new house since last July, got a pool and would like to hang out around it, but even during the terrible drought last summer, the mosquitos were terrible, especially around dusk.

i've used the hose end yard spray before with decent results, but mainly just for special occasions (the day before a Labor Day party, etc) they seem short lived, and i hate to think of having to spray the yard every couple of days or even every weekend due to the cost and "that adds up a lot of poison after a while!"

any suggestions for a summer-long solution? if something is very low- or non-toxic i don't mind applying it pretty frequently.

also, my yard is about 1/2 acre, so i have access to a pretty large radius around the pool.

btw, the previous owner of the house had a Mosquito Magnet and he said it was totally worthless.

Bats. Lots of bats.

I use thermacell when I am hunting and love it. I know that they have some "patio lanterns" available on their website, but do not know how well they work. Might be worth trying one to see.

lol, i've actually looked into bat house plans, believe it or not. problem is, there are lots of trees around our yard and in the greenbelt behind us. I still may put one up, but not sure how much they'd stick around here for dinner.

I've been told the trees are a deal breaker for purple martins, too. they supposedly like nice sight lines and approaches to their houses. i was pleased to see one swooping in for a drink out of the pool this afternoon, though! will definitely try to lure in a scout or two next season.

i heard positive things about thermacells last year... and kind of forgot about them over the winter.

they really work?!

what about citranella candles?

citronella candles and citronella oil lamps have had little to no effect, and the wife hates the smell.

that's another issue... DEET would be a great solution, but the wife can't stand wearing/smelling it.

i'm trying to find an effective solution that might rid the yard (or at least a 15' x 15' or 20' x 20' area) of mosquitos pretty reliably without everyone having to wear Off or Cutter.

Thanks for all your suggestions so far, and keep them coming. As you all know, if mama ain't happy, ain't no body happy!

We use the thermacells and the thermacell lanterns. Both work very well. As an example, we use 4 lanterns to cover an area of about 60x60, our deer camp social area/cooking area.

I'll 2nd the bat house recommendation. I put the first one up in the backyard about 13 years ago. Put a 2nd one up about 6 years ago as I just seemed the bats were running out of room in the 1st one. It did take over a year before the first one became populated though.

Ever since the 1st one became a home to some bats, we've never had a problem anytime of year. At night they'll come out and tag just about anything that is in the air. I can throw the dog her tennis ball high enough and a few of them will come out of the trees and tag it then fly back off once they realize it's not food.

Here are some fairly easy-to-follow plans if anyone is interested.

http://www.srd.alberta.ca/ManagingPrograms/FishWildlifeManagement/AlbertaBatActionTeam/documents/BatHouse.pdf

People in Florida seem to have figured this out some time ago...
Screened in swimming pools. Makes perfect sense but not sure what it costs.

I'm currently moving to a new house, myself, and the 'skeeter problems are absolutely terrible, but the backyard is overflowing with fireflies (which i'd rather not kill off, so my usual cutter treatment is out).

1) Do bats eat fireflies?

2) Do thermacells bother fireflies?

thermacell is a great product! Sometimes you can find the units cheap at Academy and I see the 3-pk refills on Ebay really cheap too.

I bought a thermacell and it only lit once and never again. I was so dissappointed because I have heard such good things about them

Mine is kind of flaky to light, too, but once it is going, it really does work.

Has anybody had luck with citronella plants? We have been considering trying them.

If you are in BCS or Dallas call Venus Pest Co. They have a treatment that lasts 4-6 weeks and is very effective.

Thermacells really work. The problem you will have with thermacell lanterns is you will go through a lot of the butane and pads.

There's also an oitfit out of the Woodlands that makes cedar chips and cedarcide. Mulching pots or areas around the pool and spraying their spray may work. I found the cedar stuff really works its just costly

This is a great thread with lots of ideas on area control, thanks.

As to deterrents applied to the skin, we use a product made by Avon called Skin So Soft. It is obviously not made for the purpose of warding off insects, but it does work, with some caveats. First, it's an oil and it does have a "fragrant" smell to it. It's not a bad smell, just not exactly what I would call masculine. Still, I will take it over the chemical smells of Deet or Off.

Second, it is not like Deet in that an insect is reppelled by the odor, but as long as there is coverage on the skin, the mosquito will not bite there. This means all exposed areas have to have coverage or the pests will find that one spot that isn't covered and still bite. They may also land on the covered area briefly, but not long enough to bite.

Third, it will need to be reapplied after swimming as it loses most of it's effectiveness after a dip. It may still work to some degree if you're out of the water fairly quickly and don't towel off too much.

Finally, some other positives about it. It's relatively inexpensive, especially when ordered online in a larger quantity. You can put it into a mister bottle and it sprays well. It's much safer for you and your children than a chemical product. It won't hurt your dogs if they like to get in a few licks of your skin. Also, if you have a biting flies problem it works even better for them than mosquitoes because they don't want to come near it.

Move here:



[This message has been edited by adpotts (edited 5/20/2010 1:03p).]

Do purple martins and barn swallows eat them? Maybe a purple martin house next to your bat house...

The Karankawas had good luck with alligator grease.

Kind of stinks to high hell though.

In reality the best thing you can do is get rid of any standing water nearby. You take away the water and the bugs generally leave. That's not always feasible though.

quote:

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that's another issue... DEET would be a great solution, but the wife can't stand wearing/smelling it.

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I'd try some of the different bug sprays out there. Plenty of unscented, fragrant and/or "powder" sprays that don't smell or feel like ordinary bug spray.

My BIL uses one of those propane powered foggers. Seems to work, not sure how natural it is...

misting system is your best bet. Theres a thread on the home improvement board that talks about this.

some things to consider.

1. Thermacell uses Allethrin which is a pyrethroid or synthetic version of pyrethrum. Pyrethroids are generally more powerful/effective than pyrethrins which are the nonsynthetic equivalent. Pyrethroids like Allethrin or permethrin have been shown to have greater side effect to exposure. Both are human safe but in extended doses they can be toxic to cats and dogs, notable causing liver problems in dogs. These symptoms are rare and the actual difference between the to is pretty small.

2. Thermacell only covers a small area and as a previous poster noted, consumes a lot of butane

3. Mosquito magnet type systems which use a CO2 to attract mosquitos into a killing trap, will draw bugs in from several other yards, not just your own.

4. Misting systems cover an entire yard and can be 90% hidden from view. They are very effective and only kill mosquitos in your yard. The downside is that they are pricey up front. anywhere from $1500-$3000 installed

5.pyrethrins/pyrethroids are toxic to fish. So if you have a koi pond, its a no go.

6. Pyrethrins will breakdown faster when exposed to sunlight than pyrethroids. both do not transfer very well in the soil and they have a low risk of runoff transfer.


Im pretty biased on this topic. I used to work in the lab of a company that sells misting systems. Naturally, those are what I prefer. If you can afford the up front costs, its the way to go.

I have experience with xmosquito misting systems and its smaller cousin skeeterdefeater
http://www.xmosquito.com/
http://www.skeeterdefeater.com/

The skeeter defeater is a smaller sprayer and would be the misting equivalent of the thermacell.

the XMOSQUITO system only sprays at dusk and dawn when the bugs are most active. It has a light sensor so you turn it on and let it spray for you. If you are going to be using the yard for an event, you can also spray using the remote control about 15 min prior for some additional coverage.

If you have any questions let me know ill try to answer them or direct you to someone who could help.

nai06,

Thanks for posting on this. I am hoping you can answer a couple of questions.

On the mister install, is it more price effective when put in during home construction? Is it even an option or does it need to be done after everything is finished anyway?

Also, I will have a large second floor deck (8x40 on one side, continuing to a 12x25 area on the front) and a first floor patio/grass area underneath that, extending further out from the house. Would it be two separate systems to cover both those areas and if so, would I be looking at double the cost?

Finally, is the product used by the mister systems proprietary or is it a more generic product readily available at home improvement and hardware stores?

Thanks for your help.

I'm afraid Noah passed on the only effective solution years ago. Ever since the flood, they've been procreating like hell!

ok lets start from the top

1. best to do it after a home is constructed, the lines use are tucked away under eaves, along fence lines and using 12 inch tall risers for use in shrubs. unless the line has active nozzles on it, it is usually placed a few inches under ground. the line is only about as thick as a bic pen. keep in mind you dont have to completely encircle an area to get effective coverage. Im not even sure if there is a benefit to installing during home construction

2. I dont have the exact stats as to how may feet of tubing one system will support, but I it can accomodate 50 nozzles, which is a big area. The basic kit comes with 25 nozzles but I think you can buy more. If another pump was needed im not sure if you can buy just the pump or not

3. The product is proprietary. Whomever you buy the system from will also sell the product to restock. It comes in a1 gallon jug concentrate. You then dilute that into resevoir. This is what the machine feeds from because the misting system does not use an aerosol propellant. Its kinda nice because you only buy a gallon, not a drum of product at a time.

quote:

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Do purple martins and barn swallows eat them? Maybe a purple martin house next to your bat house...

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This - we had a purple martin house in Austin and we have one now in Frisco. We also live on a greenbelt and put one out recently and it's made a big difference. They keep coming back year after year and skeeters make up a good portion of their diet (along with most other flying insects).