If you want to get rid of mosquitoes without spending a lot of money, you may rely upon yourself and try to make a DIY mosquito trap for the insects with long noses self-dependently.
Expensive chemicals and motion sensors are not required. You can really make do with just a 2-liter bottle, for example.
Best Homemade and DIY Mosquito Traps
Do you want to know how to make a plastic bottle mosquito trap? Here is a popular recipe from our grandmothers.To make this trap you’ll need:
- 1 cup of water
- 1/4 cup of brown sugar
- 1 gram of yeast
- 2 litre bottle
Cut the bottle in half and insert the top part into the bottom one, the neck towards the bottom. Now make simple bait: Boil some water, and add some brown sugar into it. Pour the mixture into the bottle cut and throw some yeast into it. It is the yeast that starts to release carbon dioxide, attracting mosquitoes. A piece of black fabric may serve as an “upgrade” – having wound it round the bottle, you will attract the insects even more. Now the trap is ready to act. Place it into the corner near a door or a window, and change its contents once a week.
It’s true that the effectiveness of this design is doubtful. We have read a lot of negative reviews written by different “craftsmen” – the unit smells badly and doesn’t catch insects any better.
Will the next dry mosquito trap appear to be cooler? To make it, you will need a lamp, gauze, mini-ventilator, and fitting. It is well-known that light attracts insects. In this case, you have to attach to the lamp placed into a compact container two things: A gauze sac and a small cooling fan (for example, taken out of a computer).
The source of light may be tiny, and an empty juice box may serve as a container. The result will be as follows: The ventilator will suck the mosquitoes attracted by the light into the sack. First of all, you should place the gauze below to allow the air flow into this direction. The supporters of this technique recommend hanging the catcher at a window or a balcony door. Thus, you may provide your home with light and eliminate insects at the same time.
Entomologists from the University of Kentucky offer a simple DIY trap. If you decide to make it, you will need:
- big funnel (you can cut even from a detergent container);
- round gallon can;
- light.
It’s extremely easy: insert a funnel into the jar – the trap is almost ready! But remember that the tip of the funnel should be sufficiently narrow to avoid the return flight of mosquitoes, and the lamp should be directly above the funnel. When you want to remove your “catch”, “put the can and funnel together into your collection net before removing the funnel. This will prevent active insects from escaping”.
By the way, this idea isn’t new. An american scentist John D. Evans in 1907 wrote about a similar principle of diy trap working. In his “article Practical and Popular Entomology” in “The Canadian Entomologist” he described such homemade lamp traps. But he adviced to add a piece of cyanide and a lot of cotton batting – chemical vapors should kill insects very quickly. The effectiveness of the cyanide is no doubt, but you’ll better not to use such strong poisons in the process of getting rid of insects – it’s dangerous and even illegal.
Inhabitants of southern regions may try another handmade trap. We have found it in Africa – where hordes of malarial mosquitoes fly, carrying a very dangerous infection. There, insects often enter homes through ventilation passages. So, the Africans invented an original method: they stretch gauze impregnated with sticky substances and insecticides across the ventilation shafts. The main problem here is not to poison oneself… The air breathed in is the same for you and mosquitoes.
Best Natural Mosquito Traps
Natural mosquito traps may be chosen by the fans of “green” and environment-friendly methods. To make these traps, you need not any plastic bottles cut or old computer coolers. Instead, you may imagine that you are an alchemist and a master at preparing potions.
It is the question of making natural homemade sticky band for flies and mosquitoes. To get it, you should impregnate paper or cardboard with the mixture of rosin, linseed oil, and some drops of honey. Or you may take pine tar, sugar syrup, and wax, instead. Here are two popular receipts to catch mosquitoes without using chemicals:
- 300 g of rosin, 200 g of linseed oil, 60 g of honey;
- 300 g of pine tar, 150 g of linseed oil, 10 g of wax, 50 g of honey or sugar syrup.
Be careful not to fall for the bait, as you may soil yourself and it will be difficult for you to wash your hands off. Another minus of this sticky thing is its short life – natural ingredients do not last as long as good old chemistry.
Summarizing!
Natural and handmade mosquito traps are easy to get and cheap, but their con is their lack of effectiveness. However, if you are careful of keeping a safe environment, you may try to get a new skill. In addition, it is exciting to imagine that you are an alchemist;)
But if you don’t want to waste time – use ready-to-use mosquito traps from our review of the Best H2O, CO2, UV & Propane Mosquito Traps.
Need to hire an exterminator? Find the best licensed professionals in your area.
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