What if you were invaded by insects without knowing it? A specialist gives tips for checking that your home is not infested.
7 pest control products out of 10 are potentially dangerous to health. We can prefer baking soda but we still have to be aware that we have an insect problem. It’s not just by being careful not to leave food on the floor, including in the dirtiest part of its interior. A specialist encourages you to be attentive to various signs to spot parasites invisible to the naked eye.
In addition to crumbs, insects can be attracted by water clogging, inadequate sanitation or even a change of season. Pest control expert Nicholas Donnithorne of Rentokil Property Care explained to The Sun thatyou have to watch out first for “small holes in the wooden surfaces“. This is where wood-eating beetles usually lay their eggs. The larvae burrow “into the wood to feed” and leave strange holes.
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Signs to look out for to spot insects in your home
Nicholas Donnithorne says: “After three to five years (in the case of the furniture beetle), watch out for tiny round (2mm) exit holes in wooden furniture, flooring and structural timber, as they may be signs of the emergence of adult beetles”.
In spring, from April to Septemberthe wood begins to warm up and this is when the adults appear.
Also watch out for other signs like small white eggs indoors or on wooden surfaces and furniture. In general, the eggs of classic furniture beetles are 0.55 mm long and 0.35 mm wide. They are hard to see, so watch the edge of the wood or the inside of old exit holes.
If the wood crumbles or weakens, here is another sign. The larvae may have fed on the wood after hatching from the eggs. Sawdust, grub droppings, tapping or rustling noises are other indications.
Wood-eating beetle species, such as the wood beetle, make tapping sounds when communicating with each other or with potential mates. “Larger larvae can also be heard burrowing inside the wood”, concludes the expert.