Top 10 pre-summer maintenance tips to pest-proof your home:

1. Seal any cracks on your home’s exterior – e.g., around windows, doors, air conditioning and water lines
    
2. Repair torn window and sliding-door screens, as pests will enter your home through them
    
3. Mosquitoes love standing water, so eliminate the source: bird baths, clogged gutters and pools that are not circulating water with a pump
    
4. Keep shrubs and trees trimmed away from your home
    
5. Keep your pets’ feeding and drinking area clear of leftover food
    
6. Clean your countertops after each use, as food and drink residue will attract both ants and roaches
    
7. Food cabinets should be kept tidy; seal those opened packages inside containers to avoid a possible food source
    
8. Vacuum and clean your floors on a regular basis
    
9. Keep your shed and garage clear of food items and clutter – rodents will feed and nest in these locations
    
10. Inspect your outdoor garbage area for pest activity regularly, and keep the area clean and uncluttered

This list should help keep pest activity at a minimum around your home during the hot-weather months. If you do suspect an infestation of any kind, call your friendly local experts at Kill A Bug JSA 071 607 0813 email kabjsa@telkomsa.net or web www.kabjsa.co.za

Summer is coming so is bugs

Bug bites and stings are common, especially in the summer. Most of the time a bite or sting from an insect is harmless and will heal on its own. Certain kinds of ticks and mosquitoes however, can transmit serious illnesses such as Lyme disease, Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), West Nile Virus, Yellow Fever, and Malaria, depending on where you live or travel to.
The best way to protect yourself from bug bites and stings is to avoid places where bugs are likely to be or wear long sleeves and long plants and insect repellant.
Here are some tips:

• Wear light colored clothing: long sleeve shirts, long pants, socks and shoes.
• Try not to wear bright or flower print clothing when you’re outside near stinging bugs. They may think you’re a flower!
• Avoid wearing perfume or scented lotion when outside.
• Be careful when eating sweets or drinking out of soda cans while outside (bees and wasps often fly into soda cans then sting a person when they take a sip).
• Avoid areas with puddles of still water as mosquitoes lay their eggs there.
• Don’t harm a bee or wasp nest.

Her Majesty, The Termite Queen

A Mouse in the house

The weather in our area has gotten cold and we’re not the only ones that have noticed. Mice and other rodents have noticed too and have started looking for places to spend the winter. Kind of like how birds migrate south in the winter, mice and rats start looking for a warmer locale that will allow them to happily enjoy the winter months. And even though it’s not going to suit you, your home seems perfect to rodents and if they can find a way inside, they will. In fact, you could have them in your home this very minute! Now, we don’t say that to scare you, but you should be aware that you could have rodents racing through the walls, attic and basement of your home. Here are some signs that your home is currently making a nice comfy winter residence for local rodents:

1. Rodent droppings are sign that rodents are definitely present. These droppings look a bit like dark brown grains of rice and can be found anywhere that rodent have been. Some of the most obvious places these can be found are in kitchen cupboards and drawers in the kitchen.
2. Gnawing evidence in food cupboards and around baseboards. Rodents will also chew on electrical wiring and insulation and even wallboard.
3. Smile piles of debris near kitchen cabinets and drawers, or areas that have a lot of clutter in basements and attics. These areas are feeding stations for rats and mice and the piles of debris are essentially rodent ‘trash’ piles.
4. Strange noises like scrabbling in the walls, in the kitchen cupboards and in the attic. You may hear gnawing, scratching or squeaking too.
5. Sometimes a strong musty odor accompanies a highly infested location that has remained closed up. 

These signs all indicate that you do in fact have a rodent infestation, be it mice or rats in your home. These creatures should be evicted immediately. Having them in your home can be dangerous to the health and safety of your family and your pets. They spread diseases, contaminate food sources and can damage the structural integrity of your home. If you have these pests inside your home, call the professionals at Kill a bug JSA immediately for rodent control services. We will come to you as soon as possible and help you locate and eradicate all rodents living in your home. We can also help you locate possible entry points so that you can prevent future rodent infestations. Contact us today in Alberton and Johannesburg south, kabjsa@telkomsa.net  071 607 0813