Are you annoyed by little creepy crawlies constantly popping up everywhere in your house? Maybe what started as one solitary bug has turned into an infestation. Fortunately, there are several ways that you can kill pesky household pests like ants, roaches, spiders, flies, fleas, and bed bugs. So go ahead and show those bugs who’s boss!
Vacuum up a line of ants and wash away their pheromone trail. If you’re lucky, that line of ants you see is just now following a scout into your home. If so, you may be able to wipe them out now before they get established. Grab your vacuum and suck up all the ants you see
Put out enclosed baits or gel bait to kill off the ant colony. Put out bait wherever you see ant activity—such as in corners and crevices, or up the wall alongside your kitchen cabinets—so the worker ants pick up the poison and take it back to the colony. Use enclosed bait stations anywhere that kids or pets can access, but opt for the more effective gel bait (it comes in a squeezable tube) if kids and pets aren’t a concern
Try baking soda and powdered sugar as a DIY ant bait alternative. Commercial ant baits work great, but it’s also possible to make your own with items from your pantry. Simply mix equal parts of baking soda and powdered sugar and lightly dust the areas in which the ants are active. The sugar will attract them and they’ll bring their bounty back to the colony to share, but the baking soda will dehydrate the ants and—hopefully—kill off the colony within a few days
Seal up ant entry points and food sources to prevent future infestations. Once you’ve killed off the ant colony that invaded your home, do what you can to keep other ants from making their way in! Use caulk to seal up cracks and crevices around doors, windows, electrical outlets, and other potential and entry points. Of course, it’s impossible to seal off every possible entryway for tiny little ants, so also do the following to reduce their food supply in your home.
Put down glue traps to catch and kill crawling spiders. Spiders don’t like to travel out in the open, so place the glue traps along baseboards, in corners, and under cabinets and furniture in areas where you’ve seen spider activity. Check the traps daily for stuck-on spiders, then relocate and replace the traps as needed so that they’re most effective.
Hang flypaper to attract and kill large numbers of flies. There’s no way around it: strips of flypaper with dead flies stuck to them don’t make for the nicest kitchen or bath decor. That said, fly paper works really well! Hang the paper near windows, lights, and other areas that attract flies, such as above your trash can. Remove and replace the paper once it’s about halfway covered with dead flies.
Wash affected bedding and clothing in hot water. Definitely wash all pet bedding and towels, and also wash any human bedding, towels, or clothing that is or might possibly be infested. Wash the items on the hottest setting the fabrics can handle, then put them in the dryer or hang them outdoors in direct sunlight
