Spring has arrived, so to speak, and so has the insect population. The insect kingdom goes dormant during the winter, but come spring they come out in full force, thriving in a warmer climate. Once again, the ants, spiders, crickets, beetles, earwigs, and scorpions are here, and it’s time once again to start putting up an insecticide perimeter around the house.
Usually around mid-March, it’s time to break out the garden hose and sprinkler attachment, my bug control tools. This is an easy task to perform, although many people pay to have it done. But paying a bug zapper could cost hundreds of dollars a year, and it’s easy to set up an easy and effective bug perimeter for a fraction of that.
DIY Outdoor Insect Control
Insecticides made by Bayer, Ortho, and Spectracide are often on sale at this time of year. So, for about ten bucks, I can go to Lowe’s or Home Depot for some bug juice, spray around my house and create a bug barrier, effectively keeping Mother Nature’s little creatures out in the open. And the insecticide is easy to mix and apply; just follow the instructions given. Basically, I spray around the entire house going up about three feet up the sides and out about three feet out of the house. To make my wife happy, I wear gloves and a mask to protect my skin from contact and inhalation. Bifenthrin is the active ingredient, so you probably need to wear some protection as well. The entire process takes about thirty minutes, including flushing the sprayer and removing the hose.
DIY Indoor Insect Control
Now some insecticides like Ortho are safe to spray indoors, even if they come with their own sprayer. Walk around the inside perimeter of your home and spray a light coating along the baseboards. I usually avoid the kitchen area, but focus on door sills and window frames. Now, with the exterior and interior sprayed, you’ve created a deadly barrier to any insect trying to get into your home. And it has done so cheaply, efficiently and easily. The indoor/outdoor premixed spray is a bit more expensive, around fifteen dollars. But it will last you three or four applications, so it’s worth buying and using long term to me.
DIY bug control saves you money
Follow this simple procedure on a monthly basis and you’ll have a nearly bug-free home. I break out of this routine in November when it starts to get cold, because bugs are a big problem only during the spring and summer. By spraying yourself, you’ll save yourself the cost of unnecessary monthly maintenance from November to February, and pay a fraction of the cost of a regular exterminator.
One more error handling thing
Since we are talking about insect control, I just wanted to pass on this little tip on how to swatt flies. For that occasional fly that gets into your house, did you know that there is a way to squash and catch it ten times out of ten? Just remember before you deploy your handheld bug zapper (fly swatter), aim it an inch behind the fly. You see, they take off like little helicopters, with a backward movement. You hit, they’ll fly right into the kill zone every time, which is real do-it-yourself bug checking.