Happy Tuesday, my friends! I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend. We took time for a bit of fun but of course Brad, (my husband) kept busy with a few chores around the house. His favorite new concoction? Homemade Bug Spray!
Our lake house is surrounded by dozens of huge, mature trees and shrubs. And water. Naturally the combination yields lots of spiders and bugs. We’ve tried numerous treatments to keep them at bay including a professional pest service. Yet each time we come back to the lake house, there are spider webs in all of the windows, eaves and lights. And don’t get me started about ants! There is a non-stop parade of ants that marches in a line on our deck railing. And no, the ants are not this cute. (photo courtesy of Shutterstock.)
On the last trip to the lake Brad decided to take matters into his own hands. He found a homemade bug spray to combat the problem. This is a great solution in several ways. First and foremost the ingredients are natural and safe for Lacey. The mixture dries quickly and is non-toxic to animals. (Naturally you don’t want your pet to drink or lick the solution as you would guess). Also, it contains items found at the grocery store for little money.
Without further ado, here’s the recipe!
HOMEMADE BUG SPRAY
1 Liter (33.8 fl. oz) blue mouth wash (we used generic)1-liter Antiseptic Mouth Rinse
3 stale beers
3 cups epsom salt Epsom Salt
Mix all ingredients together and allow the salt to dissolve. This makes 3 quarts of bug spray. Pour mixture into a trigger spray bottle and spray the areas you wish to treat. It dries to a light powdery consistency with no color and lasts for weeks. It’s recommended to reapply after a heavy rain. (For outdoor use only)
Brad sprayed several large spider webs today and said the spiders scattered like crazy. I’m not sure what it is about this combination of ingredients that works but it seems to work well, especially for ants and spiders. We even sprayed the bushes and trees around the deck hoping to kill mosquitoes as well.
TIP: Brad says he opens the beer cans the night before he makes the bug spray in order to let it go flat. He also recommends removing the spider webs prior to spraying.
Disclaimer: This spray seems to work for us but you can try it for yourself and see how it works for you. With the amount of rain we are having we will need to reapply it more frequently. And it should only be used outdoors on dark-colored surfaces. We found with trial and error it tends to stick to lighter colored surfaces and not in a good way. 🙁
Housing update? We close in 3 short days! Lots of last-minute activities such as a final walk through and arranging movers and family members to help us on closing day. We are praying for this storm front to pass so it will be nice and dry on moving day. Fingers crossed!
Thanks for stopping by! Pictures of the new place coming soon. Let’s chat tomorrow? xoxo Dell