After knowing exactly what attracts stink bugs in your house, you're ready to move on to how to get rid of them and prevent re-infestation. We'll teach you how to use chemical products and natural solutions to properly exterminate or control stink bug populations. Also, our team outlines the best ways to prevent stink bugs from re-infesting your home in this article!
How to Get Rid of Stink Bugs and Prevention Measures
The best ways to prevent a stink bug infestation include:
- Seal off access points: Learn how to caulk like a professional and use weather stripping to seal off any potential entry points. Check your windows, doors, walls, floors, and roof for potential gaps, fissures, cracks, or holes.
- Keep screens in good condition: keep stink bugs out with tight-fitting window or door screens.
- Eliminate potential feeding and breeding grounds: get rid of any garbage, tall grass, or heaps of leaves that can serve as a stink bug's winter home.
- Use odor repellents: use eucalyptus, spearmint, and peppermint to repel stink bugs.
- Use pesticides: you can use insecticides around the outside of your house to keep stink bugs out of your garden or house.
One or all of these prevention practices can be used to prevent tiny bugs in the house.
Non-toxic Methods
Non-toxic methods to eliminate stink bugs include using a vacuum, using essential oils, and sticky traps:
- Learn how to use a vacuum cleaner and use a hose attachment to effectively clean windowsills, light fixtures, entrances, and other areas where stink bugs are likely to gather. To stop the bugs from escaping or reinfesting your home, empty the vacuum cleaner bag outside immediately after use.
- Use eucalyptus, spearmint, and peppermint oil sprays or diffuse these essential oils to repel stink bugs.
- Buy sticky traps to catch stink bugs and physically remove them from a space.
- A bug zapper or electric insect killer attracts flying insects like moths, mosquitos, and flies with UV light and kills with electricity. This can be used in your home or outdoors, but does not always kill the intended pests.
As a homeowner, these may be the methods you prefer.
Chemical Methods
You can use natural methods as well as chemical products to get rid of insects when they are most active during the spring and summer months or if they've made a home in your house when the temperature drops. You can choose from different pesticides, bug zappers, or bug bombs available on the market:
- Pesticides can be used for a number of pest species like rodents, cockroaches, or ants that can be a health hazard as well as a threat to building structures. You can use a pesticide designed for indoor or outdoor use in spray, bait, or dust form.
- A bug bomb or total-release fogger releases an insecticide cloud into the air that can kill a variety of flying and crawling insects. Usually used indoors, bug bombs will usually be used in the winter to kill spiders, ants, and cockroaches.
While these chemical methods may be effective in controlling and eradicating bugs, these products need to be used with care and in appropriate amounts. Some safety precautions to keep in mind when using chemicals include:
- Always read a product's instruction label carefully and follow dosage suggestions and safety precautions as needed.
- Use chemicals in well-ventilated areas.
- Store chemicals out of the reach of children and pets.
- Wear safety equipment like gloves, goggles, and a mask when using chemicals.
- Use chemicals formulated for indoor use inside of your house and outdoors outside.
- Look into alternative methods that are effective but safe for you and the environment.
These are the best ways to control damage to your property and protect yourself from any potential risks that come with using chemicals.
Bottom Line: How to Get Rid of Stink Bugs
Stink bugs are an insect that is prone to invading living spaces during the winter when the temperature drops. These pests can be particularly difficult to get rid of if they find a food source. As a renter or homeowner in the United States, you can get rid of stink bugs with pesticides, insecticides, bug bombs, essential oils, a bug zapper, sticky traps, or a vacuum cleaner. What if none of these works? How to get rid of stink bugs then? Call a professional pest control expert to handle the infestation right away.
How to Get Rid of Stink Bugs FAQs
How can I eradicate stink bugs?
You can use a vacuum cleaner, pesticide, bug bomb, insecticide, essential oils, or a sticky trap to solve a stink bug problem. Of course, you can also contact a professional pest control specialist to take a look at the situation and use the proper equipment and techniques for the pest.
What measures can I take to keep stink bugs out of my house and garden?
How to get rid of stink bugs effectively? Well, you can seal potential entry points, use high-quality screens on your doors and windows, remove standing water from leaks in the attic or in the sink, and maintain your garden.
Are there non-toxic ways to get rid of stink bugs?
Sticky traps, odor-repellents like peppermint, spearmint, or eucalyptus, and vacuuming out adult stink bugs are just a few non-toxic methods.
Using a vacuum to capture adult stink bugs is an effective method. Stink bugs can also be captured or killed in a bug zapper.
What is the most efficient and effective way to get rid of stink bugs inside?
Vacuuming is the most efficient and effective way to get rid of stink bugs inside. This not only gets stink bugs off or out of your personal items but can get rid of their eggs as well no matter the season.
How should I vacuum up stink bugs?
To properly vacuum adult stink bugs:
- Choose a vacuum with a hose attachment.
- Inspect the area and vacuum your house and its interior well. This may mean paying extra attention to a specific light fixture, the chimney, or the carpet.
- Empty the vacuum cleaner bag outdoors as soon as you're done.
Vacuum at least once a week for maintenance!
What are some chemical treatments for stink bug eradication?
You can use pesticides, crop insecticides, or bug bombs to deal with a stink bug infestation.
Is there anything I should watch out for while using pesticides to get rid of stink bugs?
We recommend following best practices when using pesticides to get rid of stink bugs:
- Always reading and following product instructions. This is so you use the right product in the right dosage for a specific type of pest.
- Only use chemicals in a well-ventilated area. If needed, open the windows or turn on a fan.
- Keep any chemical items or products out of the reach of children or pets.
- Wear goggles, gloves, and a mask as needed.
- Use chemicals in their intended environment. If a manufacturer says that a specific product should be used outdoors, do not attempt to use it inside your home.
- Consider non-toxic methods before choosing a chemical product to get rid of stink bugs.
Is it possible to eliminate stink bugs using both chemical and non-toxic methods?
Yes, it's possible to get rid of stink bugs using a combination of natural and chemical products or methods. We recommend doing so but with caution. If you're unsure how to proceed or use certain chemical or non-toxic products, consult a pest control expert right away.
