Whether you live in a high-rise or a converted house, with roommates or solo, the discovery of uninvited guests (particularly those with four or more legs) is never a welcome one. Unfortunately, for as long as people have lived in apartments pests have been a fact of life. Some varieties, like spiders or house centipedes, may be unsightly but are mostly harmless (these can actually help with pest control by trapping and eating other creepy crawlies). However, others like mice or bedbugs can pose a threat to your health.
Wherever you live, you’re likely to have to deal with one or several of these freeloading intruders at some point. Depending on the type of pest and the severity of the infestation, it may be advisable to consult a pest control professional. If you’d like to try the DIY approach first, however, here are a few things to consider.
Ants
There are more than 10,000 ant species worldwide, and 100 species in Canada alone, from food-foraging pharaoh ants to stinging fire ants. The first thing to do if you spot ants in your apartment is try to figure out what kind they are, which will help you determine how to deal with them. Ants found indoors are likely attracted to food, and taking away their food source could encourage them to move along. This means keeping floors and counters clean and crumb-free, regularly cleaning pet food dishes, diligently taking out trash, and storing food in tightly sealed containers in your pantry.
If this doesn’t solve the problem, try to find out where the ants are coming from and seal up any cracks or gaps they might be using to enter your unit. Ants navigate along scent trails, so a sprinkle of diatomaceous earth in their path could also help reduce their numbers.
Cockroaches
With their renowned adaptability and resilience, cockroaches would be impressive if they weren’t so gross. The first step to addressing a cockroach infestation is figuring out which kind you have. Here in Canada, three species of cockroach are most common: German (small, with long antennae, usually found in kitchens and bathrooms), brown-banded (tiny and oval-shaped) and American (the largest of the three, with a yellow stripe across their heads, usually found in basements and other damp, dark spaces).
Because each species of roach has its own preferred habitat and food source, each requires a different extermination tactic. Generally speaking, however, keeping your living space free of food remnants (both human and pet) taking out garbage regularly, and diligent vacuuming of infested areas (especially cracks and crevices) are all good places to start.
Mice
They may be cute, but mice can spread disease through their droppings and wreak havoc on the wiring inside your walls. Fortunately, mice can be relatively easy to deal with. First, eliminate their food source by keeping your kitchen and living spaces spotless and crumb-free. Next, try to figure out how they’re getting in and plug any gaps or holes with caulking or steel wool. Be sure to check behind appliances and under sinks, and keep in mind that a mouse can fit through a hole less than a centimetre wide! Finally, set up a couple of snap traps baited with a pea-sized amount of peanut butter, and be sure to wear gloves when setting and emptying the traps.
Bedbugs
Few pests have a worse reputation than the bedbug, and unfortunately, it’s well-earned. Unlike cockroaches, who are just after your cookie crumbs, your blood is the bedbug’s menu item of choice. The good news is that you can rid your home of bedbugs; the bad news is that it’s a process, and unless all of the units in your building are treated there’s a good chance the bedbugs will return.
To get rid of bedbugs quickly, your best bet is to have your landlord hire a professional exterminator who will instruct you on how to ensure the treatment is effective. Other common strategies include washing all of your clothes, bedding and upholstery, and running non-washable items through the dryer on the hottest setting for at least 30 minutes. Heat is one of the most reliable ways to kill bedbugs, so steam-cleaning your mattress, couch, and other upholstered furniture following thorough vacuuming is also recommended.
Jeremy Freed is a freelance writer and editor based in Toronto. His writing about fashion, travel, food and design appears in Sharp, Harry and re:Porter magazines, among many others.