How does a mosquito treatment work? What products are used?

A mosquito yard treatment (fog) works by putting a combination of products into your yard that kills mosquitoes in one of two different ways. The first is a kill-on-contact chemical that primarily targets providing you immediate effectiveness from your treatment in addition to killing the dusk/dawn mosquitoes that aren't breeding on your property. The second is a growth regulator (called an IGR in the pest industry) that targets the breeding grounds of the Asian Tiger Mosquito (daytime mosquito). We usually alternate the first product (kill-on-contact) as to provide variety to your environment and not provide a chemical immunity to the mosquitoes in your environment. 

When should you start mosquito treatments?

North Texas is constantly surprising us with weather which means every year has a different answer to this question. Some years we start our mosquito yard treatments (mosquito fog) as early as mid-February while other years we may not start until early April. A good fallback plan is to schedule your first treatment for the first two weeks of March. It is better to treat too early than to try and play catch-up. 

Do mosquito lawn treatments work?

We run a successful mosquito treatment business with hundreds of clients that rely on mosquito yard treatments every month to provide them with a backyard they can actually use. Of course every yard is different which means you may be dealing with a different mosquito than the home across the street (yes it can be that different from home to home) but a yard treatment is a good place to start for most homes.

Does one treatment for mosquitoes work?

Most people see effectiveness with the very first treatment. If you're dealing with an extreme mosquito problem (infestation) you may need a second treatment within a few weeks after the first one to truly start to see effectiveness. Usually this is planned at your first appointment along with a walk of your property to see if we can do any mosquito abatement services to partner with your first treatment.

Does mosquito treatments kill bees?

Although it's rare to kill a bee during a treatment, you can see crosskill onto bees, butterflies, and other beneficial daytime bugs due to the nature of treating for mosquitoes. The primary method would be killing them during the treatment but that is not usually what we see. Usually the biggest kill factor comes from the bee visiting a plant that was treated during the fog where they pick up a product that kills them later. 

We do our best to prevent as much crosskill on bees a few different ways. The first is to do our yard treatments as early in the morning as possible when we are less likely to interact with bees. The second is to treat around flowers or other budding plants. Mosquitoes don't care about flowers and treating them isn't effective for your mosquito prevention. 

How much does a mosquito treatment cost?

For a standard yard, up to about half an acre we charge $90.00 for our yard treatments. If your property is larger than half an acre and we must use more than one tank to complete the treatment we will charge an additional fee (usually $30.00). 

What is the best mosquito treatment for backyards?

The current "concoction" we use for our treatments is Nyguard as our IGR, Fendona as our kill-on-contact, and Droplex as a surfactant that helps keep the chemical on target when we fog. If we have to do a treatment more frequently than 4-weeks we replace Fendona with Talstar-P or Suspend Polyzone to keep from over applying any one product. 

Do mosquito treatments really work?

We have a lot of clients that rely on mosquito treatments (mosquito fog) to protect their home from mosquitoes. It is not a perfect method (none truly are) but it is an inexpensive method of treating mosquitoes around your home without the need to purchase equipment. 

How long does a mosquito treatment last?

Mosquito yard treatments (mosquito fogging) typically lasts four weeks, in an ideal situation. Mother nature has a way of handling our product how she wants which means in the middle of the summer with lots of sunlight the product may only last three weeks or during our raining seasons it may also last only three weeks. We plan on doing a treatment every four weeks. 

How long after mosquito treatment will mosquitoes be gone?

The kill-on-contact product we add to our mosquito yard treatment (mosquito fog) provides immediate control. Most people say they have results that day. We ask people to test out the treatment for one week before they fully evaluate its effectiveness, or lack of effectiveness. 

How to do a mosquito treatment yourself? Do It Yourself (DIY)

Every mosquito treatment should begin with walking the property to ensure there is no standing water. The easiest way to prevent mosquitoes in your yard is to dump out any water that could remain for longer than three days. You should check all visible areas including your gutters. A simple cleanout of your gutters could drasticly reduce mosquitoes around your home. 

Once you have checked all visible areas around your home for water you should treat any drains or piping that runs underground. French drains and corrugated piping that is installed to keep water from pooling on your property is the single best area for mosquitoes to breed. Underground they are able to breed without your involvement and with little exposure from mother nature. 

If you have completed these checks and you still have mosquitoes but want to treat them yourself you can go two different directions based on your problem. If you only have issues with mosquitoes during the daytime (and no other time!) you can buy a mosquito trap to sterilize daytime mosquitoes. The Spartan traps sold on Amazon are a good choice. If you are having problems at dusk/dawn, or at all times of the day you should do your own mosquito treatment. The same products we mention using in our fog can be purchased online and you can find a water-based fogger in any lawn equipment dealer. Do your own fogging every three to four weeks, being sure to get the product everywhere. 

Will doing a mosquito treatment kill mammals(birds)/reptiles?

The chemicals that are used in our mosquito treatment do not have the same effect on mammals/reptiles as it does on bugs. Fortunately for us, bugs have a different biology than the rest of us. What effects them, doesn't do the same for us. Having said that, we do not recommend animals being in the environment after a mosquito fog for at least 30 minutes to ensure the chemical is able to fully dry. 

Do mosquito misting systems work?

Mosquito misting systems don't work for everyone. Before a mosquito misting system is ever installed you should have a professional look at your environment to see if a mosquito misting system is right for you. These systems are designed to kill dusk/dawn mosquitoes and they are very effective at doing. If you're trying to fight a daytime (asian tiger, aedes albopictus) issue with this system you will be successful but you will kill many beneficial bugs and spend a lot more money along the way. Have a professional take a look before you spend the money. 

Can I buy a mosquito misting system online?

When we first started our company most mosquito misting system dealers required you to put down a deposit to start an account with them and you had to be a business looking to install systems. Since then we have seen many manufacturers start listing their systems online for anyone to purchase. There are many systems out there for purchase and each of them have their pros and cons. The cheapest isn't always the best. 

How to install a mosquito misting system?

We have a standard way of providing estimates for our clients and the reason behind that is we have found what works and we don't deviate from what works. This standard is not a secret at all and we openly tell anyone we meet with what we try to accomplish with every system install. Imagine your yard is a drawn on a diagram and 10-foot by 10-foot squares are drawn all over your property. Our goal is to get one of our nozzles into each of those squares while avoiding dining, sitting, or cooking areas that may put chemical near you when you're trying to enjoy your yard. A good place to start is by wrapping the fence around your property. 

Outside of those standards, it is relatively easy to install a misting system. We do recommend you get a professional involved so they can fully evaluate your yard and provide you with an expert opinion. We have worked with a few clients before who have purchased their own equipment and asked for our opinion on how to install the system. Those people have good success with their system by keeping us on speed dial. 

Are mosquito misting systems safe?

Every decision in life has benefits and consequences. Using chemicals to clean your home can be dangerous but having a dirty home can be dangerous as well. One mosquito bite could give you West Nile and you're in the hospital for weeks, fighting for your life, but having a mosquito misting system is introducing a chemical into your environment that could pose problems as well.

You are able to spray any chemical you would like from your mosquito misting system. If you would like to spray an essential oil (natural, green product) you can do that. Of course, Pyrethroid is a natural product that is extracted from the chrysanthemum flower and Permethrin is a man-made replica of Pyrethroid which almost makes it "green" as well. We recommend you spray Permethrin with a synergist like PBO because it is the most reliable product on the market but we will spray anything you'd like. 

The studies so far show that when you breathe in Permethrin your lungs process the chemical and you pee it out. When it lands on your skin, it can be absorbed into your flesh but so far that doesn't seem to have a negative effect. Where we are concerned is with ingesting the chemical. If the system sprays while you're outside having food or drinks, throw away everything. Eating that food could result in chemical poisoning. It's not worth the risk. 

What to do if mosquito misting system sprayed on me?

If you are near the system when it sprays the first thing you should do is throw away any food or drink that you had out. Once that's done, you should wash off any chemical that landed on your skin and replace your clothing. Limiting further chemical exposure should be your first goal. After that you should monitor your vitals to see if you have any allergic reaction the the chemical. We have some clients who are sensitive to chemicals and this kind of exposure can cause problems. For most people, your body will process the chemical out and you'll be fine. Visit an ER if you notice any problems with your health. 

How do you clean a mosquito misting system?

Cleaning a mosquito misting system is done in two phases. The first phase is to clean out the misting system. Once the system is empty, or almost empty you should take off the lid and turn the tank on its side. Using a water hose you should clean out the contents of the tank and using a scrub brush, clean out all gunk that may have accumulated in the tank. Once that is clean, fill the tank with 1/4 water and splash a little CLR into the water. Connect the tubing back to the system and remove any nozzles that are at "dead ends" (when no nozzles are past the nozzle). This starts the second phase which is clearing out any gunk that may be built up inside the nozzle structure. Do a manual mist on the system and let it run for a minute to fully flush out the nozzle structure. Replace any nozzles that were removed, refill the tank back to 1/4 full and add another splash of CLR. Test it again and let the system run for a few minutes to fully ensure all nozzles received a little bit of the CLR water.  

Can I spray natural products?

The word "natural" is a little ambiguous in the pest control industry. No product is truly "natural" because they are all made in a lab with artificial products. The two products on the market right now that are considered green though are Naprovit and Essentria. Yes, you can spray these chemicals in your system. It requires more maintenance due to the harshness of the oils on the internal components compared to other water based products but that may be worth it to you. 

How much does a  mosquito misting system cost?

The cost of the mosquito misting system varies based on the company you select. We are a Mistaway dealer and we sell their products exclusively for new installations. A misting system from them will run you $2,000 to $3,000. The part that has flexibility is the nozzle structure. Our average system is 30 nozzles and that runs you around $1,500.00 bringing our average system cost to $3,500.00. 

That is the initial cost which installs the system and gives you one refill. To maintain that system every year our average client spends about $1,000.00. 

What is In2Care?

In2Care is a revolutionary system that was released around the Zika scare of 2016. The product works by creating a breeding ground to attrac the female Asian Tiger. Once she is in the trap she picks up two products. One that sterilizes her so every egg she lays after that will never become an adult and the second one infects her with a bacteria that slowly kills her. 

Is In2Care safe?

One of the main reasons In2Care grew in popularity, aside from its effectiveness, is the fact that it can be deployed near water sources and if it spills into that source, you can still drink from it. Of course, we wouldn't recommend cracking open the lid and taking a drink but if a dog gets into the trap or it is spilled into a water source, you don't need to worry about contamination. 

How many In2Care traps do I need?

One In2Care trap covers about 3,500 square feet and for every acre you're trying to protect you will need 10 traps. 

How much does In2Care cost?

Every company prices their In2Care services differently. We operate on the premise that without us, the traps are useless since you cannot buy the refill packet without a pest control license. For that reason, we don't force you to buy our traps. We place them in your yard and only ever charge you for them if they are damaged or lost. We only charge you the cost of refilling the system. Our price varies from home-to-home based on how many traps you need but our average client has two traps and that is $80.00 every four weeks.