With the brighter days of spring come the many little creeping, crawling, and flying critters of summer, making it even more important than ever to prepare for hatching season. Whether your property is in the garage or storage there are a few simple tips and techniques that you can do to prevent bugs and vermin from getting into your belongings and ruining them.

It’s amazing how even the smallest of cracks and holes can seem like a four-room house to creatures such as moths, bees, ants, mice, and other common pests. Their ease of entry can make it difficult to keep the upper hand on pest control; that’s why it is important to ensure that you at least annually perform an inspection of your storage area and the items being stored there for signs of infestations or incursions. Things to look for are:

  • Tattered or Chewed Up Box Corners
  • Wet Spots or Stains on Boxes or Pavement
  • Droppings
  • Dried up or Under Construction Wasp Nests (They like to return year after year.)
  • Ant Trails
  • Spider Webs

Clearing out damaged containers, all possible nesting materials, and trash and debris that can be blown in and accumulated removes those items that attract unwanted guests forcing them to look elsewhere.

In addition to basic cleaning and yearly inspections, there are a few additional things you can use to deter these pests and rodents from taking up housekeeping in your storage area.

  • Moth Balls – Depending on where you live, moths can be a huge problem. Their yearly migration stirs up dust and leaves damage in their wake as they eat their way across the country laying eggs for future generations of destructors. Using mothballs creates an environment uninviting to moths so that your cherished belongings are protected from moths eating through and pooping all over them.
  • Laundry Sheets – These are not just for keeping your clothes smelling fresh and static free. Placing laundry sheets in boxes and suitcases with clothes and linens also deters bedbugs and other parasites.
  • Sonic Shield – The market is full of sonic devices that simply plug into the wall outlet and provide an ultrasonic noise that is supposed to send rodents running. For pennies a day in energy costs, it is well worth a try.
  • Dried Herbs and Essence Oils – A storage unit is not the most ideal place to grow living plants which would be an excellent resource for organic pest control. But, using dried herbs such a peppermint and rosemary or essence oils like citrus will provide you with a similar effect without having to water.

Although mini-storage facilities do routinely perform maintenance and pest control procedures, nature will always find a way, that’s why it is important to do all that you can do to help in the fight against critters. For more suggestions or any questions, you may have regarding our maintenance and pest control policies and procedures, feel free to contact one of our helpful staff at Browning Park Mini Storage.