Florida is home to an especially large array of creepy, crawly insects, most of which you'd rather keep outside of your UCF apartment. The year-round warm weather and humid climate makes the area an excellent breeding ground for bugs, meaning you are almost always at risk of a possible pest invasion. If you are disgusted by the idea of pests invading your personal space, you are not alone. Lucky for you, apartment communities are well aware of this issue and offer lots of ways to keep your home clean and bug free. There are also several ways that you as a renter can prevent insects from setting up shop in your closets, under your bed, or in your kitchen cabinets.
The number one item that insects are attracted to is food. Both food and food waste, aka trash, are hugely appealing to bugs such as ants, spiders, and cockroaches. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to make sure your garbage does not sit in your UCF apartment for an extended period of time. If you are someone who frequently forgets to take out the trash or simply laments having to carry your heavy garbage bags all the way to the dumpster, you should consider finding an apartment that offers valet trash removal. With this service, all you have to do is set your trash outside of your apartment on the scheduled day and time, and it will be whisked away for you without having to break a sweat.
Similarly, it is just as important to keep your kitchen free of dirty dishes as it is to regularly take out your trash. Plates and cookware caked in food particles is basically an all you can eat buffet for critters. A lot of apartments near the University of Central Florida cater to the student population, so it is pretty easy to find an apartment that has a dishwasher. Keeping up with your dishes is much easier with a dishwasher, and it will drastically cut down on smells and food that insects are attracted to. However, it is important to keep in mind that dirty dishes sitting in your dishwasher will continue to attract bugs until they are washed, so try to run your dishwasher as soon as it is full.
Another fantastic feature to look for in your apartment is pest control. Many communities offer regularly scheduled treatments that will help keep your apartment bug free. Large apartment communities are especially prone to insects due to the higher concentration of people and food, so it's especially important to keep up with preventative measures to protect your space.
As a renter, even with all of the aforementioned features, it is still important to keep your apartment tidy and clean. Kitchen crumbs on the counter and food scraps on the floor will always bring in more critters, even if you have already sprayed for them. Set some guidelines for you and your roommates, so that everyone can take part in keeping the bugs where they belong. Remember, there will always be bugs, especially in Florida, but there's no reason they have to live in your apartment!