We are a team of passionate homeowners, home improvement pros, and DIY enthusiasts who enjoy sharing home improvement, housekeeping, decorating, and more with other homeowners! Given the microscopic size of many bugs, it's not hard to believe that they can enter the home through cracks or holes that are nearly invisible to the homeowner. While closing your weep holes to prevent the insects from coming in might seem like the solution to all of your problems, there is still one more thing to think about: weep holes need to remain open and allow water to pass through them freely. Phorid flies can be one of the most dangerous bugs to humans as they are capable of carrying diseases from one place to another, especially since they prefer to snack on decaying matter and animal droppings. This design feature is found on the following products: Weep holes can be seen from the exterior of the unit, at the bottom of the sill. Recovering from a blunder I made while emailing a professor. Fill smaller gaps or cracks using pipe sealants or caulk. Put pet food away after mealtimes, or invest in a bug-proof container, which gives your pet access to food while keeping insects out. Question: The local squirrels are systematically chewing off the lead flashing from the stand pipes on the roof. But I recently observed a new entry point on windows that I hadnt considered before: the window weep hole. Occasionally, carpet mites can be brought into your home and ending up near your windows, by bringing in an already infested item from outside. As a defensive mechanism, stink bugs will drop into the cup, requiring no physical contact on your part. Gravity helps the water keep moving down through the weep holes and out of the window instead of trapping it in the frame where it can cause mold, rot, or other water damage. This is why it is incredibly important to fill in any hole or cracks you see in the foundation of your home and in your window sills. Lets go over a few of the best ways people have prevented pests from infiltrating their homes. Mix your white vinegar with water in a spray bottle and give your window sills a good spray with the concoction. First remove some of the film with a single edge razor and then scrub the rest off with the steel wool and solution and that will remove the rest. Making sure the tracks are free of debris and dust will reduce the chance of clogs. These tiny bugs are mostly brown in color with splotches of white and black all along its body and they can usually get into your home though an open door or window. They are called weep holes because precipitation weeps out through the small opening. One room in the front of our house leaks during a hard driving rain storms. Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers. Add a coat of household cement or clear nail polish to seal the hole and prevent insect entry. If you have a pool, keep it chlorinated and filtered, even when not in use. One of the best ingredients that you might already have in your kitchen that you can spray on your windows to keep these small bugs away is vinegar. Sold by by.RHO and ships from Amazon Fulfillment. Keep food trash in the kitchen and not in wastebaskets throughout the house. As you're sleeping they'll be hard at work getting rid of bugs before they can crawl their way into your home. link to Can Caterpillars Hurt You? Keep clutter to a minimum, and end infestation before it begins. In Stock. Home Improvement Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for contractors and serious DIYers. Stack Exchange network consists of 181 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. There are many ways to pest-proof your house. The flap blocks wind when there's no water going through the weep holes. There is a variety of other small black bugs you can find on your windows & windowsills , such as: Many of the tiny black bugs that we find near our windows thankfully do not bite humans, and the ones that do dont pose much of a threat. Why is this sentence from The Great Gatsby grammatical? For best results, make sure to clean the area where the adhesive will go with alcohol and let dry completely before applying the weep hole protector. A sweep is a cheap device that can be found at most hardware stores, and helps to cover the gap between a threshold and the door bottom. The flap blocks wind when there's no water going through the weep holes. Weep holes must remain open for water to drain even as they exclude pests. Installing new weatherstripping inside the windows to tighten them inside theframes We have lots more on the site to show you. To enjoy the feeling of fresh air without the annoyance of insects, install screens in windows and doors. If your area has a rainy season, be sure to check them before the rain hits. (July 29, 2009) http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/heloise/pests/banish-insect-pest-jun06-2, Lyric Bird Food. If youve never heard of them, youre not alone. The "Bug Screen" comes packaged in 30 pieces and cost $22.99. 1.Clean, clean, clean! Casement windows are designed to open outward from one side. The trash should be placed in a can with a lid, and should be emptied each night. By that point, it's almost impossible to get rid of them. Many homeowners rely on natural ventilation from doors and windows to bring fresh air into the home. "What Do Bats Eat?" Get it as soon as Tuesday, Jan 24. They will dry clean, dont rub them. For even better protection, combine this with a door sweep. Aerating the lawn can reduce this problem and allow water to naturally absorb into the soil. Clear away damaged bricks and add new ones, filling the joints with mortar. Check for gaps along the foundation and siding joints as well. However, they can be beneficial since they help keep your windows dry. These windows come in both single and pair window designs. We have two leather recliners and in a couple a small areas they are starting to show their age. Or you could wrap it in a tissue and squish it; the tissue will keep stinky oils off your hands and out of the air. Polyguards TERM Weep and Vent Barrier incorporates a stainless-steel, corrosion-resistant screen and is unique in its ability to exclude both very small and larger pests. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. In stock. Usually it's going to be foam tape, butyl glue, or boot glazed. It is logical to see a hole in your window and be concerned about unwanted weather coming in. If you do not have weep holes and prefer not to spend the money on hiring someone else to install them, you might be able to do it yourself. Fortunately, bats sleep during the day and only fly at night, which means you're unlikely to even notice them. (July 29, 2009) http://www.uainsectcollection.com/uploads/1/2/7/3/12737221/az1320.pdf, Heloise. So whats the point of this tiny hole in your window? New York State Integrated Pest Management, Learn about BMSB and the Latest IPM Techniques, Evaluation of Exclusion to Prevent Indoor Infestations of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, The Unwelcome House Guest: Brown Marmorated Stink Bug A Guide for Residents, Property Managers, and pest Management Professionals, Prevent BMSB Infestations by Building them Out, Its (still) tick season and will be evermore, NYSIPMs Gangloff-Kaufmann Named to State Working Group on Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases, The ABCs of School and Childcare Pest Management, WNY Sweet Corn Pheromone Trap Network Report. Although not all windows have weep holes, you may see them on vinyl or metal window frames. For a more natural solution, consider placing boric acid or diatomaceous earth at the base of these walls. The majority of these tiny pests enjoy sweets and fruity smells, so theyre instantly going to be attracted to anything youve forgotten to put away properly. The stainless steel wool helps keep the pests from infiltrating your home while allowing water to still run out of the weep holes. Although, make sure youre not using only vinegar because that would be a particularly strong scent. If your window leaks near the top of where it meets the roof, then it probably has a clogged weep hole. *NOTE: Trade names used herein or products shown are for convenience only. Some tips to keep in mind: If you are not comfortable doing this yourself or are not confident about drilling into the correct area, contact a professional. If you see the water coming out of the weep hole, everything is fine. Clogged weep holes are a common cause of window leaking and are easy to fix. If a law is new but its interpretation is vague, can the courts directly ask the drafters the intent and official interpretation of their law? If you examine your entrance ways carefully, you'll likely be surprised by the number of unsealed gaps you see, each of which makes an easy entrance path for bugs. In the summertime, phorid flies become quite attracted to the lights on your porch and will end up at your windows. Johnnie Chuoke may be reached at happyhandyman2@yahoo.com. The holesespecially if they encompass an entire mortar joint (usually about -inch wide)can permit insects, mice, and even small snakes to. The purpose of weep holes is to let water drain out of your windows, which is important since they're subject not only to rain but also hose sprays when you clean your windows, sprinklers, and even stray water balloons or water guns when your kids play outside. Sometimes, that just so happens to be in your bed. It helps drain rainwater from under your window and through the wall behind it. Change the water in your fountains or birdbaths twice a week to keep mosquito eggs from hatching in them. During summer, you can add screens to your windows and large openings. To encourage birds to help with your pest control efforts, it helps to provide trees and bushes where they can establish nests. However, that is exactly the access that most pests have into most homesand its all because of weep holes. Sadly, the mesh of the screen or the glass prevent them from escaping, so the bugs end up dying from exhausting after so many failed attempts to get outside. If you find standing water on your lawn, you may have a thatch buildup. The holes should be about 1-2 inches from the corners of the frame. Check out this post which is one of the most popular of all time. Whether you're buying new vinyl windows or want to better understand your existing windows, figuring out how the weep holes work is an important part of home maintenance.