Mosquito Abatement

Mosquitoes have long been an annoying summer pest. With West Nile and Zika virus scares in recent years, concern for mosquito control has intensified. Cole Hardware cab help you take some of the precautions the Centers for Disease Control recommends for keeping mosquito bites and breeding areas to a minimum.

Nontoxic Products That Can Help
All Cole Hardware stores stock the following products to help you win the war on mosquitoes:

Summit® Mosquito Dunks®
A Mosquito Dunk looks like a small, beige doughnut that floats on standing water. As the Dunk slowly dissolves, it releases a bacterium that is toxic to all species of mosquito larvae. Each Dunk lasts 30 days or more. (Sku 7092935, $12.99) This product contains a natural biological control (Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt) that kills mosquito larvae but is a bacterium that is deadly to mosquito larvae but harmless to other living things.

Float a biodegradable Mosquito Dunk in water troughs, koi ponds, birdbaths, rain barrels, or any place where water collects and remains for periods of time. When female mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water treated with a Mosquito Dunk, the larvae will hatch and begin to eat the Bt. The Bt will kill the mosquito larvae before they can grow up to become biting and disease-spreading adults.

Adjustable Window Screens
Besides keeping out dust and dirt and allowing fresh air into your home all year long, window screens keep out insects too. Adjustable window screens are a simple solution to much more expensive window replacement. Sizes range from 10- to 24-inch heights, and widths are extendable from 37 to 45 inches. ($9.99–$14.99)

SuperBand Insect Repellent Bracelets
This nontoxic, DEET-free bracelet keeps bugs away and lasts for up to 250 hours after the seal is broken. (Sku 9236902, $1.99)

Outside Your Home

• Install or repair and use window and door screens. Do not leave doors propped open.
• Once a week, empty and scrub, turn over, cover, or throw out any items that hold water like tires, buckets, planters, toys, pools, birdbaths, flowerpot saucers, or trash containers. Mosquitoes lay eggs in very small amounts of standing water.
• Tightly cover water storage containers (buckets, cisterns, rain barrels) so that mosquitoes cannot get inside to lay eggs.
• For containers without lids, use wire mesh with holes smaller than an adult mosquito.
• Use larvicides to treat large containers of water that will not be used for drinking and cannot be covered or dumped out.
• Mosquitoes rest in dark, humid areas like under patio furniture and carports or in garages.
• Cover open vent or plumbing pipes. Use wire mesh with holes smaller than an adult mosquito.

Inside Your Home

• Keep windows and doors shut and use air conditioning when needed.
• Keep mosquitoes from laying eggs inside your home. Once a week, empty and scrub, turn over, cover, or throw out any items that hold water like vases and flowerpot saucers.
• Mosquitoes rest in dark, humid places like under the sink, in closets, under furniture, or in the laundry room.