If you're building a survival stockpile of food so your family has some protection in times of uncertainty or after a natural disaster, learning how to protect your supplies is important. If you don't store food properly, it can go bad or be destroyed by insects and rodents. Mice can be a serious threat to your stockpile, so it's good to have a prevention plan in place. Here are three tips for keeping mice out of your food storage pantry.
1. Store Sealed Food In A Dry Place
A fundamental step in mice control is to eliminate food and water for the pests. Mice can easily gnaw through cardboard boxes and paper sacks. Keep food in thick plastic containers that snap shut, glass jars, or even metal trashcans with tight lids. This helps control food odors and makes it difficult or impossible for mice to get to your food.
Be sure the storage area is dry too. Mice are attracted to dripping water or high humidity when they're searching for a drink. Plus, other pests are attracted to dampness, so be sure the storage area is dry and clean up spills promptly.
2. Leave Out Traps
Traps are effective at eliminating mice, and they can also be used to monitor for them. You can buy live traps or electric traps if you don't like the idea of having snap traps set all the time. Place traps in your pantry and other areas where mice might hide, such as your attic or a cluttered room.
If you see mice are eating the bait or if you catch a mouse, then you may want to get aggressive at placing traps around the house until you no longer see signs of mouse activity. If it looks like you have several mice or if you keep catching a mouse or two every night, you may want to call a mice control professional for help. Mice can be difficult to eliminate once they move in, and you want to get rid of them as fast as possible.
3. Keep Your House Tidy And Clean
If your stockpile area shares pantry space with your daily food supply, take steps to keep the pantry clean by wiping up crumbs and spills. Keep food you're currently eating in sealed containers too so open sacks or boxes don't attract mice.
In addition to keeping your food storage area clean, keep your home as clean as you can since clutter attracts mice and gives them a safe place to hide and breed. Don't make it easy for mice to move in and take over. Eliminate their food, water, and hiding places so your home isn't a comfy retreat, and get help from a mice control exterminator at the first sign of an infestation.
For more information, contact a mice pest control service today.
Pest control is a complex topic. To really master the subject, you need to know about many different pests, how they all react to different control measures, and how to prevent pest infestations in the first place. It's really helpful to break this topic down into smaller chunks. That's what we aim to do on this website. We offer a wide range of articles on particular pest control subjects. No one article will teach you everything you need to know, but they all include bits and pieces of knowledge which, when added together, will teach you quite a lot. Start reading to learn more about pest control and pests.