Is Work “Bugging” You? 5 Ways to Avoid & Clean Bug Messes

Unfortunately, bugs can get in the office, especially during the spring and summer when the bugs are abundant and your employees are going in and out of the doors often to enjoy breaks in the nice weather. These little critters can make annoying messes, but with the right prevention and cleaning techniques, you can stay on top of it. Here's how:

1. Change the outdoor lighting to keep moths away from your doorways

While moth caterpillars can do great harm to crops, munching away on them, their mature manifestation, the caterpillar, is not dangerous. However, if they sneak in your office, these flying insects can leave dust on your walls and window treatments, and their dead bodies can build up around the office.

To minimize the presence of moths, don't hang a light fixture over your entrance. Instead, use small foot path lights to light up the area leading to the office door. That way, the moths aren't confused and constantly flying around the light by your door and easily end up inside.  

To clean up moth dust from your walls, upholstery or other fabrics, gently brush or vacuum it off. Do not wet it unless it is on a non-porous surface such as the floor, plastic desk or sealed wood. Simply, vacuum up any dead bugs.

2. Replace screens to keep flies out

If you have flies buzzing around your office, you need screens. Check all window screens in the fall, make sure they fit tightly and are in good repair. Patch and replace them as needed.

Depending on the type of entryway doors you have, you can hang a screen behind the door or you can install a weight on the door so it closes, preventing it from accidentally being left open.

If flies have left poop (which look like black specks) behind on your walls or office furniture, it is sticky and hard to remove. To tackle it, dampen the specks for a moment and then try to scrub them off. If they resist, make a strong mixture of bleach, borax, dishwasher soap and a bit of water to dilute it. Put on rubber gloves, grab a brush and scrub the specks.

3. Remember the dust mites

While you're thinking of bugs, it's easy to overlook the ones you don't see. However, these are the ones you should take the most seriously. Dust mites eat the dust in the carpet, and their dander can trigger allergies. Minimize dust mites' source of energy by vacuuming your carpets regularly and getting them steam cleaned on a regular basis.

4. Pay attention to the landscaping

Although bugs are bugging you inside your office, many of them start outside. If you want to minimize bugs and their messes in your office, you need to pay attention to your landscaping.

Have a lawn service who consistently removes piles of built-up leaves and debris, prune trees to cut off branches acting as a bridge from a tree teeming with insects to your office.

Choose a landscaping design that is trim. Avoid having scraggly bushes near walls as insects may hide in them during the fall and then seek shelter in your walls as temperatures drop even further in the winter.

Keep stagnant water out of your landscaping so mosquitoes do not lay eggs. Although these bugs won't get through screens, you don't want them ruining your outside spaces either, especially if employees use them for breaks.

5. Clean thoroughly after cockroaches stop by

All of the techniques discussed above will also help to keep cockroaches out of your office, but if cockroaches do infest, the first sign you will likely notice is their droppings which look like coffee grounds. Although one or two won't be noticeable, if you have an infestation, you will see a lot.

You need to hire professional office cleaning help to remove them, but to clean your office along the way, vacuum the droppings and then use water and baking soda to clean feces off walls and hard surfaces. Have a professional steam clean your office carpets.


Share