The kitchen is widely the most used space in a house as people spend hours preparing food there. Also, it’s a place where you store your food, and at times eat your food. As much as you love spending hours in the kitchen, it is also one space where you see the most bug infestation.
This space not only attracts children for an after-school snack but also draws in various insects, from weevils and fruit flies to ants and cockroaches. This problem increases during the winter and monsoon periods, with infections and diseases being brought in by the vermin.
So, if you’ve ever walked into your pantry for a midnight snack just to be shocked and dismayed by a scuttling cockroach or rats, you are not alone. Kitchen bugs and pests are common, and an infestation is not wanted in your house.
You can get rid of these bugs by taking some precautions, by using pest control plants, or by using pesticides. Unsure how to go about it? You are in the right place.
This article comprehensively covers what you need to know to get rid of bugs in the kitchen as it’s one such area where bugs can do no good.
So, let’s get started!
What Are Kitchen Bugs?
Kitchen bugs refer to any unwanted creepy-crawling insect in your home. The pests could be small beetles, four-legged insects like cockroaches, six-legged insects such as weevils or beetles, eight-legged spiders, flying gnats, or larvae of any bug type.
Top 8 Ways to Eliminate Kitchen Bugs
Sharing food with unwanted pests is not fun. Bugs, such as cockroaches and ants, creep into homes searching for what to eat. Luckily, there are different steps you can take to eliminate these hungry pests whether they are ants, weevils, silverfish, or fruit flies.
Below is a list of tips on how to keep bugs away from your kitchen. Some of them, like pest control for roaches, are proven to be more effective than others. There are also proactive measures that you can take to make your kitchen free of pests.
Check out the list.
1. Pest Control Services
It is critical to use experienced pest control services because your treating assessor will go above and beyond to find and eliminate the source of the infesting pest. Contact pest control services as soon as you notice bugs to ensure you catch your infestation early. This is necessary before the infestation spreads and becomes more difficult to control.
If the situation has already gone too far, full-service pest control can be the best option to regain control of your kitchen.
2. Seal Cracks & Holes
Check the exterior and interior of your house for cracks or gaps and observe the areas close to windows and doors. Take note of the place where pipes or utility lines enter the house.
Close any holes with steel wool or caulk. Also, replace or repair damaged door and window screens. This way, you can prevent bugs, especially rodents and cockroaches from entering your home.
3. Get the Right Storage Containers
One of the best ways to avoid pantry pests is to use proper storage containers. Leaving foodstuff in bags or storing grains such as rice in non-tight containers is an enticement for bugs. They can enter via wood and flimsy plastics easily, so you have to improve your storage and ensure everything is carefully stored.
Put your dried cuisine substances, including rice, flour, cereal, dried fruits, and nuts, into sturdy sealed containers. It is advisable to use glass or BPA-free plastic containers with tight-fitting lids. Also, putting food in the fridge can help avoid fruit flies. However, if you keep vegetables and fruit out, ensure they don’t spoil.
4. Clean Up Crumbs & Spills ASAP
Many kitchen bugs get into your homes on the hunt for food and they stick around because you feed them with food spills. If you drop anything, say food crumbs and spills on the floor, counters, or table, you have to clean it up immediately. It’s not just about sweeping it away; you have to clean it with soap and water to get rid of pests and insects taking over your kitchen.
Also, keep your sink free of dirty dishware. Bugs love dirty plates as they get to feast right off them. One way to stop this is by washing dirty dishware as soon as possible or soaking them in soapy water to prevent kitchen pests from getting into it.
Additionally, if you have pets, keep their meal bowls clean when they are not eating. It’s also essential to take the trash out regularly to avoid attracting pests. Trash the garbage as soon as you can, particularly after a food prep session or after dropping leftovers.
5. Clean all Appliances Regularly
Wiping down your kitchen appliances often is very essential in managing pests. This may look apparent for appliances with crumbs leftovers in them such as microwaves, ovens, and toasters. But other appliances can also be appealing to pests. With the pantry having plenty of food and water, it’s a nice place for bugs. There’s really everything they require to create a colony.
For instance, the coffeemaker can be an attractant for ants as they’re easily attracted to heat sources. Also, appliances like the oven, air fryer, blender, hood, and hob are probable hideaways for bugs. Especially if you don’t clean them immediately after each usage.
Additionally, for appliances you don’t always use, ensure you tightly seal them in a big transparent plastic bag (which makes it easier to locate when you need them). Keep them away neatly.
6. Clean Your Cabinets
Those shady corners in your pantry storage cabinets are spots kitchen bugs like to hide. Giving a regular deep cleaning of your kitchen cupboards can assist with pest control for roaches. Empty everything in the kitchen and wipe it down with soap and water.
Furthermore, check items for pest signs including dents, scratches, and holes on the packaging. In addition, kitchen pests creep into packages where they will feed and breed. So, if you store anything in packets, check if there are tears or holes in them. If the bugs have managed to enter the packets. Also, you’ll want to take away any expired items.
7. Wipe Down Bottles
Another food source that’s usually overlooked is the spillage on the bottles’ external parts that are stored in the kitchen. Oftentimes, the culprits are deposits sticking around on the container. These are oil, syrup, honey, and peanut butter that invite insects.
If you are having difficulty locating an infestation food source, wipe down these bottles with any other jars that might be prone to deposit from drips.
8. Natural Pest Control
Some plant fragrances naturally resist pests. Some prolific garden plants are natural pest control or insecticides that repels ants. Others work in mosquito pest control, cockroach pest control, and spider pest control. Apparently, insects are allergic to the smell of certain plants and cannot withstand their odor.
For example, when it comes to how to get rid of cockroaches, some plants like lavender and peppermint are cockroach control plants that help discourage cockroaches.
Also, bay leaves have a very strong odor that keeps bugs such as ants, cockroaches, and weevils away. Keeping a few bay leaves in packets or boxes of dry food substances like rice, flour, and any other grains can eliminate these sets of bugs.
But, remember that these plants are only moderately effective when it comes to pest control. If the infestation has already spread wide, then these natural pest control measures could be of little help only.
9. Chemical Treatments/ Pesticides
Although keeping a clean kitchen can help keep insects away, this isn’t sufficient enough to keep these bugs out. Some insects don’t care if you have sparkling clean floors. They are searching for one thing, and that is your groceries.
Removing the meal source should cut the rate of insects in your pantry drastically. But the best way to keep any pest away from your home is through thorough pest control. Especially if your infestation is rigorous and has not been eradicated by any of the above-mentioned solutions, consider commercial pesticides.
These pest control options are home bug spray or substances that help kill bugs on contact and give residual repellency. In addition, this form of pest control does not stop its work in the kitchen. It also works effectively when it comes to how to treat termites in walls. Also, it works as pest control for honey bee nest removal and for bed bugs in your bedroom.
Spraying the perimeter of your house and near windows and doors can keep bugs out permanently. You can also use insecticide dust, like spider control dust, in the crevices and cracks of cupboards for long-term protection.
Overall, these pest control measures can eliminate a severe infestation so you can swiftly get a resolution and stop further harm.
Conclusion
Kitchen bugs are not only horrible and disgusting, but they transmit germs and bacteria around the space where you cook and eat meals. Oftentimes, you don’t even know you have an infestation, so it’s essential to take the right precautions to stop them from entering your home even before they do.
Thankfully, there are several ways to eliminate these pests. Keeping your cooking area sparkling clean all year long is not always easy, particularly during summer, when the conflict of the bugs extremely increases. Hence, your best bet for a pest-free kitchen can be by ensuring tables and cabinets are wiped down, cuisine and dry products are kept in airtight containers, and using the right pest control services at regular intervals.
By applying all the tips above, you will be somewhat surprised how much your kitchen will be free from all sorts of bugs.