x
Breaking News
More () »

Drought has insects seeking relief indoors

The severe drought has its consequences which include its ability to send pests into your home as they seek relief.

CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. -- The severe drought has its consequences, which include its ability to send pests into your home as they seek relief.

"They don't want to attack people. They are not damaging your house or infesting your food most of the time. They're just looking for a place to live," says Marc Potzler with J.C. Ehrlich Pest Control.

Potzler says the biggest insect issue that's happening during the drought is that pests are coming inside to beat the heat.

"It's more of an aesthetic and a yuck factor than anything else. Most of these creatures want to live outside. They're just coming in to get out of the death sentence of this drought that we're having," says Potzler.

Potzler tells us homeowners are calling mostly about ground beetles, millipedes, and spiders.

He calls these pests "occasional invaders" -- which means they're coming in one-by-one, although you may see more than one if there are a lot in your yard and your home is their only oasis.

"They will look for the coolest, dampest spot they can find," says Potzler.

And there is something you can do to stop them from coming in.

"Seal up all the cracks and crevices they can find around their house. Install door sweeps to keep them from crawling under doors, caulk up cracks in the siding, in the foundation," says Potzler.

We've covered the inside of your home... but what about the pests thriving in the heat?

"Japanese beetles are going nuts, and they love the heat," says gardening expert Jackie Albarella.

She also says cicadas are plentiful this summer. The best advice Albarella has to keep the insects away is to keep your plants healthy.

"You want to keep them watered, keep them fertilized. The other things you can do is you can mix up a mixture of just ordinary dish washing soap in water, put it in a spray bottle and spray your flowers and your vegetable plants, spray the leaves," says Albarella.

And if all else fails, you might want to give the experts a call. So when might that be?

"When they see more bugs than they can tolerate," says Potzler.

Potzler says he is mostly getting calls about insects right now, but rodents will be more of an issue in the fall.

Before You Leave, Check This Out