If you live in New England, you know that mosquitoes can be an absolute nightmare when you’re trying to enjoy the outdoors. Not to mention all the diseases they can transmit.
Reducing your chances of getting bitten by these insects can reduce your risk of disease and irritating bug bites. And Modern’s Homecare Mosquito, Flea, and Tick can help!
How to Avoid Mosquito Bites
If you spend time working or playing in the great outdoors, here are some things you can do to reduce the chances of being bitten by mosquitoes.
- Reduce Skin Exposure: Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants when you go out.
- Go Out During the Day: Avoid going into natural settings in the early morning or dusk. This is the time when mosquitoes are the most active.
- Don’t Use Fragrances: Do not use any perfume, cologne, or scented lotions that can lead the mosquitoes to you.
- Maintain Your Yard: Keep the grass fairly short so that insects have nowhere to hide. Also trim down any unruly bushes or hedges that may be posing as hiding spots for mosquitoes.
- Wear the Right Colors: Mosquitoes have horrible eyesight so they look for color contrasts on the horizon to find their prey. This means dark colors like black, navy blue, and dark red can make you more visible to mosquitoes as opposed to brighter colors.
- Use Mosquito Netting: It is a good idea to invest in some mosquito netting to keep these insects at bay.
- Exercise Indoors: Mosquitoes are also attracted to high body temperature and carbon dioxide. This means that if you participate in intensive training in your yard, you will likely get more bites.
- Water Management: Empty all objects like planters, kiddie pools, or deck furniture that collects water. Mosquitoes breed and lay eggs on stagnant water. Drill holes in pots or containers that hold water. Make sure all your gutters are clean and free of debris to prevent dirty water pooling. Also, refresh all sources of water at least once a week to get rid of mosquito larvae. These include bird baths and animal water dishes.
- Prevent Access Inside: Mosquitoes have an uncanny ability to sneak past your guard and enter your home. To prevent this from happening, install screens on all your windows and doors and make sure they remain intact so that no mosquitoes can find their way inside through rips and holes.
- Encourage Natural Predators: Birds, bats, frogs, dragonflies, and fish are all natural predators of mosquitoes and can help you control your mosquito population moderately.
Schedule your Homecare Mosquito, Flea, and Tick service now! Just call 1-800-323-7378 or click here
Insect Repellents: Protection Against Mosquitoes
When it comes to protecting yourself from mosquitoes, experts agree that it is dependent on ingredients in the insect repellent. The following are active ingredients in skin-applied insect repellents registered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):
- Catnip oil (Nepeta cataria, also known as catmint)
- Oil of citronella
- DEET
- IR 3535 (3-[N-Butyl-N-acetyl]-aminopropionic acid, ethyl ester)
- p-Menthane-3,8-diol (pmd)
- Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (contains pmd, but is a separately regulated pesticide chemical)
- Picaridin
- 2-undecanone (or methyl nonyl ketone)
Permethrin
Permethrin is an insecticide of the pyrethroid family. It is not to be applied to skin. But if you spray a repellent containing permethrin on your clothing and gear, it will last you for several washes. t is poisonous to cats.
Alternatives
Other types of outdoor-only EPA registered repellents include:
- Clip-on products that have a pad with the repellent and a fan or other mechanism that disperses the repellent near your body.
- Spatial repellents that use a heating mechanism to disperse repellent in an outdoor area.
- Examples include:
- Lanterns
- Torches
- Table-top diffusers
- Candles
- Coils
- Examples include:
Protect Your Yard with Homecare Mosquito, Flea, and Tick. Click here or call 1-800-323-7378 now!
The Modern Solution
When you’re home and in your own yard, Modern can help! Our Homecare Mosquito, Flea, and Tick service protects against all three disease-spreading vector pests. We’ll help you enjoy your yard while we minimize the health risks to your family and pets. The service consists of six monthly services, from April through September. Call 1-800-323-7378 to schedule service.