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As beautiful as vines on your home's exterior can be, they do like to attract many kinds of creepy crawlies. Bugs—including beetles, aphids, weevils, and others—like to make themselves at home in ivy. You can also bet if a wide selection of bugs is available, it will attract spiders, too.

When woodpeckers start banging on your walls or roof, they are probably looking for insects to eat, storing nuts for winter, drilling a hole to make a nest, or communicating with other birds to establish territory or find a mate.

The size of the hole can help determine the reason for the pecking. Small irregular holes are a result of insect hunts. Acorn holes are more consistently sized and often fitted with a nut in the middle. Nest holes are large and have rounded edges. If the bird is pecking to mark its territory or attract a mate, it may leave dents rather than holes, and the noise will stop when the mating season starts in spring.

Hanging wind chimes or motion-activated speakers near your home may be an effective way to deter woodpeckers, as sudden movement and sound often scare birds away. You could also try using reflective decorative items such as pinwheels or mirrors or placing decoys of large predatory birds in your yard. If these measures don’t deter the woodpeckers, you may need the help of a bird removal pro.

Many policyholders wonder if home warranties will cover pest control services. Unfortunately, for most basic plans, they don’t. However, some companies offer premium plans and add-ons that can cover pest control, but even these will often come with limitations. It's crucial to review the specific details of your home warranty policy to determine if pest control is covered and to understand any limitations, such as maximum payout amounts or specific pest exclusions.