How to keep bugs away from your outdoor decking?

Outdoor decking is a private place to relax and a great place to have friends and family over. You can have a family get-together on your deck for a barbecue or just to talk and have a drink. Or, you can read them stories in the evening while the lights are on. What a great life in the outdoors!

When taking a break outside, there can be a lot to worry about. For instance, bugs start to come out. During the summer, being outside can lead to mosquito bites. Food scraps can bring ants or other pests into your home. Moths and other bugs can be drawn to lights at night. So what can we do to stop this bothersome thing from happening? There are some easy ways to keep bugs off your patio during the summer so you can enjoy the outdoors without being bothered.

Plants can keep insects away

Most insects can tell what something is by its smell, and this chemical-free repellent can give off different smells to keep insects away. There is, of course, no one perfect way to keep insects away. Depending on what bugs you want to keep out of your garden, you can use different plants to do so. Use chrysanthemums to keep away ants, basil to keep away flies, and lavender to keep away moths. Plants like rosemary, marigold, and lavender can be used to keep mosquitoes away.

Pests can be kept away from plants that can also be used to make your deck look nice and give your yard a fresh smell. Remember that the smell of lemon will keep mosquitoes away, but it might bring bees.

Use Essential Oils

You can use essential oils instead of plants to keep bugs away if you find it hard or limiting to use plants. To use them, spray the mixture of essential oils around your patio in an even pattern to keep as many bugs as possible away.

So, how do you make bug spray to keep bugs away? Mix equal parts of witch hazel and water. Add a tablespoon of rubbing alcohol and a few dozen drops of essential oil.

You can use lavender, rosemary, lemon thyme, or basil for the essential oil. These smells are like the smell of the plant they are named for, so you can use them to protect yourself in more than one way.

Remove the water from the deck

There are a lot of ways to get rid of different flying insects on your deck, but we also need to focus on fixing the problem at its source. Mosquitoes can breed in the water that is left to stand on the deck. If you can, try not to let water stand in your deck drains, downspouts, sinks, and other places.

Using mouthwash to spray

If you don’t have essential oils to keep bugs away, you can also spray alcohol-based mouthwash around your deck to get rid of them. Just put some mouthwash in a spray bottle and spray it around your deck or on your outdoor furniture. Even though alcohol-based mouthwash will keep other pests away, you will need to spray it often because the alcohol evaporates quickly.

Change the lights on your deck

Bugs have eyes that help them see colors like blue and purple which have shorter wavelengths of light better. But their eyes can’t see red or orange lights, which are warm.

Most white light bulbs have a lot of blue light, which means that mosquitoes are attracted to the light at night. If you want to keep bugs off your deck at night, try replacing cooler bulbs with warmer ones, like yellow or sodium vapor bulbs. This will stop the lights from making more mosquitoes come around.

Keep your deck in the backyard neat and clean

Bugs love to live in a yard that is a mess. Ticks like to hide in tall grass, and bushes that are too big can make it easier for ticks and other pests to get inside. Keeping your yard clean isn’t just about how it looks. It also keeps bugs away from your patio by taking away their places to live. So, try to keep your outdoor deck as clean and organized as possible. Whether it’s for looks or to keep bugs away.

By using these simple tips, you can make your backyard deck a bug-free place where you and your friends and family can spend more time relaxing outside.