For the vast majority of people, the main area of the home is the kitchen, and this part of the house is full of love for the most delicious food. The most delicious aromas come from this housing sector, bringing friends and family together to share. But unfortunately, they are not the only beings that gather around the kitchen.
The pests, which include cockroaches, ants, rodents, and insects, seek to gather in this attractive place. One of the most unpleasant items for humans is the garbage container. But for the pests, it is the ideal place. Insects, in particular, view garbage as a delicious buffet. That is why they are very happy to settle there.
Learning to get rid of bugs in the kitchen is essential to maintaining family health and safety. Unfortunately, human garbage is the food of these unwanted beings in our homes.
Why Are Bugs In Your Trash?
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Non-infectious insects, usually found in the kitchen, contaminate food and cause serious health problems. Flies transmit more than 100 different pathogens, including salmonellosis, typhoid fever, and tuberculosis.
Rodents are very troublesome, and they spread disease, insert fleas into the home, and their urine can cause allergies in children. Cockroaches, the most common pest in the kitchen, cause allergic reactions and spread six parasites, seven human pathogens, and around 33 different types of bacteria.
In general, insects are attracted by the rotting of organic waste and excrement, and in the kitchen garbage can, there are many remains of food that you put there. Also, because they are remains that decompose quickly, they generate odors that attract them immediately. That is the main reason why insects search the kitchen garbage can.
Unfortunately, in this element, essential in a kitchen, all the conditions are generated for the proliferation of the plague. It is very important to take extreme measures to minimize such proliferation.
What Types of Bugs Do You have in your trash Can?
In the kitchen garbage can, you can find various insects attracted to the waste we put there ourselves. Among which we can mention:
Cockroaches
They are usually reddish-brown and are normally found in places where food is stored. Or where food remains are found, such as in the garbage. They are oval with long antennae. They tend to hide in crevices and crevices near the food source. They enter our homes through the sewers and sewers. They carry bacteria that cause diseases and generate allergic reactions.
Housefly
This insect has four dark stripes on its upper body. When the fly lands on solid food, it regurgitates saliva on the food to soften it so that it can eat it. They feed on any food, including fecal material and other decomposing organic matter. They are transmitters of many diseases.
Ants
They are small, light to dark brown insects. They enter the house through the cracks to search for food. They can eat a wide range of foods, but especially sweet foods. Ants leave a chemical trail so other ants can find food.
Fruit flies
They are yellowish-brown to dark brown and usually have red eyes. They are especially attracted to ripe fruits and vegetables but can also be seen in sewers and garbage cans. These insects can contaminate food with bacteria.
Rodents
Although they are not insects, they are a pest attracted to kitchen garbage. They are very active at night and generate a lot of excrement. They enter homes through holes and have the ability to spread a large number of diseases.
Where Do They Come From?
The pest that normally seeks out kitchen garbage comes from outside the house. They hardly originate within the home. Roaches often enter your homes through drains and toilets. This means that they have first passed through sewers.
The same happens with rodents; they often enter through the drains and any available gap. They even can enter through the space between the floor and the doors.
Flying insects are the ones that have them easier, and they enter through windows and doors that are open. They can reproduce anywhere, as long as the right humidity and temperature conditions exist.
And the ants are the ones that possibly come from less contaminated places since they build their dens in places where only they can be, generally in wild areas. They build their burrows in places where humidity does not affect them.
What Are They Eating?
Most of the pests that seek out kitchen garbage eat decomposing organic matter except for rodents that are omnivores and can eat anything. That is why rodents not only look for the kitchen but also move throughout the house.
On the other hand, cockroaches, ants, and flies are usually found in the kitchen unless family members eat elsewhere in the house.
Also Read: How to Get Rid of Daddy Long Legs Naturally
How to Get Rid of Bugs in Your Kitchen Trash Can Naturally?
There are several methods to eliminate the existing pest in our kitchen. Some are very chemical and therefore very harmful, but they are extremely effective. Others are more natural; they fulfill their function but take a little longer to have the expected effects.
Get rid of cockroaches effectively
To eliminate cockroaches naturally, you can prepare bait based on sodium bicarbonate, sugar, and water, in equal proportions and place it in the passage areas or near where these animals nest. By eating them, they will die. Likewise, preparing a mixture of onion with boric acid has the same effect as the previous mixture.
Fly-free spaces
In the case of flies, some people hang transparent bags half full of water near the windows and doors of the house. When sunlight passes through the water, it breaks down and generates the prism. Then, the flies detest and do not come near the place.
Also, many people take a fresh lemon and poke it with spice cloves, and this is a natural repellent for insects. It is advisable to change the lemon every day because when it dries, it loses its effect.
Keep ants away
Vinegar, lemon juice, taco or chalk powder, baking soda, and even coffee beans are great for warding off ants. You should only place them where they pass. Of course, this procedure must be done daily for the desired effect to be achieved.
Kill rodents
For mice, you can prepare a mixture of 2 parts of sodium bicarbonate, one of sugar, and a tablespoon of cornmeal. Make balls and place them in the places where it travels. The bicarbonate gives the rodent a digestive collapse and dies.
But the most important thing to eliminate the pest is hygiene; if you remove the garbage from your kitchen every day, classify the trash, and do not put organic waste in it, you will prevent the pest from entering your house.
How to Prevent the Bugs from Entering Your Kitchen Trash Can
The kitchen is the area of your home where food is used very frequently, there are different smells, there is always some humidity, and a lot of garbage and food waste is generated.
Controlling the sources of food and water is critical so that they do not turn out to be the best attraction, so it is recommended:
Keep the kitchen clean
Keeping the sink, microwave, cabinets, countertops clean prevents the appearance of mosquitoes and other insects.
Remove residues
Avoiding leaving dishes, pots, and any dirty implements in any kitchen area, sweeping the floor, cleaning the countertops helps eliminate any food residue that attracts insects.
Store food in closed containers
Avoid accumulating food and keeping it in sacks or bags, and it is recommended to use the most hermetic containers possible so that odors that attract animals are not emitted.
Check the pantry regularly
You must ensure that all food packages and containers are completely sealed, without holes and moisture. Check the expiration date and make sure that its physical properties do not change. It is recommended to store bulk food only in glass, metal, or heavy plastic containers that remain tightly closed.
Keep trash closed
Empty garbage containers frequently and use only garbage containers with their corresponding lids.
Use natural repellents
Using and maintaining plants or scents of lavender, lemon, mint, basil, bay leaf, coffee, oregano, and vinegar as repellents prevents mosquitoes and other insects from approaching.
Check your pets’ food
It is very important to ensure that your animals’ food and water sources are completely clean. Removing any remaining food from your pet’s plate after eating and keeping the water always clean and fresh prevents mosquitoes and other animals from being attracted.
For this reason, it is recommended not to overfeed them and to use just portions so that they do not leave food remains.
Seal cracks and use mosquito nets
Using musketeers on doors and windows helps keep mosquitoes out of the house. To be fully effective, it is recommended to seal any cracks that may serve as an entrance for these tiny insects.
Eliminate potential nests
Regularly check all your appliances, the pantry, and in general everything that can be used to attract mosquitoes and serve as a nest. Everything dark, humid and hidden becomes a potential space for these insects to make nests.
Final Words
Mosquitoes are the class of insects that can be attracted to almost anything in your home, making, very important to implement the most appropriate measures to keep them as far away from your property as possible.
Mosquitoes are vectors of many serious diseases, so the healthiest thing for you and your family is to practice the necessary measures to prevent them from entering, settling, and reproducing.
