Bug Zapper

[toppop52]

We were on vacation at our Outer Banks house about 20 years ago, a very large moth got into the bug zapper that the management company decided we needed. The thing went super zap crazy, set the large moth on fire, before I could get to it to unplug it, the flaming moth landed on a big patch of dried out dune grass, torched it off in about 2 seconds. I got the hose and put out the moth/grass while my wife unplugged the zapper. I dropped off the burnt out zapper at the property manager's house the next morning, along with instructions on where to store it.

 

[Retired Iron Peddler]

When we lived in rural Denton County Texas, I used a bug zapper on inside my shop building to control mud daubers. I hung it up high near to the roof in the center of my metal building and it did a good job keeping down the mud dauber population and their pesky mud nests and effectively controlled those little wasps that build mud nests inside small pipes and tubes which effectively plugs them. I only ran the zapper during the late summer months when the mud daubers were really active. The zappers worked for several years, but I usually replaced the black light bulb once a year. We've been in rural Titus County Texas for 8 years and don't have a mud dauber problem... yet.

Bill

 

[EddieWalker]

Thank you everyone, your advice just confuses me even more. I want to control the mosquitos, but after reading the reviews and your comments, I'm wondering if I'm going about this the wrong way. I haven't sprayed my house yet for bugs and that usually helps control them to some degree. I'll do that after work this week. I've been wanting to put out bat boxes, but I seem to always forget about it and do something else. I need to get on that and see if I can increase my bat population. I have small brown bats that are pretty active over the ponds, but it would be nice if there where more.

I have my doubts that the zapper is the way to go.

Eddie

 

[toppop52]

Thank you everyone, your advice just confuses me even more. I want to control the mosquitos, but after reading the reviews and your comments, I'm wondering if I'm going about this the wrong way. I haven't sprayed my house yet for bugs and that usually helps control them to some degree. I'll do that after work this week. I've been wanting to put out bat boxes, but I seem to always forget about it and do something else. I need to get on that and see if I can increase my bat population. I have small brown bats that are pretty active over the ponds, but it would be nice if there where more.

I have my doubts that the zapper is the way to go.

Eddie

I have been spraying with Home Defense Max, once a year for three years now, I've had a grand total of 2 spiders, no bugs except an occasional fly that sneaks in an open door, but they don't last long. I spray the foundation, around all openings of any kind, the decks and steps. I also spray inside around the baseboards, under cabinets and and sinks. It's safe for pets after an hour, so I shut them in a room and spray the rest, then in an hour let them out and spray that room. Not counting the hour wait, total time is about 45 minutes for the job and it costs $12.95 a gallon, which gets me one and a half uses, including spraying my outdoor buildings. Best stuff I ever found.

 

[murphy1244]

Eddie, you want Bats and Barn Swallows. Daytime and night time control.

 

[Western]

Eddie, you want Bats and Barn Swallows. Daytime and night time control.

What Murph said. You have the perfect lake and property to attract Purple martins and they, along with bats are some mosquito eating machines.

BTW, only female mosquito bite! doesn't that just seem "natural":laughing:

 

[J_J]

You have to realize that the bug has to contact the grids to get fried. You need something to attract them.

Mosquitoes are attracted to certain things. Only the female bites

People with high concentrations of steroids or cholesterol on their skin surface attract mosquitoes.

Mosquitoes also target people who produce excess amounts of certain acids, such as uric acid.

Carbon dioxide . Those new mosquitoes killers burn fuel to produce carbon dioxide to attract and a fan pulls them in

Any type of carbon dioxide is attractive, even over a long distance. Larger people tend to give off more carbon dioxide, which is why mosquitoes typically prefer munching on adults to small children.

Lactic acid from sweat glands is another attractant.

Mosquitoes love dark colors also. So wear white if possible.

After walking up on a yellow jacket nest and getting stung many times, I vowed revenge.

I also use the propane smoke makers.

I have used the bug killers to great advantage to kill hornets, yellow jackets.

I put the bug killer on a 20 ft pole and jiggle it around the nest, and they love to come out and attack the bug killer.

Crack, sizzle,pop, smoke boiling. You have to clean all the crispy critters off when finished.
You can hear them screaming, oh sh*t where is this lighting coming from. They will empty their
until everyone is dead.

Amazon.com: Burgess 1443 40-Ounce Outdoor Propane Insect Fogger: Patio, Lawn & Garden

 

[kevinwak]

I bought a bug zapper at costco last summer. It worked great at first, and then same thing, just light and no more zap. I realized that I let the dead bugs build up inside and it shorted out. I bought a replacement and blow it out every couple days with an air hose. Lasted then.
It usually left about an inch thick layer of dead bugs under it each day. After about 3 weeks of use there was noticeably less Mosquitos throughout the yard.

 

[KiotiKowboy]

I love bug zappers and have no idea why they seem to have lost popularity. Flying critter problems are GREATLY reduced in just a few days. Even though I rarely have a unit last more than 2 years, the cost is a non-factor vs the benefit.

 

[Pete Judd]

Wont have one. They kill to many of the good bugs. I have many bat houses, and they eat up to 600 mosseys an hour each.