As the song says, there has to be some rain in every life. One just has to hope that it is not a deluge. However, sometimes the smallest problems are big and feel bigger and more urgent than they really are. I certainly think this is the case when it comes to household pests.
It always feels terrible to know that you have this type of visitor. They’re even worse than those bores that make fun of trash cans, traffic, and parking (though honestly I might even welcome them after a year with no visitors). In part, I think it’s because the presence of pests indicates imperfect housekeeping, dirt, and thus feelings of shame. Well, let’s banish these first. Most of us will harbor some or all of these animals at some point in our lives. The most important thing is to act quickly and ruthlessly. Procrastination increases the population and therefore how difficult it will be for you to rid yourself of your pests. Here’s how to show them the door.
Ants
Find out where they’re coming from and plug the holes. Make sure to check out all the sweet, sticky drops and drips, such as: Remove from honey or jam. Pilot ants navigate with pheromones. To interfere with the smell, rinse the pathways with a mixture of half water and distilled white vinegar. Apparently, they don’t like the scents of peppermint and lavender either, so a few drops of essential oil in a spray bottle with a little water and a dash of vodka (this helps spread the oil in the water) put them off.
Bed bugs
Once, after a trip to Australia, I brought back more than one Akubra hat. In my suitcase was the horror that bedbugs are. I didn’t even know what they were until terrible, itchy, round red bites appeared on my legs. It seemed like a particularly outrageous Victorian-Urchin thing to be struck by.
I ended up calling an Annihilator who was wonderfully Gothic in his description of his struggle against these tiny beasts. It was all he did. (Not quite everything, since he gave me a flyer for his fetish club on the way out. People have rich inner worlds.) Wash everything you can at 60 ° C, vacuum thoroughly, and pick up the contents of the Bag or the cylinder from the house call the experts immediately, as it is almost impossible to get rid of them yourself. Contact either your local council or the British Pest Control Association (bpca.org.uk).
