Nothing bites quite like a mosquito bite. These annoying, buzzing little bugs have the gall to drink your blood and make you itch for your trouble. Here are fifteen tips to keep these frustrating, nasty bugs from feasting on you in the summer months.
Know Their Habitat
Firstly, you need to know where mosquitoes like to breed and hunt. They love stagnant water, as this is the perfect environment for their eggs. One great way to keep mosquitoes away is to not keep old tires and other trash that can gather water and serve as a breeding ground.
Color Theory
Mosquitoes like deep colors like dark blues, reds, and greens. These are very visible to their particular eyesight. Opt instead for lighter colors like white, pink, or grey to avoid being as visible to mosquitoes in the summer months. These clothes are also a bit more sun-resistant than darker alternatives, which is a nice bonus!
Clothing Options
Speaking of clothing, make sure you cover any exposed skin if you know you’re going to be around mosquito habitats. This is especially helpful for your legs and ankles. Loose-fitting pants that you can tuck into your shoes will make it much harder for mosquitoes to bite you.
Bug Spray
Sometimes the classics are the best option. Keep bug spray handy in the summer and use it to ward off mosquitoes. Most forms of bug spray are both repellents and camouflage. They smell bad to mosquitoes and mask your smell from reaching them!
Nets and Screens
You can set up nets and screens around your house to prevent the big, nasty bugs from entering your home to begin with. If you like sitting outside in the summer, consider getting a screen for your porch to keep mosquitoes out.
Plant Citronella
There are many plants that mosquitoes hate, like citronella and lavender. Planting these around your property could make it less likely for mosquitoes to want to breed nearby, potentially stopping your problems before they occur.
Lanterns
Mosquito lanterns, citronella candles, and other repellent products use open flames to emit scents that powerfully repel mosquitoes. Just be careful about using these when it’s windy, as the wind could diminish the effects of the flame and could even spread the ingredients around in your yard.
Use Fans
Mosquitoes can’t fly in powerful winds. You can keep an area mosquito-free by running a fan that will simply blow it away and prevent it from flying back up! This is convenient for the summer months, too, as you might already want a fan just to stay cool.
Dusk is the Worst
The blood-sucking bugs are most active right as the sun is going down. If you can help it, try to avoid going outside right around dusk in an area where you know mosquitoes gather. If you have to go outside at dusk, use bug spray and other repellents.
Clean up the Property
Cleaning up your yard can eliminate potential breeding grounds the mosquitoes want to live in. Things like wood piles, tall grass, and overgrown tree limbs don’t just look bad to your neighbors, they give pests a safe place to congregate.
Zap ‘Em
If you want to make certain that bugs won’t bother you while you’re outside, set up a bug zapper. These ingenious traps use UV light to bait bugs like mosquitoes into flying close before frying them with a live electrical current.
Sense of Smell
Mosquitoes have a stellar sense of smell. As such, try to avoid using floral scents and fruity shampoos if you know there are mosquitoes in your area. These flowery smells can be a dead giveaway to a mosquito that you’re a tasty morsel.
Yellow Light
Try replacing any white exterior lights around your home with yellow lights. These don’t repel mosquitoes, but they also don’t attract them the way white lights do. This also goes for many pesky bugs who love to bunch up around lamps at night.
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Drinking
Try to avoid drinking outside in the summertime. If you’re drinking alcohol, mosquitoes will notice you much more quickly. This is likely because drinking increases the blood flow to your skin, making you look like an easy meal to a passing mosquito.
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Body Heat
Finally, try to keep your body heat down. This might sound like a no-brainer when it’s hot out, but it’s also a great way to keep mosquitoes from flocking to you. They can detect your body heat much more easily than they can see you when they get up close, so keeping your body cooled off can ward them away.
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