• Pest prevention starts with a clean house.Sanitation represents the most basic tenet of Integrated Pest Management (IPM), because it deprives pests of food and shelter.
  • Clean food and drink spills immediately to deprive pests of snacks.
  • Remove clutter, such as newspaper stacks, where pests set up house.
  • Seal food in air-tight and secure containers.

• Maintain your home.
  • Repair leaky plumbing, which quenches pests’ thirst and moistens their air.
  • Seal cracks and block holes both inside and outside the house to bar pests from entry and freedom of movement.

• Take advantage of the food chain.
  • Don’t mess with Charlotte’s web! Spiders serve as natural predators to most pests, so consider spiders as helpful housemates (most spiders are completely harmless.)
  • Welcome ladybugs and other beneficial insects, which feed on aphids, mites, small insects, and insect eggs.
  • Enlist other predatory insects, birds and other wildlife to feast on pests by creating a hospitable habitat in your backyard. For example, bats eat as many as 3,000 insects a night, so build a bat-house in your yard.

• Set a trap.
  • Corner pests with the help of black lights (which attract moths), pheromones (which take advantage of sexual attraction), sticky paper, and good old fashioned mechanical traps.
  • Use barriers, such as window screens, to prevent pests from slipping in.

• Use least toxic alternatives.If pest problems persist after you’ve exhausted all non-toxic alternatives, work your way up the ladder of toxicity slowly, starting with the least toxic alternatives. Beyond Pesticides, a nonprofit organization promoting safe alternatives to toxic pesticides, lists the following pesticides as Least Toxic:
  • boric acid is an insect stomach poison that is less toxic, more effective and more economical than standard chemical pesticides, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
  • silica gels and diatomaceous earth both dehydrate pests
  • insect and rodent baits containing nonvolatile chemicals
  • pesticides made with essential oils, such as garlic, pepper extracts, and citrus oil, among others
  • insecticidal soaps made from fatty acids

• Look for an IPM practitioner.If success in your own pest control efforts eludes you, there are professional pest specialists who practice IPM. See Pest Control Without Pesticides for how to find one.

For recommended products and services for your family –  visit our Marketplace.

Back to Checklists »