The Dangers Of DIY Pest Control

Potential Risks Of DIY Pest Management

Trying to get rid of pests in your home by yourself can seem like an easy fix, but it comes with big risks to both your property and human health. While cleaning up food and blocking holes bugs use to enter can help, individuals using chemicals without the right training, knowledge, and equipment can hurt your health and damage your home.

This article explains why the DIY approach to pest control is usually unsafe and why you should hire professional pest control services instead.

1. Health Dangers From Chemicals

The top risk of DIY pest control is that most people lack the knowledge to correctly handle and apply pest control products that kill pests, leading to improper application. Pesticides can make you sick if you don’t take safety measures:

• Ingestion – Pesticides may accidentally get in your food or drink. Some pesticides in bait or traps can hurt you or your pets even in tiny amounts if eaten.
• Absorption – Chemical drops left on surfaces or vapours in the air can soak into your skin, or you might breathe them in. It can lead to potential poisoning, allergic reactions, or respiratory issues. Not washing hands before eating after using them could also put pesticides in your mouth, leading to adverse reactions.
• Long Term Effects – Being around even tiny amounts over months or years may hurt your brain, fertility, cause cancer, or damage organs like your liver or kidneys. These are due to prolonged exposure to these chemicals, increasing the risk of serious diseases. You usually wouldn’t know you were hurt until much later.

Without the right protective equipment like masks, gloves, goggles, and bodysuits, the average person has little protection from pesticides. They should exercise extreme caution. These hidden dangers get worse if different products mix, spill out, or get applied the wrong way due to improper techniques or overuse of improper pesticides.

2. Pests Spread When Not Fully Killed Off

While killing some pests you can see may fix the pest problem short-term, their nests and breeding spots are likely still intact to grow again. Spraying a couple of roaches might temporarily reduce their visibility, but it leaves the eggs and hideouts underground untouched. The same goes for rodents like mice and rats; trapping a few won’t eliminate the infestation as pests continue to run rampant.

Partially getting rid of pests can make the pest infestations worse months later, highlighting the need for effective treatment. Hurting a colony triggers the ones who live to breed faster to recover their population. A colony almost eliminated by casual pesticide use often comes back even bigger within weeks or months due to ineffective pest control practices.

To fully erase pests for good, an effective pest control service has to search all their hidden nest areas, then know how to break in and kill everything inside. This professional solution ensures effective control of pests and eliminates them completely. If colonies continue to breed safely out of sight, you will probably need to repeat your DIY pest control work over and over.

3. More Damage To Your Home Over Time

Ignoring pest nests guarantees hordes will keep destroying your property. Termites alone cause over $5 billion of costly damage per year across the country. Failing to completely get rid of them typically means expensive destruction keeps getting worse.

On top of the harm caused directly by pests, beginner mistakes with pesticides also often lead to property damage and expensive repairs later:

• Too much spray or stronger mixes than needed can weaken, rot, or corrode wood, drywall, and furniture if applied carelessly in your house.
• Drilling test holes in walls without knowing for sure where pests come from makes unnecessary damage needing fixes too.

Experts know where pests sneak in and hide, such as in water sources, how to kill them all safely with the right techniques and pest control methods. And how to avoid extra destruction from repairs down the road. Relying fully on their skills is essential to prevent issues before it gets out of hand.

4. Breaking Laws & Getting Sued

In most states, tough rules limit which pesticides amateurs can buy compared to licensed technicians. In addition, being caught breaking these laws by getting banned chemicals could lead to jail time or money fines.

You also open yourself up to major lawsuits for accidents that wouldn’t be covered by insurance without certification and pest control licences. If DIY treatments drifted and hurt others near your property, including wildlife like bees and beneficial insects, cleaning up contamination from sickness and death becomes 100% out of your own pocket.

Conclusion: Better Safe Than Sorry!

While tackling pests solo may seem like the cheap and easy road, taking extermination into your own hands puts you and your family at great risk more often than not. From health risks to destroyed homes and legal penalties, you gamble very dangerously trying to “learn as you go” with DIY methods. Smart homeowners should always call a certified professional exterminator right away instead. Their expertise and experience offer:

• Locating all hidden nest spots
• Legal application of stronger chemicals when needed
• Ability to penetrate infested walls and floors to kill everything inside
• Ongoing follow-up visits to stop future infestations
• Peace of mind if pests ever do somehow return, thanks to the support of a pest control professional team

Don’t take chances trying to handle complex and toxic pest problems alone. Paying an expert now saves endless expenses and safety hazards down the road if DIY efforts backfire. Their professional service ensures effective results and protects your home. Protect what matters most by always relying on the pest control pros!