Crickets aren’t a common indoor pest. They prefer to live outdoors and may even struggle to breed and thrive indoors. However, they can still wind up inside; when they do, they can be a nuisance.
Crickets make a lot of noise, and they may also eat things in your house; house crickets, particularly, like to eat food, fabrics, paper, and more.
In addition, crickets can carry such diseases as E.coli and salmonella. Therefore, you should want to get rid of crickets when they invade your home. Read on to learn some handy tricks that prevent crickets from your house and discourage them from coming in, and how to get rid of crickets if they invade.
What Makes Crickets Wander Inside?
Though they thrive more outdoors, there are certain environments that crickets can’t resist. They love places that are warm and moist. Also, like most insects, they’re attracted to light.
Unfortunately, these are features that your house often has, and that can make it hard to get rid of crickets inside your house. You can lessen the amount of these things in your home, but that’s likely to make you uncomfortable. You may prefer using other methods to deter crickets.
What Are the Signs of a Cricket Invasion in Your Home?
The most obvious signs include seeing one cricket or more and hearing the chirping sound crickets make at night. However, there are plenty of more subtle signs you can keep a look out for.
If you find large holes in fabric possessions or gnaw marks on wooden furniture, you can assume you’ve got crickets in your home.
Some Methods to Prevent or Get Rid of Crickets
It’s understandable for you to reach for the typical pest control products first to get rid of crickets, as these can be effective. However, don’t despair if you can’t afford these solutions.
There are plenty of other solutions that are free or cheap you can use to get rid of crickets. These may be just as effective as store-bought pest control solutions.
Boric Acid
Boric acid uses boron in its composition. It has many uses but is often also used as a pesticide. Its chemical compound is poisonous to several species of insect.
However, most insects, including crickets, won’t ingest the compound willingly. You need to place it somewhere where the crickets will walk through it. If they do, it should stick to their bodies.
Crickets can then ingest the boric acid when they groom themselves. Once they do, the chemical compound can disrupt their stomach and nervous system functioning. However, it can take some time for the boric acid to build up in their systems and kill them completely, so you’ll have to be patient.
Also, ensure that you keep pets, children, and other family members away from the boric acid. The substance isn’t too dangerous to larger animals and humans. However, it is better to stay away from it.
Sticky Traps
Sticky traps are traps that use glue and some kind of surface. There may also be an included scent that can attract the insects to the trap. Once pests walk onto the trap, they will get stuck.
There are a few different types of these traps. Some are merely a strip of covered or uncovered cardboard. Others, like fly paper, can be hung from the ceiling to catch flying pests.
For crickets, the flat cardboard strips will give you the best chance of catching them. Place these traps around where you’ve heard or seen crickets.
Search Dark Places
It may not be enough to follow a cricket’s sound if you want to hunt it down to catch or kill it. It will likely quiet down once it senses you approaching it. The better trick is to search in dark areas for this pest.
Darker areas indoors can include spaces behind your appliances or under furniture. You may also want to check the basement or attic if you have one.
Lighting
Certain lighting types are less likely to attract crickets if you can afford them. Consider changing your bright white bulbs to amber-colored ones or sodium vapor bulbs. Both of these options are less likely to attract crickets.
Also, consider switching to motion sensor lights. Doing so will make it less likely that your lights will stay on for a long time. They’ll have a fair smaller chance of attracting crickets this way.
Seal Entry Points
Crickets are most likely to enter your home through small holes. These can include holes in your window screens, masonry cracks, and other entryways. Sealing these is an excellent way to prevent crickets from entering your home.
It’s best to use caulk, sealants, an expanding foam, or other solutions. There are other, cheaper alternatives to these, but they may not be as effective as the typical home improvement products.
Manage Moisture
Reducing the humidity is one way to make your home less attractive to crickets. Consider adding a dehumidifier to your home to help get rid of crickets. If you don’t like having a drier home, place it in a room that you don’t use but may be an entryway for crickets, like the basement.
Also, make sure to stop any leaking faucets or pipes. Crickets can be drawn to puddles of liquid as well.
Do Some Yard Maintenance
Crickets also like to hang out in certain types of natural environments. One thing that they like a lot is tall grasses. Therefore, regularly trimming your grass is a great way to keep crickets away from your yard and home.
They also like poles of rubbish and yard waste. Make sure to clean these up from your yard as often as possible.
Get High-Quality Pest Control Solutions in the Piedmont-Triad and Sandhill Areas
There’s no need to panic whenever you see or hear crickets in your home. You have several tools at your disposal you can use to get rid of crickets.
Also, if you’re in the Piedmont-Triad or Sandhill Areas, you may want to try our pest control solutions. With more than 35 years of service, you can count on getting the quality of pest control you need. Get a free price quote from us today!
Disclaimer: While these steps/tips will help reduce the likelihood of a cricket infestation, there is no guaranteed way to get rid of crickets and eliminate all risks.
