It’s six in the morning, and your eyes are barely open. All you can think about is that first cup of coffee and that special box of cereal you were dreaming all night about. You wipe the sleep out of your eyes and look down to your spoon. There’s something wiggling among the milk and flakes. EEK! The spoon flies to the floor while a nice, fat cockroach makes a run for your cabinets.
Curiosity takes over, forcing you to look inside your cereal box. To your horror, you see three more very content cockroaches doing the breaststroke in your flakes. YOUR flakes! How could this happen? Needless to say, you’ll never look at your favorite cereal the same way again.
Pests are notorious for breaking into pantries, and it doesn’t matter what time of the year it is. And they happen to love cereal, especially left in a bag that’s completely open. Weevils dream of diving into a box of pasta and cheese, or better yet a bag of flour. Oh… how delicious. For them of course, not for you. Seeing a weevil in a scone is bound to cause anyone to go on a diet.
Pests Prevention Tips
There are many ways to prevent pests from invading your pantry. First off, you need to see what you have stored in your pantry. It’s a hassle, but you’ll probably need to take everything out of your pantry and do an inventory check. Many pests are brought in from the store’s shelves, so you may not even know you have a problem until it is too late. By making a visual inspection of all of your food, you can determine whether or not you have any issues.
Start with boxes, such as pasta and rice side dishes. Beetles and worms often make their selves right at home in these types of boxes. Most of the time side dishes aren’t airtight and have gaps on the top and bottom of their boxes, giving pests easy access. If you have had issues in the past, consider storing these boxes in plastic, airtight bags. That way, if a box is contaminated the pests won’t spread to any other boxes.
Flour is another problem when it comes to packaging. Flour bags are notorious for leaking. If flour can leak out, bugs can get in. Consider purchasing a five-pound airtight plastic container to keep your flour inside, and one for your sugar as well.
In a day and age when everything seems to come in its own zip lock bag, it’s a wonder why they haven’t started selling cereal in them as well. Unfortunately, until they do, cereal is vulnerable to pests. Cockroaches especially love to get into cereal boxes. It doesn’t matter how hard you roll down the plastic bag inside, it always rolls back up, giving pests like cockroaches a perfect entry.
A quick fix for cereal boxes is to use a chip clip or a binder clip to hold the plastic bag within from rolling back up. Better yet, many stores such as Amazon, offer plastic cereal containers that keep your cereal fresh and keep out pests. Now, it might not be the same not seeing your favorite cartoon cereal hero on the box, but it’s certainly better than finding a cockroach when you’re looking for the toy surprise.
When you’re finished inspecting your pantry, you might want to have a look at your spice rack as well. Pepper flakes and cocoa powder are especially prone to pest infestations. Vacuum and disinfect your shelves often to prevent pests from traveling to different areas of your kitchen.
AIPM Can Help
If beetles, weevils, and worms are invading your pantry and there’s just no getting rid of them, then it’s time to call a professional. The professionals at AIPM are trained in handling all types of pest problems. Their talented team of professionals can eliminate any threats to your property, bringing it back to a peaceful environment once again. They can also set up a custom extermination plan to ensure that you never have to face the same type of problems again. Receive a free consultation today (click here).
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