Mosquito control ideas needed

[Shelydon]

Mosquitoes have returned at my house. 

Two of my family members are quite allergic, and I'm looking for ways to keep the mosquitoes out of the house this year so one of those family members does not keep me up all night swatting at mosquitoes. 

If you live in a high mosquito area, how do you keep them from flying into the house, or how do you kill them or trap them once they're in the house?

[Harriet Vane]

Just some perspective, not advice.

When my ds and dh were camping in the BWCA (Boundary Waters--Canadian border), they were there at the height of the bug season. My son did not want to wear chemical bug sprays. They referred to the time that the bugs came out to feed in the evening as "the hour of power" and they adjourned to their tents for an hour or so. They could literally hear when the bug activity died down and once everything was calmer, they'd emerge from the tents and goof off together with the group for a little while longer before going to sleep for the night. 

I share this because I wonder if some intentionality about "the hour of power" might be helpful to your family members with allergies (in addition to whatever other measures you implement). I know it's not that simple, especially with allergies, but thought I'd throw it out there as general information. 

[QueenCat]

I'd try to figure out why so many are getting in the house. We have a lot of mosquitos here but have not had them in the house. 

[Indigo Blue]

Ours are very bad. Sometimes I spray a thin layer of non toxic (or, sadly, sometimes toxic) bug spray along the door frame on the outside of the front door. Also going a bit beyond the frame out toward the brick, and a bit around the outdoor part of the threshold. There will be many dead bugs to sweep off the porch. And it repels them for awhile. I don’t like having to do that, but ours really are bad. 
 

Also, I bought a rechargeable fan from Amazon. I will use that on the deck this summer. I’m hoping the airflow will help keep them away. And it’s very portable. You could also plug in a large box fan, which would be even better but not portable. 
 

Badger bug spray is deet free and works well but only for a short time. Like, less than an hour. 
 

 

[Spryte]

I would also try to keep them from coming in the house. Are there broken screens? Doors left open? Maybe lemon grass in planters around doors and windows could help. Maybe some extra awareness around that “hour of power” would help prevent intruders.

Make sure there’s no standing water anywhere. If you need to have standing water — maybe get some mosquito dunks for it. Trim trees and bushes. Permethrin (don’t touch when wet) on clothing when outside.

We live with a lot of mosquitoes, and I am somewhat ashamed to say that we have a mosquito service. They come every three weeks. Our DD gets giant welts from bites, actually so do I, and we just can’t go outside at all without it. Whatever they use has no effect on other bugs or animals that I can see, other than ticks (which are my nemesis).

[Dmmetler]

We have frog ponds and use mosquito dunks, plus have a pump on them to keep the water moving slightly, but not enough to make it unattractive to vernal pond (biologist for "mud puddle" breeders). 

[73349]

I would try to attract whatever native birds in your area eat them. Possibly helpful link: https://learnbirdwatching.com/birds-that-eat-mosquitoes/

[J-rap]

I agree with figuring out how they're coming in.  We live in a high-mosquito area, and we've learned to open and close doors quickly -- don't hold them open.  Are there any holes in screens where they can come in?  Sometimes spraying the area outside of the doorway keeps them away for awhile.

[ScoutTN]

Bat boxes? 

[prairiewindmomma]

Yes to all of the above, and Amazon sells electronic bug zappers for indoor and outdoor use. 

[EKS]

People generally get less sensitive to mosquito bites as they get bit more.  So the answer may be ti get bit more rather than less.

[Ann.without.an.e]

I just read somewhere about whole cultures who avoid  mosquitoes using a citronella and or lemongrass scented soap? 

[rebcoola]

59 minutes ago, EKS said:

People generally get less sensitive to mosquito bites as they get bit more.  So the answer may be ti get bit more rather than less.

I have not found this to be true at all.  I am seriously looking at buying net pants and jacket for anytime outside.

[itsheresomewhere]

My two favorite bug sprays-

Repel Lemon Eucalyptus Natural Mosquito Repellent.  

Badger Balm Bug Balm. 
 

Both of these work great. We go camping a lot and spend plenty of time outside. 

Now if we are sitting around outside and the one who I swear mosquitoes seek out ( hives instantly)- we use a Thermacell.  It works for a 10x10 space.  Not too price and has worked well.  

[Shelydon]

We don't have any standing water, Unfortunately, the mosquitoes are a constant presence, not just during dawn or dusk. They get in anytime someone opens the door to go inside or outside the house. It's been in the '80s already, so they are present 6 months out of the year. Two of my household members are people who mosquitoes love and seek out. We use mosquito nets over the beds of the people who get bitten all the time, but it's not enough.  I've tried fogging the outside but all the doors morning and night, but it doesn't really help. I have a mosquito zapper that I put by the front door, and it definitely gets all of the moths the sneak in, but isn't great about mosquitoes. I haven't tried a thermacell, I think that will be next. Would it be appropriate for them to run for 8 hours at night?

 

Thank you!

[gardenmom5]

make sure there is no standing water.

window screens

yellow porch light bulbs that are next to frequently used doors

put up bat houses (they eat mosquitoes) - I used to enjoy watching them fly overhead where we were sitting.  Back before we built the pavillion.  They still fly around - we just cant watch them gorge themselves on mosquitoes.

UV bug zapper (I bought this one, dd bought another one so we have two)

[itsheresomewhere]

1 hour ago, Shelydon said:

We don't have any standing water, Unfortunately, the mosquitoes are a constant presence, not just during dawn or dusk. They get in anytime someone opens the door to go inside or outside the house. It's been in the '80s already, so they are present 6 months out of the year. Two of my household members are people who mosquitoes love and seek out. We use mosquito nets over the beds of the people who get bitten all the time, but it's not enough.  I've tried fogging the outside but all the doors morning and night, but it doesn't really help. I have a mosquito zapper that I put by the front door, and it definitely gets all of the moths the sneak in, but isn't great about mosquitoes. I haven't tried a thermacell, I think that will be next. Would it be appropriate for them to run for 8 hours at night?

 

Thank you!

Unless you are outside, I would not run the thermacell.  I start mine 10 minutes before we go out.  Then turn it off when we go in.  The mosquito zapper did nothing here and we have a lot of bats so this is what works for us. 
 

There are some mosquito repelling geraniums that you can plant around your patio in containers.  I buy a few every summer to help ward off them a bit.  And I put up a screen door over my door ( it installs quick and comes off quick for winter). This is one of those ones that is split in the middle and has magnets. 

Edited March 8, 2023 by itsheresomewhere

[Faith-manor]

Bats are your friends.

If you have any discarded tires outside or a tire swing, get rid of it. Standing water inside old tires is a major breeding ground.

I have been told that planting lemongrass, lavender, and rosemary around door and porches or as exterior potted plants kept close to the doors helps ward them off because they are averse to the smell. In India, people often keep lemon peels/slices and cloves in bowls near the doors of home inside. Not sure how effective that is but might be worth a try. 

We do not allow mosquito control to spray our property because we are trying so hard to encourage pollinators. But we have a ton of bats living in the maple trees, and have some bat boxes in the tops to encourage them. I honestly think that is the reason we have few mosquitoes around.

[Terabith]

8 hours ago, EKS said:

People generally get less sensitive to mosquito bites as they get bit more.  So the answer may be ti get bit more rather than less.

Yeah, I haven't found this to be the case.  I actually have twice had anaphalaxis reactions to mosquito bites, and a handful of times huge, nasty welts, including once my eye swelled shut.  It actually got really bad after being bitten more at a camp.

[Shelydon]

2 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

Bats are your friends.

If you have any discarded tires outside or a tire swing, get rid of it. Standing water inside old tires is a major breeding ground.

I have been told that planting lemongrass, lavender, and rosemary around door and porches or as exterior potted plants kept close to the doors helps ward them off because they are averse to the smell. In India, people often keep lemon peels/slices and cloves in bowls near the doors of home inside. Not sure how effective that is but might be worth a try. 

We do not allow mosquito control to spray our property because we are trying so hard to encourage pollinators. But we have a ton of bats living in the maple trees, and have some bat boxes in the tops to encourage them. I honestly think that is the reason we have few mosquitoes around.

We have a bat house, but so far we've not had anyone move in. We have Mexican free tail bats flying around most evenings from April through October. 

 

[Shelydon]

Going to grab some lemony plants for the front porch and see if that helps.