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Old 05-19-2021, 09:41 AM   #1
jroc
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Hey folks!

My house is a bi-level, so my back door is sunken below grade. At nighttime all the beetles and bugs emerge from the cracks to hang out for the evening. It doesn't bother me a whole lot, but my wife gets a bit squeamish. A few of them also find their way into the house from time to time.

Any suggestions for a remedy? Open to any tips from a DIY pesticide that I could pickup from Lowes/Home Depot, or even a professional service.

Should also mention that I have a dog, so I would want to steer clear from anything dangerous that he could get into.
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Old 05-19-2021, 09:47 AM   #2
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Do you have a light down there? Try one less likely to attract bugs.


https://www.sciencealert.com/scienti...-avoid-insects
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Old 05-19-2021, 09:50 AM   #3
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Just one motion sensor light. The sensitivity is very accurate, really only my dog or a person will trigger it, so it's not like it's constantly on due to the wind or anything.
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Old 05-19-2021, 09:51 AM   #4
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Old 05-19-2021, 11:44 AM   #5
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Old 05-19-2021, 12:02 PM   #6
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I used this stuff:

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/o...1058p.html#srp

And covered my sliding door tracks/entranceway with it, it seems to have worked but I mostly just had wood bugs and wood bugs life goals are just to get inside and then immediately die.
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Old 05-19-2021, 05:30 PM   #7
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diatomaceous earth is used to keep ants out of the house. would probably work with beetles
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Old 06-11-2021, 01:03 AM   #8
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The half dozen haskcap bushes I planted, jeez, 4-5 years ago now? have attracted these bugs this year. They're about 1cm long and are eating the leaves causing them to curl. And they're muching away quickly.

This looks to be the first year I'll be getting any berries as well. And a lot. I don't know if that's what's attracted the pests.

Anybody know what these are? Will that BT caterpillar bacteria liquid rid the plants of them?

All I can find online is that hascap bushes aren't supposed get pests.
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Old 06-11-2021, 01:25 AM   #9
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Old 06-11-2021, 06:19 AM   #10
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I've got the same thing on my honeysuckle. Apparently insecticidal soap, like BugBGone is needed. I haven't tried yet.
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Old 06-11-2021, 08:45 AM   #11
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I have an entire front lawn full of ant hills this year.

Is there a spray that would cover the whole area or do I have to treat em one by one ?
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Old 06-11-2021, 08:59 AM   #12
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Diatomaceous earth is incredibly effective but you'll also need to dust where the ants travel and gather resources. Where your sidewalk meets grass they especially like, if the grass is growing over the sidewalk edge use an edge trimmer to cut it back then dust.
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Old 06-11-2021, 09:38 AM   #13
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The Borax / Sugar thing is not working for me. Got to try something new...
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Old 06-11-2021, 09:54 AM   #14
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The Borax / Sugar thing is not working for me. Got to try something new...
I never fata around with home remedies for this type of thing as they never work, or they require you to turn a simple project into a full-time job to force them to crappily work. Just go straight for whatever the most powerful chemical you can find at Home Depot. Every problem requires a sledge-hammer solution. No point in pu$$y-footing around.
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Old 06-11-2021, 10:25 AM   #15
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Diatomaceous earth is incredibly effective but you'll also need to dust where the ants travel and gather resources. Where your sidewalk meets grass they especially like, if the grass is growing over the sidewalk edge use an edge trimmer to cut it back then dust.

It I'd non toxic as well if you're worried about your children pets.
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Old 06-11-2021, 10:41 AM   #16
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It I'd non toxic as well if you're worried about your children pets.
Yep, and another plus is the stuff is not expensive. Some say it also has health benefits for humans took it daily for one month. Felt exactly the same so I stopped.
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Old 06-11-2021, 10:42 AM   #17
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Diatomaceous earth is incredibly effective but you'll also need to dust where the ants travel and gather resources. Where your sidewalk meets grass they especially like, if the grass is growing over the sidewalk edge use an edge trimmer to cut it back then dust.
For ants, this stuff works awesome!!
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Old 06-11-2021, 10:51 AM   #18
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For ants, this stuff works awesome!!
I get close to a 99% kill rate. One thing I learned is ants try to build their colonies in exactly the same spots consistently if you wipe them out in these areas you win. In my back lane there was a gravel section they always colonized 1 summer of DE now I don't see a single one there. I used to chemical blast them didn't work they always bounced back.

Only problem is my neighbours are not too interested in pest control.
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Old 06-11-2021, 11:36 AM   #19
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diatomaceous earth is used to keep ants out of the house. would probably work with beetles
A gardener I follow is a huge fan of this stuff, and recommends what he calls "food grade diatomaceous earth" to ensure safety for other critters. I don't know if that's just a faddish thing or what, but apparently there is regular DE and food grade DE.
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Old 06-11-2021, 11:46 AM   #20
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My ants must be armoured, because DE does nothing to them. Tried for years and years. I found the liquid Terro traps to work the best, and a spray bottle of Wilson Ant Out to really nail their active areas.
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