Don’t Bug Out: 6 Tips for an Insect-Free Cookout
The warm summer months bring the promise of cookouts, parties, and all manner of backyard bashes.
We lick our lips just thinking of the sizzling sounds and savory smells that come from the grill! Your barbecues may be a summer staple, but famished friends aren’t the only hungry mouths at the party. While your guests await those tasty burgers, interested insects are tasting your guests. Keep common pests from the crashing the party with outdoor precautions. Here are six ideas to de-bug your summer fun.
Screen Queen
Be rid of bothersome bugs by screening in your deck, patio or porch. Enjoy the sounds of laughter and music instead of the insect-induced yelps of startled guests. Patio screens prevent animals and bugs from nesting in your outdoor furniture and also protect your deck from leaves and other debris. Excel Fencing & Decking can help if you’re looking to create a screened patio, deck, or porch in Baltimore County, Maryland.
Keep It Clean
Regularly cleaning your patio can help eliminate insects. Wash your tables and chairs weekly with a power washer. Be sure to flip over furniture and carefully check for cocoons, beehives and spider nests underneath. Cleaning seat pads with chlorine bleach can kill bugs that may be nesting and reproducing in the stuffing.
Peppermint Patio
You and your guests may enjoy this minty scent, but spiders and other insects hate it! Create your own bug repellent by taking a 16-ounce spray bottle and mixing five drops of peppermint oil with a little dish soap. Fill it up the rest of the way with water and spray your anti-spider solution on furniture and other items around your deck or patio every week or so. Spiders also can’t stand citrus smells, so try rubbing orange peels along tables and chairs for added protection.
Brown Bag Barbecues
Party crashers may be a buzz kill, but wasps can be the end of an event. You can stop those stingers, however, with a simple trick. Take a handful of plastic bags and stuff them in a brown lunch bag. Tie at the top, hang it in high-traffic areas and watch the wasps disappear as they mistake the bag for a hornet’s nest.
Torch Time
Some bugs may be attracted to the light, but not when it’s a citronella candle or torch. Placing these around your property will ward off flies and mosquitos. Citronella-burning tiki torches can last for several hours and give the added element of lighting for those late-night get-togethers on your deck or patio.
Pest Perimeter
You don’t need harmful chemicals to block bugs; numerous natural products can do the trick. If you have mulch around your deck or patio, mix in some cedar chips. Cedar secretes aromatic acids that are toxic to bugs like ants, beetles, moths, roaches, and termites. Additionally, you can mix eucalyptus or lavender oil with water and spray this solution around your property to establish a better bug-free barrier.
Insects are unavoidable when you’re outdoors, but they don’t need to bug guests at your next cookout. Try these tips to enjoy a pest-free party! Don’t forget, the Excel Fencing & Decking team is on standby to upgrade your backyard before your next gathering.