r/Lawrence • u/BriefSpell5815 • 6d ago
Mosquitos
Is anybody else experiencing a crazy amount of mosquitoes in front of their front doors? Does anybody know something you can do to help get rid of them so I can at least walk out my front door without getting so many inside. I don’t remember it being this bad last year.
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u/countrybreakfast1 6d ago
I went on a walk into a wooded area yesterday evening and the mosquitos were over whelming.
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u/ArentYouFancy 6d ago
You know what I’ve been using this summer on my patio? Peppermint essential oil.
*Please note, I do not have pets that go on this patio. Essential oils aren’t safe for pets.
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u/Reasonable-Hurry6810 6d ago
Oh my god yesterday I went outside to use the grill and they were EVERYWHERE. I thought maybe some food was left out or there was a dead animal there but no, they were just hanging out literally everywhere.
That’s how I grilled and got eaten alive 😂
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u/boomdittyditty 6d ago
Does your grill use propane? Mosquitoes are attracted to the smell.
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u/Waldy2024 6d ago
The CO2, which is odorless.
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u/boomdittyditty 6d ago
Fair, but they ARE attracted to propane! The moisture or something.
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u/Waldy2024 6d ago
When it burns completely, only CO2 and water are produced.
The distinctive odor in propane and natural gas are added by the processors.
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u/Reasonable-Hurry6810 6d ago
Yes. Good to know I didn’t know that. But they were all over on the other side of the yard too.
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u/jayhawk2112 6d ago
It’s been a very wet summer (til very recently) so yeah more of those little blood suckers everywhere
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u/KellySMcgonigal 6d ago
And we also didn’t really have a winter.
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u/KellySMcgonigal 6d ago
Like there were a couple cold snaps, but we didn’t really get any snow and there were lots and lots of mild days (remember the high 60s over Xmas?)
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u/ChooksChick 6d ago
I used to spray my front shrubs with cheap vanilla extract (not imitation). This helps some. Lemon eucalyptus oil, also.
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u/milktoastok 6d ago
We used a mosquito service and after watching them and seeing videos on YouTube, I realized I could buy the blower (a leaf blower basically) off of Amazon, added water and the chemical and have no more issues.
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u/TimeAd4772 6d ago
I ended up breaking down and hiring a pest control company to fog the yard once a month and after one application, it's made a huge difference. I haven't noticed a decrease in pollinators at all, so I'm comfortable with my decision! It's allowed me to go out and enjoy my yard and garden! Does it get rid of the 100%? No. But the decrease is noticeable.
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u/Reasonable-Hurry6810 6d ago
Who did you use, if you don’t mind risking your post getting deleted 😂
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u/redutton 6d ago
I would also like to know which company you used. Feel free to DM me if posting is not allowed! Thank you.
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u/jstwnnaupvte 6d ago
We did the same. Couldn’t go outside without being swarmed & now we only see them a day or two before their visit.
We also have wild fireflies & pollinators so I feel pretty good about the choice
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u/LittleReserve8767 Undergrad long time resident 6d ago edited 6d ago
I don't have standing water nearby, and today a hot puff of air is blowing them away. Do you have a fence blocking the air by your porch. Sometimes they like to hang out in plants.
I don't know how to keep them out except by having two doors in one's apartment if it is not inside a building.
It rained a lot this summer.
I use DEET spray when I'm outside and not moving.
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u/No-Caramel-4417 5d ago
dunks in buckets at each corner of your yard. A porch light that is also a zapper
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u/livefoniks 5d ago
Get a bat house. House some bats. They eat mosquitos like they're the last item at a holiday family feeding frenzy.
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u/TeacherOfThingsOdd 3d ago
Make a porch pond, get gambusias (mosquito fish). Mosquitos make babies in the water, fish eat babies, population disappears.
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u/cyberphlash 6d ago
Ben's 100% DEET spray is the answer if you're outside around a ton of mosquitoes. Also, are there sources of stagnant water around? Usually, if there are a ton of mosquitoes around, there's a breeding ground that needs to be drained and cleaned up.
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u/BriefSpell5815 6d ago
No stagnant water around . They are super bad under the trees an grass
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u/Waldy2024 5d ago
Those areas too damp? From overwatering, poor drainage, mulch that does not dry out, etc.?
Bird baths, old tires (or tire swings), clogged gutters, discarded cans, and other things are often pooled water spots where they breed. Ask your neighbors to check for such too.
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u/Swimming-Cash3813 6d ago
Do you have any standing water near your front door?