After you’ve chopped wood to build a fire — or picked up wood on your way home from work — there aren’t many more relaxing activities this fall than lounging on your couch as you sip a hot beverage in front of a warm fireplace. Until the pests invade. As much as you enjoy the crackling of a good fire from the comfort of your home, pests enjoy it just as much. The culprit for this invasion? Firewood. As winter begins to knock at your door, check out 6 ways to keep pests out of your firewood (and out of your home!). 1. Keep Your Distance When the temperature drops and you’re set on relaxing by a warm fireplace, it’s temping to place the firewood pile close to your home — or even inside your home. Don’t do it. Pests love to hide out in wood piles, and keeping it close to your abode is an open invitation for pests to enter. Pests such as carpenter ants love to crawl inside firewood, and if these baddies reach your home, serious, costly damage can result. 2. Cover it Up Protecting firewood from every element is going to help keep it dry. Wet firewood attracts insects, so it’s important to let wet wood dry out to keep the pests away. If you’re struggling to fight the elements, place a tarp or cover on your firewood. 3. Don’t Stay Grounded It’s going to be difficult to keep firewood dry when it’s lying on the ground. Instead, place it on some sort of support or firewood holder. If you have some extra lumber or cinder blocks around your yard, you can easily transform the materials into a place to store your firewood. Or, you can buy a structure that’s specifically designed to hold firewood. 4. Don’t Play Favorites If you’re always using the wood you place on the top of the stack and refilling the pile before you reach the pieces on the bottom, the aging, unused firewood could make a snazzy new home for pests. By rotating the pile and using all the wood on a regular basis, you’ll lessen the risk of pests infesting the stack. 5. Avoid the Pesticides Do not spray your firewood pile with pesticides — ever. Even if pests are overtaking the pile, applying pesticides could cause them to burrow deeper into the wood. And if you do end up burning the wood, the pesticides will release harmful chemicals that could be a health risk. 6. Make Two Trips It’s convenient to bring in extra wood for the fires you’re planning to light today and later this week. It’s also a great way to invite pests inside. Leaving wood lying around your home could result in a dozen ants crawling around your kitchen. Avoid the problem altogether by only bringing in what you need and take another trip later in the week when you need more firewood. If your firewood has brought unwanted guests into your home, call Plunkett’s Pest Control to help you get rid of the pests. We have over 100 years of experience and trained professionals that will provide you with top-quality service. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.
