maintaining a pest-free property, turn to the home pest control experts at Exclude Pest Exterminating Company. Our highly trained service techs and office staff are committed to our customers and eliminating their pest infestations. Call today to learn more about our residential or commercial pest control options!