In the classic 1995 comedy, "Houseguest," stand-up comic Sinbad plays a con man on the run from
Mafiosi to whom he owes
money.
To lay low until the heat's off, Sinbad poses as a long-lost friend to
an unwitting suburbanite played by the late Phil Hartman, moving in as a
houseguest. Hilarity ensues as Sinbad charms the family with his
antics. He goes from welcomed houseguest to unwelcome house pest, once
the Mafia men located him at the family's home [source:
Rotten Tomatoes].
Pests of the
insect and
rodent
variety aren't always quite so obvious; however, they can be just as
irritating. After all, what's worse than waking in the morning and
finding that a
tick has burrowed into your skin or that a
rat has eaten all of your cereal?
There are plenty of ways to rid your home of critters -- from
raccoons to
cockroaches
-- once they've set up house in your domain. Exterminators appear to be
the preferred choice among Americans: The pest control industry in the
United States pulls in about $7 billion in combined revenue each year
[source:
Hoovers].
While exterminators usually come armed with poisonous chemicals that
are deadly to pests, these chemicals can possibly be harmful to you. One
2003 study by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) found that the
average person has at least 13 different pesticides in his or her body,
some of which have been linked to health problems like
cancer and nerve damage [source:
CDC].
But
what alternatives are there to pest control? Aside from calling in the
exterminator, how can you keep pests out of your home? Actually, a green
alternative can be the best course of action. Learn about a very green
way to keep your home pest-free on the next page.
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