Candles, sprays, and more: Keeping your outdoor summer activities bug-free
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - If you spent the day at your Fourth of July celebrating swatting away every flying thing that you never invited, you may be left wondering if is there anything truly effective to make your summer bug-free.
They're a pain but also a reality of outdoor entertainment or even just time spent enjoying the day or evening.
So, is that citronella candle actually effective?
"Well, they work a little bit, but you have to remember, it's a small area, it's not going to create this protective dome around your party," explained Dr. Chad Gore of Ehrlich Pest Control.
Dr. Gore said that you can put out a lot of candles but you'll have to deal with the smoke and while tiki torches do provide a wider application, simply having them isn't the blanket solution many hope.
"You can tend to get those tiki torches up higher snd so you don't necessarily have that in your breathing space," he said.
As for sprays, Dr. Gore said that the over-the-counter stuff will work in the short term but you have to spray the right areas, like bushes where the critters rest, and make sure to use enough of it.
"It doesn't necessarily come with the right equipment to be able to make those kinds of applications," Dr. Gore said.
Besides keeping all drinks covered, Dr. Gore said to keep the garbage can at a distance.
"Otherwise you'll get all kinds of things that might be attracted to it from flies to yellow jackets and bees and things of that nature," he explained.
He also said to put up fans to blow through the area you are trying to enjoy.
"A lot of those small insects are relatively weak flyers," Dr. Gore said. "It'll help keep them away. Fruit flies, forward flies, mosquitoes. so that'll help."
As for spills? Get them cleaned up quickly and effectively because if you don't, they'll become pest magnets.
So, end of the day, that citronella candle and those sprays do work on everything, especially flies, but with varying degrees of success and it depends on how much you use.
While it's a pain, insect repellent spray does also help.