Are you looking over your shoulder when you walk through your own house? We’re not referring to being paranoid about criminals trespassing on your property. What about those other unwanted visitors, many with six legs or more?

For Melbourne homes, it’s a reality that they will come visiting, due to beneficial weather conditions in the area. This is why a service for pest control Melbourne residents can call should always be on speed dial. But do you have any of the following questions?

• When is it necessary to call the professionals?
• Can I handle a pest problem myself?
• Are there natural remedies to pest problems that really work?

Keep reading to find some answers.

Cockroaches

Firstly, don’t feel bad if you have a cockroach or two running over your kitchen counter. Contrary to common belief, these roaches are not a sign that your home is necessarily dirty or unhygienic. Yes, a dirty property will attract more of them, but it could simply be a plate of food you accidentally left out that signaled them to come.

Another attraction is water, which is why you’ll mostly notice them in your bathroom and kitchen. If it’s a dry season, the search for moisture could be the only reason you face in infestation.

So, stop feeling bad and try the following:

• Borax in the form of laundry cleaner, which you can mix with sugar to make it more attractive. Leave some on windowsills or in cracks between floorboards.
• Use smells like eucalyptus, lavender or citrus to chase them away. They hate these odors.
• Roaches also hate nepetalactone which is found in catnip, so this is something you can plant in the garden or leave bags with plant pieces around the house.

Just keep an eye on cockroach numbers. If you realize it’s a huge infestation, you’ll need to get one of the Texas pest control companies out there, or a company wherever you are, to come out and remove the source of the problem—the colony—instead of you just treating some of its visible symptoms.

Aphids and Other Plant Infestations

Tired of seeing your plants dying off and suffering from pesky garden pests?

A surprising DIY remedy for aphids is to burry pieces of banana peel under the soil around the plant. You’ll have more nutritious soil and you’re chasing away the bugs.

You probably also don’t want to harm the environment when you deal with garden pests, which makes cornmeal a helpful resource. Some people use it to battle slug problems. This isn’t 100% effective, because the slugs may simply eat it and feel satisfied—they love the stuff—but some gardeners see slugs dying after eating too much of it and not being able to digest it. You could also lure them into traps with the cornmeal so you can dispose of them elsewhere.

For slugs you can also introduce a few toads or beetles who are natural slug predators. Do this if you don’t mind the frogs and beetles. Alternatively, you may need some pros on site.

Ants

Ants aren’t dangerous but you don’t want them all over your house.

For a start, make sure you maintain an environment that won’t attract ants, such as not leaving opened food packets in the cupboard or an uneaten meal on the counter.

To chase away the ones that do appear, you now have a new use for used coffee grounds. These grounds have a strong odour and it’s one ants don’t like. This makes for an ideal solution to keep ants from running to pets’ water bowls or your sugar pot. Simply place some coffee grounds nearby.

One ant you shouldn’t leave too long is the carpenter ant. This one burrows inside wood to make nests. They don’t eat the wood, but excavate it, which can mean lots of damage to your building. Rather get a pro on site to determine the extent of the problem and handle it if necessary.

Spiders

Spiders are probably common in most households but that doesn’t mean you have to settle for their company. If you really get the creeps from these web-spinning creatures or you have poisonous ones on site, start with DIY methods that mostly involve odors.

Similar to cockroaches, lavender, eucalyptus and citrus smells often repel them. Also try tea tree oil and citronella, which you can which you can put in a spray bottle and administer to those corners you usually find them in.

Of course, if you’re scared the kids may get a nasty bite because they search for them out of curiosity, or if numbers increase dramatically, rather let pest control experts remove them.

Final Thoughts

The good news is that you’re not completely at the mercy of pests at home.

Just remember there are many other pests as well that are difficult to manage and if the numbers keep increasing, you will need professional help. Luckily, these experts also use environmentally friendly methods these days, so they’re looking after everyone’s interests.

Lastly, don’t forget to share your own DIY tips in the comments below.