Walking past my neighbors, I am reminded why they always park their cars outside. For many fortunate enough to have a garage on your property, the garage has become an extra storage wing or trash receptacle area.
While using your garage to stash certain things out of the way, the garage is the perfect entry point for rodents into your home. In addition to the warm and protected hiding space for the pest, some of the things stored in the garage could be inviting rodents into your garage and then your home.
These habits could be welcoming pest problems;
Overflowing amounts of unwanted goods
It can be hard to resist the temptation to use your garage space as a storage overflow. Chaotic piles of unwanted or used goods along walls and in corners offer the perfect conditions for mice and other rodents to make themselves at home. Useful seasonal items such as outdoor furniture cushions, patio umbrellas, or pool toys can also create an inviting home for pests.
If you can’t avoid turning your garage into storage space, consider organizing the garage with shelves and hanging hooks. Not only will you feel a great sense of calm entering the garage, but you will actually find what you are looking for!
The more floor space you have, the fewer hiding places there are for the rodents to hide.
Rodents love firewood
There are two main reasons why firewood piles attract rodents, shelter, and food, Firewood provides a protective and well-insulated area for mice to make nests, and there is an ample supply of food from the insects and bugs that are natural inhabitants of the firewood.
Even if it’s not actually in your garage, you should still also avoid the temptation to store your firewood right outside your house. Instead store your firewood at least 30 feet away from your home, keeping it covered with a tarp, and elevating it by using pallets or a short rack.
Gardening Supplies are a delicacy
Many of us will store chemicals, seeds, and fertilizers in our garages. While they are stored out of your day-to-day life, while out of sight, the pest inhabitants will take advantage of the feast waiting for them.
Consider keeping your excess gardening materials in a dedicated shed, storing them on a shelf in sealed hard plastic tubs, or only purchasing as much as you know you’ll need at the beginning of each season.
Your Trash is the rodents feast
The scraps and trash that we discard into the trash can will attract various pests and animals. While you may consider the trash inedible or disgusting, the pests don’t. They will come into your garage to scourer through the trash can given the opportunity. Keeping the trash can in the garage welcomes the rodents into your home where they most likely will choose to stay.
Mice and rats will find it easier to access your garage than other areas of your home. Avoid welcoming them into the garage to keep the rest of your home rodent-free!
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