3 Simple Tips to Keeping Bugs Out of Your House and Yard

Bugs are a constant nuisance in our lives, especially when the weather is warm and there seems to be more of them. However, there are ways for many of us to protect ourselves from bugs invading our homes and gardens. We have put together some simple tips to beating bugs and keeping you and your home bug free.

1. Make Your Home and Yard Unfriendly to Bugs
With warm weather, mosquitoes can be a nuisance in your yard. Keeping your yard unfriendly to these bugs is the best defense. Standing water is something that mosquitoes need to reproduce and therefore make your life miserable. Eliminate standing water in your yard and you reduce your mosquito population. If you grow plants or flowers in pots in your yard and you use saucers to underneath them, you could have a substantial amount of standing water. A few of these could produce enough mosquitoes to attack a whole neighborhood. Mosquitoes are notoriously weak fliers. Placing fans on your patio or deck can help to keep them away.

2. Protect Yourself from Bugs by Wearing Repellent
There is no reason to douse yourself heavily with repellent. Use just enough repellent to cover all your exposed skin with a light touch. Read the labels on repellents as they all come in varying strengths. Choose the repellent that will provide enough protection for the time you will be outside. Verify the active ingredients in the repellent to make sure you have the one that works for the bugs bothering you. The four common active ingredients of DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus (PMD) and IR3535 (3-aminopropionic acid ethyl ester) are found in many repellents. Make sure that your repellent has at least 10 to 20 percent of those active ingredients for them to work well. Most will repel mosquitoes, ticks, and biting flies.

3. Do Not Play With the Stinging Bugs
Don't bother them and they won't bother you is good advice when it comes to stinging bugs. This includes wasps, hornets, bees, and yellow jackets. Many of these bugs are just curious and won't sting unless provoked. If a stinging bug buzzes you, walk away and don't swat at them. It only aggravates them and they might decide to sting you. Remove the temptations that stinging bugs have in your yard. Be diligent about covering up your trash cans, especially if they contain sodas or sugary foods.