Our House
 advice

Home Maintenance

- Suggestions for how to do it yourself -

Summary: You can do many home maintenance projects yourself, including many pest control and pest management projects. Check out the following guides and instructional videos.

Jack DeAngelis, PhD
OSU Ext. Entomologist (ret.)

Pest management vs. pest control

Pest management is a relatively new term that aims to recognize that our goal should be to reduce, or manage, a pest's numbers below that which causes damage or injury. Pest management is mainly practiced in agriculture and gardening where one of the goals is to maintain natural enemies. Sometimes you'll see the term integrated pest management.

The practice of pest control seeks to eliminate (exterminate) any potentially damaging pest. For example, most people would not be satisfied with just reducing the number of carpenter ants in the walls of their home but might be ok with only reducing (managing) the number of aphids in their garden to a level that does not affect production.

DIY pest control around home

Pest control companies ("exterminators"; an outdated term that these companies avoid) obviously sell pest control services (applying pesticides, traps and baits) but in terms of protecting your investment the most important home maintenance project is an annual inspection for water and insect damage. Some pest control companies will do this inspection for you but they are easy to do yourself and you'll be surprised how much you learn about your home. If a problem is detected then you can decide if a pest control service call is needed.

By getting more involved in pest control decisions you can maintain control over how much pesticide is used around your home so that in the long run it may be a safer place to live. The following links, books and videos contain a wealth of information to get you started. Most projects can be done successfully with a few simple tools. Please see the DIY page for a list of those few pest control projects that should not be done by most homeowners. Contact us if you have specific pest control or pest management questions.

related information: [ants]; [boxelder bugs]; [carpenter bees]; [carpenter ants]; [DIY pest control]; [drywood termites]; [dry rot]; [hardwood floors and furniture]; [home inspections]; [log homes]; [powderpost beetles]; [structure fumigation]; [termites]

Help!

==> Watch the latest home improvement and home maintenance videos from Tim Carter of Ask The Builder. Use the scroll buttons (< and >, right) or the Menu button to select from Tim's videos. ==>

The Pest Management Store: Identification guides, reference and gardening books, and supplies.

Mission: To provide accurate, up-to-date and unbiased information for solving common insect and mite problems around your home, business and landscape using least-toxic methods.

Jack DeAngelis, Ph.D.

Please see the Disclaimer statements as well (sorry, but these really are necessary).
Copyright 2004-2008 LivingWithBugs, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Page Updated: 4/20/2008