5 Reasons Why Mosquito Spraying is a Scam

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It’s late summer in Georgia, and mosquitoes are everywhere. Specifically, there are Asian Tiger Mosquitoes everywhere – the invasive, pesky, persistent, speedy, resilient, swarming species of mosquito that’s been spreading across America since the 1980s.

They suck the casual joy of backyards and are one of those constant, daily problems that everyone wants just to go away.

Enter the creative, local pest control company, which promises a mosquito-free backyard for the low price of a few hundred bucks and the low risk of non-toxic magic spray that won’t affect pets or children.

For four years, we paid for the service, only to realize that it was a total scam and then regret that we ever wasted that money on a service that didn’t work and killed what we loved about our backyard.

Half-Truth of “non-Toxic”

5 Reasons Why Mosquito Spraying is a Scam 1
Source – Beecatur

Pest Control companies are very selective about their messaging. I used to write ad copy for one.

It is true that mosquito spray does not kill beneficial adult insects. It’s just that it does kill all larvae. That’s how it works even on mosquitoes. It doesn’t kill the adults – but it does kill the larvae.

The result is that spraying reduces the upcoming mosquito population…but it also reduces the upcoming beneficial insect population.

And when the beneficial insects are gone…the classic summer backyard is no longer full of butterflies, fireflies, or insect-loving birds.

For years, we blamed our lack of fireflies and bluebirds on “living in the city” – yeah, no. We were just killing them all.

Mosquitoes Come Back

Nature hates a void. If there is a habitat, there will be species that want to live in that habitat.

For the Asian Tiger mosquito, it needs a bit of cover, moisture, and a blood source.

So, if there are plants, any standing water, and a few pets or humans – there will be mosquitoes. Sure, you can kill the generation of mosquitoes about to hatch on a specific property…but that will work for two weeks. And then, they’ll be back.

Even when we consistently sprayed, there were only a few truly mosquito-free days before a summer shower allowed a new hatch.

They Never Left Your Neighbor’s Property

Asian Tigers can fly 150 feet. So unless you have a large property…even the adults are going to fly over for a blood meal. This is why spraying can work in city parks…but not on private property in city / suburbs.

So one property gets sprayed…it’s just an invitation to get some bonus habitat for a while.

Spraying Is Expensive

Most pest control companies offer a new customer offer that is reasonable. But, since it’s on auto-renew, they usually increase the price every year. Is it worth it? Does anyone track the mosquito population? Nope.

So, money flows out of the property owner’s pocket into the pest control company. But there’s also the opportunity cost of not spending that money on…anything else, really. For mosquitoes, there are plenty of things that work, are cheaper than mosquito spraying, and don’t have a subscription fee.

Stuff better than mosquito spraying –

It’s Not Worth It

A pest control company is not neutral. Their solution is to sell.

If a property has a serious mosquito issue, there are less biased sources to consult than a mosquito spray sales guy. Mosquitoes are an issue, but blanket spraying a single property with pyrethroid insecticides and killing every other insect on the property is not the solution.

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