How to Get Rid of Centipedes: 3 Steps

 

They’re creepy. They’re crawly. And sometimes they deliver an extremely painful bite, which some compare to a burning match—only the pain can last for hours, even days. 

However, apart from the rare cases when centipedes bite, these many-legged, nocturnal bugs are actually quite beneficial. They won’t harm your home or belongings, they won’t eat the food in your kitchen or the plants in your garden, but they will help rid your home and lawn of other unwanted pests, such as roaches, spiders, moths, flies, termites, ants, moths, ticks, fleas, silverfish and more. 

In fact, if you don’t mind seeing them around every now and then, you might consider leaving them to do their work. A few harmless house centipedes can be powerful allies in your battle to keep a bug-free home. But if you’re seeing too many centipedes for your own comfort, or you’re dealing with unusually large ones, like the giant desert centipede (which many consider the most painful bug bite in the world), it might be time to take action. 

Here’s how to get rid of and prevent centipedes in 3 simple steps.

 

Apart from house centipedes, centipedes almost always stay outdoors. However, in the case of extreme weather or lack of resources, centipedes may move into your home in search of shelter, food, or water. Finding and sealing potential entryways is essential to prevent this from happening. Here’s how to do it:

Slowly comb both the inside and outside of your home, looking for any holes, cracks, or broken seals centipedes might use to enter your home. Pay special attention to windows, doorways, garages, foundations, and basements. Then, simply repair, replace or seal up any entry points you discover with an expanding foam sealant or another appropriate material.

If your doorways and garage don’t currently have strong weather seals or stripping, consider installing some—they will help control other, more harmful bugs from coming inside, too. 

 

Preventing centipedes from taking up residence in your lawn or home is all about removing clutter, limiting moisture, and removing their food source, other bugs.

• Centipedes hide and breed in clutter like leaf litter, mulch, wood piles, clippings, dense vegetation, and under rocks, boards, boxes, and unused equipment. Removing these attractants is a must if you want to limit centipede populations in your yard. 
• Lawn maintenance is also key. The shorter and less cluttered the grass and shrubbery in your lawn, the fewer centipedes you’re going to encounter.  
• Do your best to eliminate excess moisture from your lawn, including leaky hoses, piping, sprinklers, clogged drainage areas, and anything that can collect rainwater. 
• Similarly, you’ll want to decrease indoor moisture, too. That means repairing or replacing leaky plumbing, as well faulty bathroom and kitchen fixtures. For heavier centipede problems, consider investing in dehumidifiers and/or exhaust fans for rooms with poorer ventilation. 
• Less indoor clutter means fewer centipedes in your home. Ideally, you want your home to look like it’s ready for an open house. Recycle or donate old clothing, equipment, toys, books, stacks of newspapers, unnecessary documents, etc. Pay special attention to those spaces most vulnerable to centipede infestation, such as basements, bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and crawl spaces. 
• Because they eat other bugs, practicing basic preventative pest control is arguably the most important step to deterring centipedes. Spray known trouble spots, entry points, and pet spaces weekly with Cedarcide Original to kill and repel bugs. To maintain a bug-free lawn, treat your entire outdoor space with the family-safe Lawn & Garden Kit monthly or more often as needed. 
• If you believe you may have a centipede problem but aren’t sure, give sticky traps a try. After purchasing a pack from your local hardware store or online, place them along the baseboards in the corners of your bathroom, kitchen, basement, or wherever you suspect centipedes could be hiding. Check them after a few days to see if you caught any centipedes, confirming whether you have them in your house or not.

 

TREAT YOUR LAWN

Now that your lawn is decluttered and free of debris, you’re ready to spray it for centipedes. Start by spraying both your front and backyards, as well as all shrubbery and bases of trees, with PCO Choice. Repeat this process again in two weeks, and then proceed to monthly applications after that. If you’re just treating for prevention, you can move on to monthly applications right from the start. For best results, we suggest monthly applications all year long. Next, broadcast Cedar Granules throughout your lawn, especially along your home’s foundation and inside mulch beds. Reapply every 4-6 weeks. 

Because PCO Choice and Cedar Granules are plant-based and family-safe, no downtime is necessary. You, your family, and pets can enjoy your lawn right after application!

 

TREAT YOUR HOME

Traditional indoor bug sprays fill our homes with toxic chemicals that can do serious harm to the health of our families and pets. Instead, go with family-safe Cedarcide Original which can be safely sprayed all throughout your home.

To kill any centipedes you find inside, give them a quick spray with non-toxic Cedarcide Original. To help prevent them from coming back, spray known entry points, hiding spots, and trouble areas such as bathrooms, kitchens, basements, attics, and crawl spaces weekly. Repeat as needed. 

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How to Protect Your Deck & Fencing from Snow and Cold Weather

Moisture damage, rot, decay, warping, cracking, swelling & shrinking—snow, sleet, ice, and cold weather can do a number on our fences, decks, outbuildings, garden boxes, and other wooden projects, costing us tons of money once spring returns.

Thankfully you just clicked on the right article, so none of that is going to happen to you. With the right know-how protecting your wooden items from winter damage is easy, and below we’re going to show you exactly how to do it.

 

It might seem obvious but keeping your fencing, decks, outdoor furniture, and other wooden projects clean and free of clutter and organic debris is essential. 

For example, leaving items like tools, planters, and patio furniture on your deck during winter can cause lasting discolorations and decay. Organic materials like pine needles, leaves, mildew, mold, and dirt are equally problematic, often resulting in costly moisture damage, rot, and structural issues in decks, fencing, furniture, and wooden outbuildings. 

While sweeping and a good scrubbing often do the trick, we suggest pressure washing as the easiest and quickest way to clean your deck. If you’re doing the job yourself, just make sure to use the correct pressure rating, nozzle, and detergent for your project to avoid accidentally damaging the wood surface. 

Now that your deck is clean and clear of debris, it’s time to protect it against decay, warping, cracking, moisture and pest damage.

 

The wood protectant Cedarshield is called “The Best Wood Treatment in the World” for a reason—it increases the life of any woodworking project, strengthens it, and protects it against rot, warping, cracking, moisture and pest damage, often for the entire lifetime of the wood. Plus, it’s easy to use and safe for all types of wood, old or new, hardwood or softwood. 

Cedarshield works by removing all moisture from the wood, mimicking the early stages of petrification. The result is longer-lasting, better-looking decks, fencing, garden boxes, docks, and other outdoor wooden projects. Here’s how to apply it: 

1. Clean and clear the wood surface before applying
2. Apply Cedarshield using a sprayer, brush, roller, or via submersion
3. Reapply if necessary in 5-7 years 

For best results, apply Cedarshield in temperatures above 45°F to semi-damp wood (morning dew or a light spray-down the night before application will do the trick). You’ll know you’ve achieved a successful application once the Cedarshield fluid will no longer soak into the wood and begins beading on the surface instead. For larger projects with especially thick wood, reapplication may be necessary after 5-7 years.

 

REMOVE SNOW AND ICE

Whether it’s your deck, fencing, furniture, outbuilding, or garden box, winter moisture is your enemy. Snow, ice, and sleet can add significant weight to outdoor woodworking projects, causing splintering, bending, cracking, and other expensive damage. Shortly after heavy snowfalls and ice storms, it’s good practice to shovel, brush, or otherwise remove excess winter moisture. 

CHOOSE THE RIGHT SNOW SHOVEL

When it comes to wooden decks and patios, choosing the wrong shovel can have serious consequences. Plastic is the way to go. Metal shovels, while tending to last longer, are typically far too abrasive for delicate wood surfaces. 

Equally important is how you shovel. Avoid running the shovel perpendicular to the wooden boards—doing so can wreak havoc on paints, stains, and the general appearance of the wood. Instead, always shovel along the length of the boards, with the grain. 

TRIM BRANCHES

We’ve all seen it before: a branch collects too much snow or ice and snaps under the pressure. While this situation can create a mess in its own right, if your fence, deck or outbuilding is underneath when it breaks, you could have some significant damage to deal with, too. To avoid such catastrophes, simply trim your trees as needed during the colder months. 

AVOID SALTING

Salting your driveway and walkways is often a must during fall and winter, but avoid the temptation to salt your deck or patio, too. Salt and the resulting ice melt are infamous for stripping stains and discoloring finishes. 

“The Best Wood Protection on the Market,” All Your Cedarshield Questions Answered

 

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How to Get Rid of Boxelder Bugs: 3 Steps

 

During the warm months, the small orange and black insects known as boxelder bugs go mostly unnoticed. However, once the leaves start to turn and temperatures drop, these annoying, odor-causing pests begin to emerge in search of warmth, often in disturbingly large numbers. You’ll usually spot them hanging out in clusters on the sunny sides of trees and the south-facing exterior of your house. Even worse, as the weather continues to cool, these large groups—often numbering in the hundreds, sometimes thousands—will look to move inside your home.

A few dozen boxelder bugs outside is a nuisance, a few dozen boxelder bugs indoors is a seriously messy problem, in some cases even a health hazard. In addition to the foul scent they emit when threatened, indoor boxelder bugs can quickly spread excrement, hard-to-remove stains, and dead bugs all throughout your home. To make matters worse, their yucky smell tends to attract additional bugs, and not just more boxelder bugs, but damaging pests like carpet beetles, too. In other words, things can get out of hand quickly.

Given their large numbers and resistance to many traditional pesticides, boxelder bugs can be difficult to get under control. But don’t worry—we have your back. Below you’ll find 3 simple steps for preventing and getting rid of boxelder bugs, both inside and outside your home.

 

Like with any pest problem, the easiest, least expensive, and most impactful way to control boxelder bugs is prevention. Here’s how to do it:

SEAL YOUR HOME

Without question, this is the most important step for preventing indoor boxelder problems. If you have boxelder bugs nearby and your home’s not adequately sealed, it’s only a matter of time before you find dozens of these stinky pests indoors.

Perform a thorough check of your home’s exterior, looking closely for holes in siding, poorly sealed doors and windows, cracks in the foundation, etc—any potential entry points boxelder bugs could use to sneak inside. Then simply use caulk, weatherproofing tape, spray foam, or another appropriate material to repair any holes, cracks, or crevices you find. 

REMOVE POTENTIAL HIDEOUTS & FOOD

Boxelder bugs commonly use organic clutter like stacked wood, piles of mulch, leaves, overgrown shrubbery, and rock piles to overwinter and escape the coming cold. If these attractants are in your yard, you’re far more likely to experience larger boxelder populations, both indoors and out. As fall approaches, do yourself a favor and remove all unnecessary clutter from your yard and stay up on lawn maintenance until at least winter. 

Of course the biggest attractant for boxelder bugs is their favorite food source, boxelder seeds. If you have boxelder trees near your home, regularly scan your yard for their seed pods and promptly remove them to deter future boxelder bugs. 

PROTECT YOUR LAWN & MAPLE TREES

Boxelder and other maple trees are the primary breeding site, food source, and shelter for boxelder bugs. By making these trees and the surrounding areas inhospitable to unwanted pests, you can prevent large boxelder bug populations from taking hold.

First, treat your entire lawn, including shrubbery and bases of trees with the family-safe Lawn & Garden Kit monthly until winter arrives. If you’re currently experiencing a heavy boxelder bug problem, treat your entire outdoor space twice, two weeks apart, and then move on to monthly applications after that. For additional protection, sprinkle diatomaceous earth at the bases of your maple trees throughout the summer and fall. 

ATTRACT BOXELDER BUG PREDATORS

One of the easiest and most natural methods for both preventing and getting rid of boxelder bugs involves attracting their natural predators to your lawn & garden. Installing a few bird feeders and baths is typically sufficient and the results should come fairly quickly. Spiders are also effective, so if you don’t mind having a few harmless webs outside your home, leave them to do their work—they’ll help control other unwanted pests, too. 

 

TREAT YOUR LAWN

Healthier lawns with fewer pest problems are far more resilient to additional bug populations, boxelder bugs included. 

By treating your lawn with a family-safe pesticide monthly, you can kill and repel harmful bugs like mosquitoes, ants, fleas, ticks, and chiggers, which in turn will help keep other pests like boxelder bugs under control.

Start by thoroughly spraying your entire front, back, and side yards with PCO Choice, including shrubbery and bases of trees. For best results, repeat this process in two weeks and then move on to monthly applications afterward.

If you live in a warmer region like the South, applications should be done every month unless the temperature drops below freezing for more than a few weeks. If you live in a state prone to cold spells, start spraying monthly in late February and then taper off in late November as winter begins in earnest.

Because PCO Choice is plant-based and family-safe, no downtime is necessary. You, your family, and pets can enjoy your lawn right after application!

For additional protection, we strongly advise spreading Cedar Granules throughout your outdoor space, especially in and around maple trees and wherever else boxelder bugs congregate. 

SPRAY THEM

As fall approaches and boxelder bugs surface in alarmingly large numbers, they tend to collect in clusters on the southern sides of trees and buildings in search of warmth. Trust us, it’s not a fun experience to have a few hundred boxelder bugs just hanging out on the side of your home, leaving behind a yucky mess of droppings and dead, decaying bugs. 

Thankfully, there’s an easy, quick, and natural way to break up these annoying gatherings. Just turn your garden hose to full force and give any boxelder bug clusters you come across a quick blast of water. That’s all there is to it. While this won’t solve your boxelder bug problem outright, it can substantially decrease their numbers.

 

VACUUM THEM

Once boxelder bugs find their way indoors, it can be tricky to get them out. Firstly, crushed boxelder bugs are notorious for staining fabrics, painted walls, and other surfaces. Secondly, when scared or harmed, boxelder bugs emit a noxious odor that can leave your home reeking for weeks. In other words, sweeping them out or gathering them by hand is out of the question. Vacuuming, on the other hand, is a quick, easy, and mess-free way to get boxelder bugs out of your home immediately. Just make sure to thoroughly empty and clean the interior of your vacuum after each use. 

REPEL THEM

To keep bugs outside where they belong during fall and winter, spray trouble areas and known entry points like window sills, doorways, countertops, kitchens, bathrooms, and more with Cedarcide Original weekly, or more often as needed.

To kill any bugs you find indoors, spray them directly with non-toxic Cedarcide Original and then simply wipe them up with a paper towel. 

 

 

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These Are the Fall Pests You Need to Worry About

 

Fall’s here which means a whole list of new bugs are trying to move inside your home as they attempt to escape the cold. Here are the pests you’re most likely to encounter this season and essential tips for preventing them.

 

The chirp of crickets can be a seasonal pleasure, but when your home’s haunted with that noise all night long, it’s certainly an unwelcome intrusion. A home full of dozens of dead and decaying crickets is really gross, too. Did we mention they also eat holes in clothing, bedding, furniture, rugs, and other fabrics?

 

We know they can be a bit scary, but nearly all spiders are harmless and actually beneficial, helping keep indoor insect populations to a minimum. But as the weather cools, spiders’ mating season begins which tends to bring them out of hiding and in larger numbers than usual. As helpful as they can be, no one wants a home full of spiders and webs for the holidays.

 

As fall kicks in, centipedes are more likely to move indoors, as they search for food, moisture, and shelter from the coming cold. There’s just something about their numerous legs and the way they scuttle about that makes centipedes extra creepy. But thankfully, just like spiders, centipedes are normally allies, helping rid our homes of other creepy crawlies, spiders included. However, it is important to mention that some, especially larger individuals, can pack a seriously painful bite, so do exercise caution around them.

 

If you’ve ever spotted unexplained holes in your clothing, rugs, or bedding, don’t be so quick to blame moths. There’s a good chance these silvery wingless bugs are the real culprits. In addition to closets and other storage spaces, you might notice silverfish in basements, kitchens, and bathrooms, where they congregate to grab a quick drink.

 

The larvae of a small brown moth, fall armyworms are one of the most destructive lawn & garden pests in the U.S., capable of stripping an entire yard of its plant life in a single night. One fall evening your lawn is beautiful and healthy, and the next morning it’s an ugly, dying patch of brown grass and dirt.

 

If you’ve noticed wasps or wasp nests near your home in the spring and summer, you need to be extra cautious during fall and winter. During the colder months, wasps become more active and also more aggressive as they prepare their colonies for chillier conditions. During this time, you, your family and pets are far more likely to incur painful, and in some cases dangerous, stings.

 

While stink bugs are especially bad in the Northern U.S., they’re slowly becoming more of an issue across the entire country. As we enter fall, these bugs emerge from their hiding places in alarmingly large numbers in search of warm places to overwinter for the season. During this time, it’s not uncommon to see hundreds of stink bugs gather on the southern sides of homes, barns, and other outbuildings. And if they happen to find a small crack or crevice to move indoors, you might just find yourself sharing a home with several dozen of these foul-smelling pests.

 

Similar to stink bugs, boxelder bugs are relatively harmless but also a serious nuisance—they’re infamous for producing a terrible odor, too. Also like stink bugs, they can appear in surprisingly large numbers as the weather cools, blanketing the exterior of your home. And, if you allow them entryways, they’ll gladly take residence inside as well.

 

Sure, these damaging, disease-carrying pests can live in our homes, garages, and outbuildings all year long, but they become particularly bad as winter nears and they’re desperate for warm shelter. In addition to the obvious sanitation problems they create, rats and mice can cause expensive household damage as they chew through walls, clothing, electrical wires, and more.

 

The following preventative tips will substantially reduce the number of fall bugs you find both inside and outside your home

• In addition to warmth, fall bugs move indoors in search of food and water. Keeping your home clean and free of food debris and excess moisture can substantially limit the number of bugs you see indoors during fall and winter.
• Attracting predators like birds to your lawn is an effective and natural way to curb fall bug populations. Baths and feeders will usually do the trick. 
• Arguably the most effective way to keep fall pests outside where they belong is to make sure your home is properly sealed. Start by doing a slow and thorough check both inside and outside for possible entryways like cracks, crevices, holes, etc. Look closely at windows, doorways, baseboards, fixtures, outlets, foundations, basements, and attics. Then simply use spackle or caulk to patch any entry points you find. You might want to consider installing seals at the bottom of doors and garages, too. 
• Limiting sources of light just outside your home can significantly reduce fall bug numbers. We strongly suggest trading traditional outdoor light bulbs for those that don’t attract bugs, such as yellow compact fluorescent lights (CFL), sodium vapor bulbs, or halogen options. 
• Treat your entire yard, including shrubbery and bases of trees, with the family-safe Lawn & Garden Kit monthly until you experience several weeks of freezing conditions. 
• Spray known bug hangouts and potential entry points like doorways, windowsills, baseboards, etc every other week with Cedarcide Original. 

 

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How to Get Rid of Squirrels Humanely and Naturally

If you’re anything like us, you love animals. Unfortunately, some animals are just too damaging or dangerous to keep around. 

Enter the squirrel. They’re cute and seemingly harmless, but when they invade our homes and lawns they can cause costly property damage, not to mention spread fleas, ticks, and other pests to our pets and families. 

So what do you do if you need to get rid of squirrels but harming them isn’t an option? Here are 5 ways to get rid of squirrels humanely, safely, and naturally.

 

Squirrels can leap anywhere from 7-10 feet, making a jump from your trees to your roof a piece of cake. In fact, this is among the most common ways squirrels sneak into our homes.

Not only will regularly trimming your trees help keep squirrels off your home, better manicured trees tend to house fewer squirrels and other pesky wildlife.

 

Accessible fruit, veggies, nuts, seeds, and bird feeders are essentially just giant welcome mats for squirrels. 

To limit squirrel populations on your property, ensure vulnerable crops are shielded with wire or other coverings, that your trash cans and compost piles are tightly closed, and that any bird feeders in your lawn are squirrel-proof.

Pick up your own squirrel-proof bird feeder here

 

If your yard has a ton of squirrels, it’s usually only a matter of time before they find their way indoors, which could end up costing you thousands in household repairs.

Save yourself the time, money, and headache associated with indoor squirrels and other pests by making sure your home is properly sealed. Do a slow walk around the exterior of your home, looking for potential entry points like holes, cracks, and other instances of wall, roof, attic, or basement damage. Then simply repair or replace any openings as needed.

 

Squirrels can strip a garden, plant, or tree of its fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds in only a matter of hours. But squirrels aren’t fans of every plant, and you can use this knowledge against them.

There are two main ways to go about it. First, you can try sprinkling black pepper, red pepper flakes, or cayenne throughout your garden, wherever you’re experiencing the worst squirrel problems. Just be sure to water the spices afterward to help prevent them from blowing away. This approach alone will often do the trick.

However, if you need a more permanent solution, try installing plants squirrels are known to avoid around your most vulnerable crops. Such as…

• Daffodils
• Fritillary
• Galanthus
• Hyacinth
• Geranium
• Peppermint or spearmint
• Alliums
• Onions
• Garlic
• Scallions

 

This approach works great, is super easy, and takes basically no time at all. 

You have a few options here. You can adopt a rescue dog (canines and their urine are fantastic squirrel deterrents). You can purchase some of those cheap plastic owls and install them throughout your lawn and roof. Or, you can set up a motion-activated sprinkler, which gives your yard a quick spray anytime wildlife venture into unwanted areas of your property. 

   

 

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