Basement apartments are often more affordable than their counterparts on higher floors. Those facing backyards of apartment buildings or parks can be pretty comfortable places to live in, as these areas can be used as natural terraces or patios.
However, these living spaces could be hiding potential threats to the hygiene and well-being of their tenants. Bed bugs, mice, cockroaches, and other pests can make their homes in your basement apartment, affecting your quality of living. Discovering pests in your home is not only unpleasant, some can pose health risks such as allergic reactions or infections.
Here are some tips on how to keep bugs out of your basement, and evict these unwanted roommates:
1. Keep the Humidity Low
Older houses usually have a higher level of humidity in the basement, which can be attractive to pests. If you live in one of these houses or you’re planning to rent it out, make sure to reduce the level of humidity before anybody starts living in it.
For starters, you’ll want to invest in insulation. Since basements are usually at least partially in the ground, they absorb the humidity and the cold from the surrounding soil. That’s why insulating the basement walls is a must. It’s important to insulate the basement ceiling, as well, not only the side walls.
If you have windows in your basement, which is usually the case with semi-basements, be sure to caulk them, or replace any old ones with PVC windows.
Another efficient way to combat basement humidity is to get a dehumidifier. They come in different sizes and with different features, so you can choose the one that works best for your space. If you have a larger basement, you’ll need a more powerful device. For smaller spaces, just go for an average dehumidifier.
Last but not least, you’ll want to improve the ventilation system, if you have one, or install an air-conditioner to help you reduce the basement humidity.
2. Rearrange the Furniture
Bugs usually like to hide in humid and dark areas. This makes areas behind furniture in the basement a perfect shelter for water bugs, cockroaches, and other insects.
That’s why you should frequently rearrange the furniture in your basement apartment, or clean behind, under and around the furniture, even if you haven’t noticed any bugs. After you move the furniture, make sure to meticulously clean all the hidden places behind the closets, sofa sets, and armchairs. This ensures you’ll be able to remove any potential nests or dead bugs, and also helps you remove any potential food leftovers or other organic waste that attracts bugs.
You’ll also want to check the furniture for woodworm and inspect the inside of the furniture for potential insect nests.
3. Seal Any Holes in the Walls
As you’re rearranging furniture and cleaning, it’s a perfect chance to check if there are any holes in the walls. Pests can enter your home through very small holes, so it’s important to make sure they’re sealed. Use a flashlight to spot every hole in darker areas of your basement. If you notice mouse droppings, first make sure to catch the mouse or mice. You might want to start with a sticky trap.
If there are more mice than you can handle, don’t hesitate to invite mice control experts and have them sort out this issue.
When you believe you’ve gotten rid of the mice, wait for a few hours or an entire day to see if there are any mice left around the basement.
If not, you can start sealing all the holes and crack in the walls. This reduces the risk of having mice in your basement to a minimum by preventing entry.
4. Protect Your Drains to Keep Bugs Out of Your Basement
Some insects and water bugs know their way around drains. That’s why it’s smart to protect all the drains in your basement apartment. If you’re planning to renovate the existing basement bathroom or build a new one from scratch, you can install strainers, filters, and screens while you’re doing this work.
You can also put portable anti-bug protectors into your existing sinks, bathtubs, and showers. The major advantage of these portable protectors is that you can easily replace them, if necessary.
For basements in which the drainage systems haven’t been used for a while, it’s recommended to pour eco-friendly cleaning liquids down the drain, to clean the pipes. This will remove any waste pile ups inside that would give bugs a safe shelter, plus it will reduce the risk of clogging.
5. Improve Your Overall Hygiene
Maintaining regular hygiene is an important step in keeping bugs out of your basement. If you often leave food outside the fridge, or don’t thoroughly clean spilled food off the floor, bugs will smell it and consider it an invitation to a feast. Here are some tips to lower the risk of having bugs in your home:
- Keep fresh food in the fridge. Once you’re done with your meal, immediately wash your dishes or place them in the dishwasher, and put the rest of the food into the fridge. If there is no fresh food outside the fridge, bugs are much less likely to consider your home a reliable source of food.
- Avoid stockpiling fruit in the apartment. As fruit rots, it starts emitting certain smells that attract bugs. Buying fruit on a daily basis is better than piling it up. If it happens that you have a lot of fruit in the apartment, consider putting it into the fridge or making a smoothie.
- Vacuum the apartment regularly. Even if there are some food leftovers on the floor or other organic waste around the apartment, vacuuming and dusting your home on a regular basis should do the trick.
- Declutter the living space to spot bugs more easily. Hoarding and piling up unnecessary things around your apartment is a call to action for bugs. The more items there are around your apartment, the more places there are for bugs to hide.
Turning the basement into a room or renting it as a basement apartment can be both affordable and practical. However, it’s crucial to ensure that bugs are kept away from this living space. Applying the tips above will help you keep the bugs out of your basement apartment and make this space a more comfortable place to live.
