Wear protective clothing if approaching stinging insects like wasps.
Store-bought insect traps can contain harmful pesticides that are unhealthy for humans, animals and the environment but sometimes, they are necessary to eliminate serious infestations. Avoiding infestation in the home is best accomplished by repairing holes in window screens and screen doors, keeping doors closed and sealing up points of entry where insects can enter the home. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
Wasp Traps
1. Remove the cap and label from a clean, empty two-liter soda bottle. Place a finger inside the hole as you grasp the top of the bottle. Make the initial cut with a knife just above the shoulder of the bottle. Cut completely around with scissors.
2. Fill the bottom halfway with water. Add a bit of dish soap or 1/4 cup white vinegar.
3. Smear the neck of the bottle with peanut butter in the spring and summer. Use jam in late summer and fall. Place the inverted neck back into the bottle and secure it with tape.
4. Position the bottle about 4 feet off the ground. Empty the trap daily and refill.
Fly Traps
5. Follow bottle-trap cutting instructions to prepare bottle. Invert top and place it in the bottle. Add water and a ripened banana as bait.
6. Use a hole punch to punch one hole on opposite sides of bottle. Make a hanger by stringing two feet of twine through the holes and knotting the top.
7. Hang trap from a tree branch or pole. Change water and bait as needed.
Flea and Fruit Fly Traps
8. Fill a shallow dish with water and some dish soap. Place it near your pet's bedding or anywhere he spends time. Place a goose-neck lamp next to the dish with the light about six inches from the dish.
9. Turn off all the lights at night except for the goose-neck lamp. Fleas will be drawn to the light and fall into the water where the soap will submerge them.
10. Use additional traps in other infested areas of the home. Change water daily and continue trapping as long as necessary.
11. Eliminate use of the goose-neck lamp when trapping fruit flies. Add a small amount of cider vinegar to the water and detergent mixture. Place dishes of the mixture anywhere there are fruit flies to eliminate them. Change water as needed.
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