Pest Library

What You Need To Know About Pests In Syracuse, NY

When pests find a way into our homes, it is unsettling, but knowing a bit about them is helpful. The sooner you identify a pest problem, the sooner you can call for help and eliminate them from your Syracuse home. Our pest guide overviews the pests that are most common in the Central New York area.

Ants

Ants are problematic pests for many people; they find their way into our yards and often into our homes to forage for food. These social insects are social and live together in large groups. They typically nest outside, but after entering our homes sometimes decide to stay, create a satellite nest, and become a permanent member of our households. However, having ants living with us is never something we should allow; even though ants are small in size, they can cause big problems as a group. Ants are excellent communicators and, through the use of pheromone trails, can alert all their colony members to new sources of food, water, and shelter.

When ants are in our homes and yards, the word usually used to describe them is "annoying." But ants are more than an inconvenience, they can cause some significant problems, and you should never ignore their presence. Before crawling around your countertops, ants were outside traveling along the ground and through some less than sanitary areas. They carry and spread bacteria that can contaminate food and surfaces and make us ill. Some ants are described as dangerous because they spread human pathogens, bite or sting, or cause structural damage. An example of a dangerous ant living in our area is the carpenter ant. When these large black ants decide to invade our homes, it is common for them to stay and create a satellite nest. They prefer to nest in water-damaged wood, making our home’s structural wood a target. Over time, as their tunnels and nesting galleries become more elaborate, their presence causes expensive and difficult to repair structural damage. 

You can do several things around your yard and home to make it less attractive to ants. Our top ant prevention tips are listed below.

• If you see ants gathering in a specific area in your yard or home, investigate what is attracting them and eliminate it.
• Keep lids on trash cans and recycling bins to keep foraging ants out of them.
• Repair leaky pipes, dripping air conditioners, and clogged gutters that are supplying them with a water source.
• Remove things like fallen trees, leaf piles, and excess woodpiles that ants could build a nest under or within.
• Keep ants out of your home by sealing gaps around windows and doors, caulking cracks in the foundation, and filling in spaces around utility entry points.
• Make your home less attractive to destructive carpenter ants by using dehumidifiers to lower humidity levels and replacing any wood in your home that becomes damaged by water.

Bed Bugs

The bed bug’s name is very descriptive and tells us where they spend much of their time. Blood-feeding pests, bed bugs rely on the blood of warm-blooded animals for all their nutritional needs. Bed bugs are nocturnal and spend their days hiding their flat, apple seed-shaped bodies near their preferred food source — people. The seams of our mattresses and box springs provide them with the perfect hiding areas and easy access to their sleeping hosts. Though we regularly find them in bedrooms, it is important to understand that their name can be misleading. Bed bugs hide in various places when in our homes, not just in our bedrooms. Other hideouts include cracks in wood furniture, behind wall hangings, and inside wall voids behind electrical outlets. Upholstered furniture and pet bedding also make suitable hangouts for bed bugs.

Bed bugs are prolific breeders, and just a few hitchhiking their way into your home on your clothing or personal belongings can quickly lead to a large, hard-to-contain infestation. Though bed bugs aren’t necessarily dangerous pests, you should never ignore their presence. Bed bug bites can cause a range of responses, including no reaction at all, itching around the bite site, or a whole-body reaction. Though an allergic response isn’t ideal, the bigger problem with bed bugs is the toll they can take on your mental health. No one can be comfortable in their bed or sleep soundly at night with bed bugs around. Don’t live with bed bugs a day longer than necessary; reach out to us for help as soon as possible. 

You can do several things to identify bed bugs in your home and stop them from taking over. Our top bed bug prevention tips are listed below.

• Place protective covers on mattresses and box springs in your house.
• Wash bedding regularly and inspect mattresses for bed bugs.
• Regularly wash and dry bedding, and examine the bedding and mattresses for bed bugs or their signs ( drops of blood, dark streaks of excrement, shed skins) during the process. 
• Routinely vacuum your floors and upholstered furniture to remove stray bed bugs.
• Bed bugs are professional hitchhikers, so always inspect secondhand furniture, rugs, mattresses, and clothing for signs of bed bugs before bringing them into your room.

Cockroaches

Many species of cockroaches live outside, thriving in warm temperatures. However, when the temperatures cool off in New York, cockroaches living outside will migrate indoors searching for food and water. These roaches typically move inside on their own through spaces they discover in exterior walls, drains, or vents. Other species of cockroaches have adapted to primarily living inside of our structures, taking advantage of the food, warmth, and moisture our homes provide. Cockroaches that live indoors invade new structures by hitchhiking in things like boxes, bags, and secondhand furniture, appliance, or electronics.

Once inside our homes, cockroaches gather in areas that provide them with food and water sources like kitchens, bathrooms, and utility rooms. Cockroaches are scavengers and feed on many of the same foods we do and some non-edible things like soap, shampoo, and toothpaste. The food and water that our homes provide cockroaches are why these pests are such a prolific problem; unfortunately, they have learned our homes will provide them with their basic needs! In addition to feeding on and contaminating our food, cockroaches are dangerous to have in our homes because as they travel throughout, they leave behind invisible threats like E. coli, salmonella, and disease-causing pathogens. 

You can do several things around your home to stop cockroaches from taking it over. Our top cockroach prevention tips are listed below.

• Always inspect deliveries and secondhand items for cockroaches before bringing them into your home. 
• Keep your kitchen floor, tables, and counters free of food debris, sticky spills, and leaking faucets.
• If possible, limit eating to the kitchen or dining room to reduce the number of crumbs throughout your house.
• Inspect your home’s exterior walls and seal up any cracks you discover.
• Place covers over drains and vents entering your house.

Rodents

Rodents are a group of mammals that all have constantly growing front incisors. Their front teeth are strong, chisel-like, and are critical to their survival. To keep their teeth sharp and ready to help them gather food and create their nests, they continuously gnaw on anything they encounter. While rodents are technically wild animals, these wild animals have come to somewhat rely on people for their survival. They regularly make their way into our New York homes to take advantage of the food and shelter they provide. Our wall voids, cabinets, and storage areas become nesting sites for them, and our kitchen and pantries becoming places they forage for food.

The two most common rodents to make themselves comfortable in our Syracuse homes are the mouse and the rat. Mice and rats share many similarities, including being unwanted pests that cause damage to the structures of our homes, contaminate food, and spread diseases. Other reason to not want rodents inside your home include:

• Short circuits or fires due to rodents chewing through wires.
• Respiratory problems caused by shed fur and excrement buildup.
• Damage to personal items like clothing, shoes, and furniture due to their constant gnawing and shredding of these items. 
• At the first sign of rodents living in your yard or home, it is best to call us at All Pest of Syracuse, so we can partner together and get rid of rodents from your New York home!

You can do several things around your yard and home to make it less attractive to rodents. Our top prevention tips are listed below.

• Maintain gardens and fruit trees, regularly harvesting fruits and vegetables. 
• Keep lids on trash cans and recycling bins to keep rodents out of them. 
• Check your home for gaps, cracks, or holes in the foundation, exterior walls, and around pipes or vents. 
• Inspect hard-to-reach areas like spaces under decks or porch steps for openings that may allow rodents to move into your home. 
• Seal openings leading into your house using caulk or steel wool.
• Repair roof damage or replace missing roof shingles.
• Repair leaky pipes, hoses, and dripping air conditioners that could provide a water source for rodents.

Stinging Insects

Stinging insects are pests that we all do our best to stay away from. The stinger that they possess delivers painful, venom-filed stings to anything they view as a threat. In New York, stinging insects are most active in the summer when food sources are plentiful. Wasps and hornets are scavengers and feed on many of the same things we do, which is why they are so common in our yards. Our flowerbeds, gardens, and trees attract hungry bees that are searching for nectar and pollen.

Stinging insects are outdoor pests and are a common sight in our yards. It is normal to see a couple of bees, wasps, or hornets buzzing around your yard. However, if you are noticing a lot of stinging insect activity, there is likely a nest on your property. Stinging insect nests vary in size and shape, and location. Some stinging insects place their nests in the ground or under decks, others inside tree hollows or woodpiles, and others up high in trees and under roof eaves. Our homes also provide nesting spots behind shingles, in chimneys, or behind walls voids. If you suspect or discover a stinging insect nest on your property, it is best to call us for immediate help. Our professionals will provide accurate identification and the safe removal of the nest.

You can do several things around your yard and home to make it less attractive to stinging insects and prevent accidental stings. Our top stinging insect control and prevention tips are listed below.

• Keep your yard well-maintained and free of overgrown vegetation that can hide a stinging insect nest. 
• Fill in ground holes that develop in your yard. 
• Take care when mowing, keeping an eye out for ground nests.
• Regularly inspect playground equipment, grills, and outdoor furniture for stinging insect nests.
• Keep covers on chimneys and vents, and make sure screens in windows and doors are secure to help keep stinging insects out of your home.

Stink Bugs

Stink bugs are unique-looking insects with a shield-like shape and are almost as wide as they are long. They are a molted brown color with bands of color on their wings and lighter bands of color on their antennae. Even though their appearance is unique, the most common way people identify a stink bug is by the unpleasant odor they emit when squished. The foul smell is produced with the help of a special gland located on the thorax. Even though these pests aren’t a threat to our health or structures, their strong odors make these pests unwanted in our homes

Stink bugs are agricultural pests that feed on the fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants planted in yards, gardens, orchards, and crop fields. In the spring, summer, and early fall, stink bugs mainly live outside, but when the outdoor temperature cools down, and fewer food sources are available, they migrate into our temperature-controlled homes to stay warm. They are first attracted to the warm sunny exterior walls of our houses. As they travel across and up them, the stink bugs move inside through small cracks and openings they come across. Once inside your home, stink bugs hide in hard-to-reach areas (attics, walls voids, crawl spaces) and stay until the weather warms back up and food sources outside are abundant once again.

You can do several things around your New York home to stop stink bugs from taking it over. Our top prevention tips are listed below.

• Caulk or otherwise repair openings in the exterior of your home.
• Place covers over vents and chimneys.
• Remove brush piles, woodpiles, and other yard debris where stink bugs like to hide. 
• If possible, trade out regular white outdoor lights for LED or yellow lights that are less likely to attract stink bugs to your home’s exterior.
• If you spot stink bugs in your home, use a vacuum to suck them up to avoid squishing them and releasing their foul odor.