Get professional mosquito, beetle, flea, tick, hornet, any insect control at DIY pricing.
How I would (and did) treat my 1/2 acre property, in less than 15 minutes, with $0.47 worth of product and achieved professional results.
That cost is not a typo!
7/19/18 – Matt Rohman
WHAT’S NEEDED
- The correct protective equipment
- Super cheap but good backpack sprayer
- The insecticide
- Bifenthrin I/T 7.9%
ABOUT THE INSECTICIDE
Product Label: Bifenthrin I/T 7.9%
Safety: My understanding of this product is that it is a synthetically created version of the naturally occurring insecticide in the Chrysanthemum plant. It is impregnated into hiking clothes for mosquito repellent and used in pet flea/tick shampoo. It is very safe. Aquatic life is most effected by it and care needs to be taken around water. For more information, see here: Bifenthrin Fact Sheet
How much to buy and price: Bifenthrin I/T 7.9% comes in 1 gallon gallon containers. At the time of this writing, one gallon cost $59.99 at Spike’s in Loretto (see below). As far as I know, it does not come in less than one gallon containers. As I’ll point out later, the mix rate is 0.5 ounces per gallon of water. I did my 1/2 acre property with two gallons – so just one ounce of product!
The gallon you buy should do your property, your cabin, your neighbors, etc., many times, for many years! Make sure to protect the bottle from freezing.
How long does it last? This isn’t stated specifically anywhere but I’m confidant in saying 2 to 6 weeks depending on rain amounts. Please note that you won’t start seeing control for a coupled days. If you spray your lawn Friday afternoon for a Friday evening BBQ, you won’t see any results. Spraying your lawn the prior Tuesday for the Friday evening BBQ should make for great results.
I have no affiliation with Spikes except that we buy our products there. For all I know, they might ask me to take their name out of this post.
More info: From the product website: “Dependable, long-lasting residual control. Non-irritating, no-odor formulation dries with no visible residue. No plant damaging solvents, no known phytotoxicity.”
It works as a contact insecticide. As soon as an insect comes in contact with a leaf, rock, board, etc that has this product on it, that insect will die. Any insect; ants, spiders, and honey bees – SO DO NOT SPRAY FLOWING PLANTS.
This is a professional product. It’s what we use for our ProSquito treatments.
STRATEGY (HOW AND WHAT TO SPRAY)
This post and the strategies outlined are focused on Mosquito control with some strategies for other insect control mixed in. There is no sense in dousing everything you possibly can to get insect control. That would be irresponsible and wasteful. To use this product safely, responsibly and intelligently, we first need to understand mosquito behavior.
- Don’t fly more than 20 feet at a time
- If you are concerned about mosquitoes at your deck area, there is no need to spray anything more than 20 feet away from it.
- Don’t fly higher than 12 feet off the ground
- No need to spray the tip-top of your 70 year-old maple.
- Mosquitoes hate the sun. That why they’re out at dawn and dusk. In the middle of they day, they are hiding in the shade – North sides of building, under roof overhangs, within shrubs, etc. This is where you want to spray. It is usually wasteful to spray surfaces that the sun hits.
ACTUALLY SPRAYING
- Put on proper PPE: Before Spraying – Personal Protective Equipment
- Make sure sprayer is ready. Best Backpack Sprayer. I recommend a dedicated sprayer for insect control – what if you forget to clean the sprayer properly after spraying weed killer then go around killing all your flowers thinking you’re spaying for mosquitoes?!?
- Make sure you have the product ready. Wisdom TC is a brand name for the product mentioned above. It shares the exact same active ingredient as the “generic” Bifenthrin I/T 7.9%.
- Fill the backpack with however much water you think you’ll need. Two gallons is a good starting point. I used two around my rambler on 1/2 acre lot.
- CAREFULLY AND SAFELY measure the amount of insecticide you need for the water in the backpack.
- The mix rate is 1/2 ounce of insecticide per 1 gallon of water. (so for two gallons, it would be one ounce).
- The bottle has a handy measuring compartment built in so you don’t need a measuring cup.
- Pour the insecticide into the backpack, close it securely and shake it all around to get uniform distribution of the insecticide in the water. Less water means easier shaking 🙂
- Now you’re ready to spray! Follow the tips below.
Tip #2: No need to soak anything so it’s dripping wet. Just a light coating will ensure the insecticide dries to where you want it and stays there.
Tip #3: Arborvitaes are like apartment complexes for mosquitoes. Get these things good. Stick the spray wand inside and point it in all directions, especially up.
Tip#4: What better spot for mosquitoes to hide and get you than under your deck. Make sure you spay “up” underneath your deck. Note I am reaching under the deck as far as I can and spraying up onto the bottom of it.
Make sure you’re careful not to stand directly under your spray (there is always mist that will fall).
Tip #6: After you’ve gotten all the vegetation and mosquito hiding areas around where you plan to spend time outdoors, you can protect your property from other insects. Loosen the nozzle tip to adjust the spay to more of a stream and higher reach. Treat your shrubs/trees that are being damaged by Japanese Beetles.
Tip #8: Got some material left? Use a side to side pattern to spray your lawn near where you want to spend time. Use a strategy of larger and larger perimeters until the product is used up.
Grass grows fast – especially healthy ProLawns grass. It’s likely that the insecticide put on the grass will only be effective until your next mowing. That’s why it is sprayed at the end to use up the material you have left and not a priority.
Remember: Mosquitoes don’t fly more than 20 feet at a time so if you’ve sprayed a 20 foot radius surrounding your deck for example, it’s likely they’ll have to land in the insecticide before getting to your deck and will not make it.
WHEN YOU’RE DONE
Since this application method is “low volume” it’s likely that it will be dry as soon as you’re done. No need to stay away for any amount of time. Just like if it wasn’t sprayed, don’t let your kids or pets eat the plants, including grass.
Rinse your sprayer according to the instructions here: Best Backpack Sprayer so it works perfectly when you use it again in 2-6 weeks.
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- When spraying out the rinse water, don’t do in on something you’ve sprayed for insects – it might wash off the product. Spray it out on a lawn area that you didn’t treat. You might even get a bit extra insect control there!
Make sure your insecticide is stored in a safe spot and protected from temperature extremes.
ENJOY YOUR BUG-FREE PROPERTY!
I counted six Asian Beetles stopped in their tracks at my front threshold. Who knows how many other bugs this treatment stopped that would be trying to get in my home. I also haven’t seen a mosquito on my deck since the treatment. Not bad for 47 cents.
These “if I didn’t work at” posts are intended to show the DIYer how to get professional results on their lawn. Stay tuned for more.
