Dec 17, 2021, 09:24 AM by Fred Speer

Clark, your friendly pest control, grounds care, and termite expert, would like to remind you that pests – including rodents, spiders, and cockroaches – don’t celebrate the holidays the way we do. Their celebration centers around finding a way inside your home in search of food, water, and shelter.

These Ebenezer Scrooges can spread harmful diseases, spoil food and cause damage to wiring and property in your home. Where can pests hide during the holiday season?

Holiday decorations

Holiday decorations are an easy target for pests, because they are often stored in attics, closets, crawlspaces, storage sheds, and garages for the other 11 months of the year. Pests prefer out-of-the-way locations where they are not likely to be disturbed.

Boxes of fabric decorations, artificial trees, and wreaths and outdoor decorations make ideal pest harborage locations, because they provide shelter and are easily accessible to pests unless they are stored in tightly sealed boxes.

We recommend you carefully inspect boxes and storage containers before taking them out to deck the halls.

What are the signs of a pest infestation? They can include:

• Rodent droppings or gnaw marks on cardboard boxes
• Spider egg sacs
• Dead insect carcasses

If you spot something that looks suspicious, take the box outside for further inspection before unpacking the decorations inside your home. The same goes for the packages and deliveries that bring gifts and groceries to your home.

Bringing pests into your home

If your holiday decorating calls for using live greenery, including trees, wreaths, and holiday plants, make sure to give them a good shake outside before bringing them in. You don’t want a mouse, spider, or other pest hitching a ride into your home and making your abode its home for the holidays.

Tips for pest-free holidays

• After pulling decorations from storage, unpack them outdoors to check for signs of pest activity or damage.
• Shake off trees, wreaths, and garlands. Carefully inspect them for pests or eggs that can hide in branches before bringing them indoors.
• Inspect all foliage, flowers, and other decorations in the garage or on the patio before starting the projects and bringing them inside.
• Store firewood for your traditional holiday fire on a raised platform located at least 20 feet away from your house. Be sure to carefully inspect it for pests and brush it off before bringing it indoors.
• When storing decorations after the holidays, invest in durable, sealed containers – readily available from local big box stores – that pests can't chew through. Avoid using cardboard boxes or plastic bags that gnawing pests, like mice, can easily chew through.

Clark Pest Control remains committed to safeguarding your home from pests during these challenging times. Our service technicians use such personal protective equipment as gloves, masks, and respirators, they practice social distancing, and they adhere strictly to all Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines when servicing inside or outside your home.

If pests are a nuisance in and around your home during the holiday season, call California’s trusted, friendly pest control and removal expert, Clark, at (800) WE-NEED-YOU (936-3339) or email us at clarkcares@clarkpest.com.

Until next time, the pest management professionals at Clark Pest Control thank you for helping to keep unwanted pests out of your home.

Happy holidays from Clark Pest Control!