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How to Keep Pests Out of Your Holiday Decorations

Opening up your favorite decorations and finding pests can ruin the fun of decorating during the holidays. Pests love those small, warm spaces to take up residence during the cold winter. But all of that hassle and heartbreak can be prevented if you follow a few simple steps when packing your holiday decorations up for next year.
  1. Inspect and Clean Your Decorations: No matter where you store your decorations, whether it be a section of your basement or a storage unit, check the surrounding area for any evidence of pests. Remove any items that may contain urine, feces, food ingredients, or chewed material. Inspect any leftover decorations for any soiled areas.
  2. Go Plastic: This step is a very easy and simple change when it comes to storing your decorations. Rodents will be more deterred when it comes to chewing plastic rather than cardboard, as long as there isn’t anything inside the box that they can smell, or decide they want. Throw away any ornaments or decorations containing food as these will attract unwanted pests.
  3. Repack and Reorganize: If you’re especially worried about pests getting into your favorite decorations, consider reorganizing your storage space. Unpack any boxes in new containers, and move all containers from one side of the space to the other. This will allow you to inspect the space, and have a more clear understanding of where pests might sneak into your storage space. Pests will prefer to live in a small, dark corner that hasn’t been inspected in years, so it’s important to clean your storage space and reorganize. If you have decorations that are more valued, consider putting them in plastic storage bins with secure lids.
  4. Inspect Your Storage Areas: It is important to inspect your storage area and keep it clean. Along with checking it every year, you’ll want to keep the area dry, well ventilated, and free of any clutter that pests would like to call home. Leave spacing between totes to maximize air flow through the area, and if you run into any moisture issues, move your decorations to a different storage area until the problem can be resolved.
If you noticed a presence of rodents or insects as you were unpacking your decorations this season, give Antex Exterminating a call. We can customize a home pest maintenance plan to keep those annoying pests out of your home. For our Pinehurst location, give us a call at (910) 295-5881, and (910) 822-0099 for our Fayetteville location.