When the rain comes down hard and fast, or when the rain is persistent, the ground can over saturate, leading to leaks in your basement. Torontonians frequently have to contend with a storm drainage system that backs up, causing basements to fill up quickly with dirty water. It doesn’t help that Toronto’s drainage and sewer system, last updated in the 1940s and 50s, doesn’t have the capacity to deal with brief but powerful storms, something the city has been seeing more frequently lately. The GTA also has 42 flood-prone areas; check out the list to find out if your home is one of them and prepare accordingly. Among others, Mimico, Long Branch, Brampton Central, Avondale, the Lower Don, Hoggs Hollow, Rockcliffe, Kennedy Commons, Dorset Park, Pickering Village, and Old Markham Village are just some of the hot spots for flooding in the GTA. Vaughan in particular is prone, including Vaughan Centre, Edgeley, Woodbridge, and more.
But once the water has been drained away, you can face a whole new set of problems: certain pests drawn to water damage. These are some of the worst pests drawn to water damage that will often turn up in your home after a leak in your ceiling or flooding:
#1 Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants, which dig long galleries in moist wood, thrive in homes after a leak or a flood has softened up the wood where they make their homes. Over a long period of time, carpenter ants can cause thousands of dollars worth of damage to the structure of your home, not to mention invade your kitchen and contaminate your food. You’re going to want to bring in a local ant control company to remove carpenter ants before they cause significant damage.
#2 Fire Ants
You’re not as likely to find fire ants in your home as carpenter ants, but they can easily ruin a perfectly good backyard. Fire ant colonies have the truly uncanny ability to form rafts to survive flood waters, and they’re often drawn to rotting logs and tree stumps to start their mounds. Because of the way they migrate, once they move into your lawn, you will likely need to treat your soil every year to keep them from moving back in and biting you and your family. Their presence in the GTA is spreading and companies like Power Pest Control have reported an uptick in fire ant-related calls.
#3 Cockroaches
One of the most dreaded household pests of all, cockroaches love dark, damp places, and a basement that’s seen flood damage will be a paradise for these fast-reproducing insects. When it comes to pesticide, you want a company that uses chemicals that will be safe your family but still effectively eliminate cockroaches. Integrated Pest Management techniques practiced by Power Pest Control also help eliminate, exclude, and prevent future cockroach infestations. Not only do cockroaches contaminate kitchen surfaces and food, their feces and parts of dead bodies can enter the air as dust and have been known to cause asthma in children. Get them out of your home fast at the first sign that they’ve moved in.
