It can seem like an impossible battle to keep mosquitoes out of your yard. Mosquitoes fill the earth and outnumber humans 16,000 to 1, by some estimations. How can you hope to keep them out of your yard? It is actually easier than you might think. Before we tell you how to get rid of mosquitoes and share ways to keep mosquitoes away from your yard, let's first look at the big picture. Join us as discuss three ways mosquitoes sneak into our homes, some diseases you can get from mosquitoes, and what attracts mosquitoes. At the end, we'll explain why mosquitoes aren't hard to get rid of and what works best to get the job done. Before we start, however, we want to remind you that Go-Forth Pest Control offers professional mosquito pest control in Charlotte. Seasonal mosquito control is the easiest way to deal with these little biters.
Three Ways Mosquitoes Sneak Into Our Homes
Mosquitoes aren't just outdoor pests. They can get into your home. If they do, they're not just going to irritate you with their high-pitched buzzing as you try to go to sleep; mosquitoes are potentially hazardous to your health. We'll get to the health risks in a moment. First, let's take a quick look at three ways mosquitoes sneak inside.
Open Doors: The most obvious way mosquitoes get into homes is they fly right in through open doors. What you might not know is that mosquitoes are attracted to light. If you have a lit entryway, you'll have a greater chance of having mosquitoes and other flying insects enter your home when you open the door. Consider installing light-sensitive bulbs or fixtures to keep lights off when you don't need them, or replace white lights with insect-resistant yellow lights.
Damaged Screens: When you open a door or window that has a damaged screen, a mosquito can come right in. So can a lot of other bugs. Routine inspections of your window and door screens and simple patches can have a big impact on whether or not mosquitoes and other pests enter your home.
Dogs And Cats: If you have a pet that goes in and out of your home, your pet can accidentally bring mosquitoes indoors. Mosquitoes don't just bite people, they bite furry animals as well. The fact that they bite furry animals is why they are a risk for zoonotic diseases such as West Nile virus. If a mosquito is actively feeding on your dog or cat when you bring it into your home, it can come inside with your pet. Speak with your veterinarian about products that can guard your pet against mosquito bites and help prevent mosquitoes from hitching rides into your home.
Whether mosquitoes in Charlotte bite you indoors or outdoors, there is a risk. It is essential to properly understand this risk so that you can protect yourself and your loved ones. Let's take a look at how mosquitoes transmit diseases.
Mosquitoes Are Considered A Public Health Risk
Most of the time, mosquitoes aren't going to make you sick. The mosquitoes that bite you most are mosquitoes that live on your property. Since mosquitoes aren't born with diseases, they'll only get exposed to whatever diseases are on your property. They'll get them from you, family members, visitors, and other humans. They'll also get them from wildlife such as squirrels, rats, mice, etc. When a mosquito transmits a disease from an animal to a human it is called a zoonotic disease. We mentioned one already. West Nile virus is a form of encephalitis that is transmitted to humans by mosquitoes that have come in contact with infected animals. While annual mortality rates in the United States are low, one person dying from West Nile virus is one person too many.
West Nile virus and other forms of encephalitis are the most commonly spread mosquito-borne diseases in America. Other diseases are brought into the country by travelers and only spread during outbreaks. Examples of these diseases are Zika virus, malaria, yellow fever, dengue disease, and chikungunya.
Only certain mosquitoes spread dangerous diseases, and some species don't spread diseases at all. If you contract a dangerous mosquito-borne virus, it is possible to have no symptoms at all. This is referred to as being asymptomatic. Someone who is asymptomatic can carry the virus and spread it to mosquitoes without realizing it, but is otherwise symptomless. For more information about diseases mosquitoes in America spread, check out resource pages made available by the CDC.
Mosquitoes can get into your home and present a health risk, but they are most likely to bite you while you're outside. It is helpful to know what time of day you are most susceptible to mosquito bites and what factors increase your chances of getting bitten.
The Time Of Day And Certain Clothing Can Attract Mosquitoes Too
When you go outside in the morning or evening, you are more likely to get mosquito bites. The reason for this is that mosquitoes dry out easily in the mid-day sun. They hide in moist vegetation and shaded places when the sun is high in the sky. Therefore, it is important to avoid going out into your yard at dawn or dusk; this will reduce bites.
There are also ways you may accidentally attract mosquitoes. Those little pests don't bite everyone equally. Here are some factors to consider.
- Wearing white clothing can deter mosquitoes. Mosquitoes have poor eyesight and use dark silhouettes to lock onto people. They'll fly low and use the light on the horizon to figure out where you are. Bright-colored clothing makes it harder for mosquitoes to find you when you're out in your yard.
- Wearing pants and long-sleeved shirts helps reduce bites. Mosquitoes are looking for skin to land on. It is best to give them fewer landing pads and runways.
- Avoid exercising outdoors as much as possible. Mosquitoes are not only attracted to moisture, they're drawn to the scent of sweat. There are chemicals in human sweat that lure mosquitoes.
- Avoid drinking alcohol outdoors. Studies reveal that drinking a single beer will draw mosquitoes. It pays to be the designated driver at an outdoor party.
- Caution is required if you're pregnant. Mosquitoes are drawn to body heat and moisture. Both of these are common conditions during pregnancy.
- Don't breathe. We're just kidding. There is nothing you can do about this one. Mosquitoes are attracted to carbon dioxide. Every time you exhale, you provide a signal to lure mosquitoes to you. Keep this in mind when you're at a party. More people standing outside will inevitably lead to more mosquitoes, unless mosquito control services were applied before the outdoor event.
You can use these facts to help make yourself less attractive to mosquitoes and less susceptible to getting mosquito bites, but the best way to avoid mosquito bites in your yard is to not have mosquitoes in your yard. Makes sense, right? But how on earth can you get rid of mosquitoes? As promised, we're going to tell you how to get rid of mosquitoes easily.
What's The Best Way To Get Rid Of Mosquitoes Around My Yard?
Mosquitoes don't travel nearly as much as you might think. Some mosquitoes don't travel more than a few hundred feet in their entire lifespan. Yes, feet! Knocking down the mosquitoes in your yard will give you immediate relief. It takes time for new mosquitoes to enter your yard and create another swarm. The way to reset the mosquitoes in your yard is to have a licensed professional fog your landscaping and other key areas.
After your property is treated, what happens? You go outside and are not greeted with dozens of mosquitoes! And it stays like that for a while. The reason is that it takes over a week for mosquitoes to go from eggs to flying adults. If a mosquito comes into your yard the day after treatment and lays eggs, it takes over a week for those eggs to turn into flying pests. Your pest management professional will show you some potential breeding sites on your property. If you address stagnant water resources, you can increase the effectiveness of your mosquito control which will allow you to have complete relief for a lot longer. But, eventually, mosquitoes will find a way, so routine treatments through mosquito season is the best way to stay ahead of mosquitoes and get the most out of your yard.
Want to see what a relief seasonal mosquito control can be? Give us a call to start service for your property. Mosquito control is easy when you hire Go-Forth Pest Control. We use trusted materials and industry-leading methods to reduce and control mosquitoes. We provide insights into how mosquitoes may be breeding on your property. We also provide targeted control solutions to help arrest mosquito development in trouble areas. Connect with us today. Life is so much better without mosquitoes. Give it try!
