For many of us, our homes are our sanctuaries. You can feel comfortable and enjoy your time…until something incessantly buzzing in your ear ruins your relaxation. One of the best parts of living in Florida is the weather and being able to enjoy the outdoors year-round, but not if mosquitoes have started breeding in your backyard. We want our customers to enjoy their lawns, making mosquito control essential. No wonder so many people are looking for the best mosquito control for home!

Mosquitoes aren’t just annoying; they pose serious health risks too. Understanding their behavior and life cycle is crucial for effective control. From their breeding grounds in stagnant water to their potential role in spreading diseases like malaria and dengue fever, mosquitoes are more than just a nuisance.

Selecting the right repellent for your home requires consideration of various factors, including your geographic location and the duration of protection needed. Defending your health is paramount, so it’s essential to evaluate the effectiveness of each repellent option.

With countless products and services on the market, finding the best mosquito repellent solution can be daunting. If you’re looking for the best mosquito repellent or specifically mosquito repellent for your home, look no further. Let’s review the best mosquito repellent options and home mosquito control that make sense for your unique needs.

 

Understanding Mosquitoes and Their Threats

Understanding the lifecycle of mosquitoes in Florida is essential for implementing effective mosquito control strategies and minimizing the risk of mosquito-borne diseases. When it comes to mosquito biology, we can start with the lifecycle of mosquitoes. The mosquito lifecycle has four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Depending on the species of mosquito, that transformation could take as little as a week.

Mosquito eggs can be deposited by a female mosquito directly into an established water source or into other damp substrate (such as leaf litter). Some species require a permanent water source to lay eggs while others can take advantage of floodwaters, or bodies of water that are not always there. For example, this would be the difference between laying eggs in a pond versus a bird bath, or other similar environments. The many opportune breeding grounds in your yard are where the at-home mosquito threat starts.

Following the egg stage of the mosquito lifecycle is the larval stage. Larvae are also sometimes called “wrigglers,” so keep an eye out for that lingo! A significant impact can be made on mosquito populations during the larval stage of metamorphosis because both permanent water and floodwater larvae require a water source to live in. So, if you were to drain all standing water from your backyard every day, there would be nowhere for larvae to progress to pupae. Of course, most folks don’t prefer to do a daily backyard check, so professional mosquito control comes in handy.

Once the mosquitoes reach the pupae stage, they live off of stored energy because they cannot eat due to their lack of mouthparts. This is the final step before becoming an adult mosquito. When the flying adult mosquito emerges, it sheds its pupal skin.

Adult male mosquitoes feed on nectar and similar substances. So do female mosquitoes, but that’s in addition to the blood meals required to lay eggs. When female mosquitoes find a host, they pierce the skin with their proboscis. As they draw blood, they also introduce a pain killer and blood thinner to avoid immediate detection by the host and any blood clotting that could block their meal. This is when disease pathogens can be transmitted. Don’t worry, we have more information about mosquito-borne diseases if you’d like to learn more.

Then there’s the question of if it’s your perfume attracting all those mosquitoes…or maybe it’s just because you’re SO sweet. We hate to burst your bubble, but research shows that certain factors play more of a role than others in attracting the attention of a thirsty mosquito and none of them are your general sweetness level. Plus, female mosquitoes are attracted to the CO2 we emit with every exhale.

Alexa, play “Every Breath You Take” by the Police.

 

What is the best thing to keep mosquitoes away outside?

Maintaining a mosquito-free outdoor environment requires a combination of preventive measures and strategic deterrents. From utilizing mosquito repellent to investing in professional mosquito control services, there are numerous options available to homeowners seeking relief from these bothersome insects. By implementing a multifaceted approach that targets mosquito breeding grounds, disrupts their mating patterns, and repels them from your property, you can enjoy your outdoor space to the fullest without fear of mosquito bites.

 

Types of Mosquito Repellents

When it comes to repelling mosquitoes, we have several choices at our disposal. From traditional DEET-based repellents to natural options like citronella and lavender, each comes with its own set of pros and cons. We’ll give you some tips and tricks whether you’re looking to apply mosquito repellent to your person or your home.

 

How to Apply and Use Mosquito Repellents

So, you’re sick of stepping outside to enjoy the golden hour and being eaten alive by mosquitoes. We get it. Unfortunately, it’s not quite as simple as dousing yourself with DEET. Proper application of repellents is key to their effectiveness.

Let’s review some dos and don’ts for using mosquito repellents at home to ensure maximum protection without unnecessary exposure to chemicals.

DO:

• Minimize exposed skin when possible.
• Wear closed-toe shoes.
• Avoid peak biting activity times.
• Apply mosquito repellent that meets the CDC’s guidelines to your clothing.
• Follow label instructions on all repellents (even if you don’t think it’s a big deal).
• Use repellent in combination with other mosquito control
• Check out the EPA’s repellent selection guide.

 

DON’T:

• Go outside with no mosquito protection.
• Apply DEET directly to your skin.
• Rely on DEET for home mosquito repellent.

Though even with these best practices, it’s important to note that some mosquitoes develop an immunity to DEET after exposure.

 

The Best Mosquito Repellent Products for Homes

There are a variety of mosquito control options available, and they can vary depending on where you’re located. It’s also important to address how mosquito repellent plays into mosquito control more broadly.

We believe in an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach. IPM acknowledges that there are multiple ways to address pest concerns. This means we work to properly identify pests, monitor activity, address conducive conditions, and work on prevention in addition to the more widely known piece of applying product. Mosquito repellent would assist in the stages of assessing conducive conditions, developing a preventative plan, and finally, the controlling of mosquitoes. And no, that does not mean we have a remote control for swarms of mosquitoes.

Pest control, or more specifically mosquito control in this instance, is the process of addressing an insect population through the five IPM steps. These steps are categorized as follows:

1. Prevention: Identify the pest, monitor activity, and set action thresholds for future tracking.
2. Cultural/Sanitation: Address any conducive conditions, such as standing water for mosquito breeding.
3. Mechanical/Physical: Use traps or other hands-on tactics to reduce populations.
4. Biological: Conservation of natural predators of a given pest.
5. Chemical: Pesticide usage.

Using repellent to combat the attraction of female mosquitoes to CO2, which people and animals exhale, can assist in preventing blood meals. In turn, this could impact the number of eggs a given female mosquito is able to lay around your yard. However, this does not account for your neighbors or animals nearby that might not be using mosquito repellent. That makes it tricky to rely on personal mosquito repellent for homes and yards.

If we’re thinking of repellent less as a step in the process and more as the end goal, then we need to look at mosquito control as a program. The best way to repel mosquitoes from your home is to partner with a pest control company to keep your space safe.

Our options for mosquito control include traditional mosquito misting service at all of our branch locations, as well as some additional choices in select markets including North Florida and Southwest Florida.

 

Non-Chemical Mosquito Control for Homes

For those seeking alternatives to traditional repellents, there are some non-chemical methods to explore like mosquito nets, screens, and landscaping techniques that can help reduce mosquito populations around your home. Insect screens and mosquito nets offer non-chemical solutions for keeping mosquitoes at bay. When it comes to mosquito-proofing your home, it’s a good idea to seal windows and doors and install screens to keep mosquitoes out.

 

What smell do mosquitoes hate the most?

There is a common misconception that certain plants or smells will keep mosquitoes out of your yard. While we wish it were that simple, unfortunately, it’s more complicated than that. For example, planting lavender in your yard will not be a reliable way to repel mosquitoes from your space.

The repellent element of plants touted as mosquito-repelling plants is the essential oil inside. If you were to burn a plant containing essential oils mosquitoes are not too fond of, that might work better, but who wants to be the weirdo at the party waving around burning citronella?

When it comes to using essential oils as mosquito repellent, it might be easier to purchase them already packaged for personal application instead of burning your garden down or crushing plants against your skin. Be sure to check out which options for oil-based mosquito repellent will work best for you and be mindful of potential allergies by doing a patch test.

 

Who to Call for Mosquito Control

If you’ve made it this far, we hope we’ve built some trust with you through our educational guides! The truth is, we take mosquito control seriously and that means knowing our stuff.

Turner Pest Control provides various mosquito services tailored to different regions of Florida. Our mosquito misting services are available at all of our branch locations. Additionally, we have more options for mosquito control with ThermaShield in North Florida and MistAway in Southwest Florida.

 

Mosquito Misting Service

While mosquito repellent spray serves as a basic measure for outdoor enthusiasts, seeking professional assistance is crucial for effective mosquito control around your home and yard. Turner’s monthly mosquito misting service offers a solution for individuals seeking to enjoy their outdoor spaces without constant reliance on repellents. Our specialists conduct thorough inspections of your yard, identifying potential harborage areas and conditions conducive to mosquito breeding. Subsequently, we apply the most suitable products to deter mosquitoes, ensuring a pleasant outdoor experience. We provide complimentary, personalized quotes for our services, ensuring you receive tailored solutions without unnecessary expenses.

 

ThermaShield

Residents in the Jacksonville area now have access to ThermaShield, an advanced mosquito protection system. For those seeking effective methods to repel mosquitoes while enjoying outdoor activities, ThermaShield offers an optimal solution. Here’s how it operates:

• Exclusively available to Jacksonville customers presently.
• Consists of a centralized hub and interconnected repellers, with the hub serving as the control center.
• Utilizes a heat element to disperse odorless repellent, creating highly efficient repellency zones that can be customized to suit individual preferences.
• Easily manageable through the accompanying mobile application, allowing users to control their WiFi-enabled system effortlessly.
• Includes monthly traditional mosquito services, encompassing product applications around the exterior of the residence.

 

MistAway System

For residents in the Fort Myers region, we’re thrilled to introduce the MistAway system. This innovative system features an installed nozzle circuit encircling the perimeter of outdoor spaces, dispersing a fine mist two to three times daily during dawn, dusk, and evening periods. Each mist cycle typically lasts between 45 to 60 seconds, with the nozzles strategically spaced approximately 10 feet apart. Moreover, it offers convenient control options through a connected mobile application or remote control, catering to individual preferences. With the flexibility to adjust the schedule according to your daily routines, the MistAway system provides an effective solution for safeguarding your home and yard against mosquitoes.

If you’re interested in any of our mosquito control options or other services, call us at (800)225-5305 or schedule a free inspection here. We can’t wait to hear from you!