How To Get Rid Of Stink Bugs

If you have ever had to deal with stink bugs getting into your home, you know how frustrating a pest they can be. These smelly bugs are the kind of nuisance that can drive the sanest person crazy. And, if measures aren’t taken to seal them out, they are a pest problem that can come back to plague you time, and time, and time again.

The way stink bug infestation occur is like this: In fall, these cold-blooded insects, that are normally happy to stay outside, start to get cold. When this happens, they look for spots to warm themselves. This causes them to leave gardens and farms, where they are usually found, and congregate on the sunny side of rocks, trees, and, unfortunately, man-made structures.

When a congregation of these nasty creatures hangs out on the sunny side of a home, they start trying to find a way into that home when temperatures drop further. In nature, they crawl underneath the bark of a tree, or into some other crack or crevice. On a home, they crawl under siding, go down chimneys, or squeeze in through some other small entry point. This brings them into wall voids.

Inside walls stink bugs will usually go into a sort of hibernation called diapause, where they slow down to conserve their energy. But there will always be a few that make it into the living areas of a home. And in spring, when things warm up again, and stink bugs start moving around again, this is when they can become a major pest again.

Inside a home, these are a few of the problems they can cause:

• Stink bugs stink. No kidding, right? One reason these pests are such a pain in the neck is that you can’t just get out the fly swatter or a tissue or, your hand, to simply squish them. (Well, you can do this, but you probably won’t do it more than once.) When a stink bug is crushed, or even just threatened, it can put off a foul-smelling odor.
• Stink bugs dive bomb. Though these insects are able to fly, they are really lousy at it. Because of this, they often fly erratically through a room and then suddenly drop, sometimes right onto a plate of food, or onto a food preparation surface, or, even better, right on someone’s head. These are not fun bugs to have around.
• Stink bugs stain things. The stinky fluid of the stink bug can also stain. These stains can be hard to get out, depending on the material the mark is on.
• Stink bugs taste bad. Now, this shouldn’t be a problem if you only have adults in your home, but sometimes pets or small children will put things in their mouths that they shouldn’t.

How to get rid of stink bugs:

While it is better to try to keep stink bugs out in the first place, by doing the hard work of sealing up your home, replacing damaged screens, installing door sweeps, and implementing other pest-protection measures, if they have already invaded your home, here are a few things you can do:

• Scoop them up with a cup and a piece of paper. If you find a stink bug crawling around inside your home, one thing you can do is get a cup or glass and put it over the bug. Slide a piece of paper under the glass, trapping the insect inside. Then, dispose of the bug outside. But this could go on for months without much relief.
• Vacuum them up. If you have more than a few of these pests, you can try vacuuming them up. But then you will need to dispose of the vacuum bag outside. If you find yourself vacuuming up a lot of stink bugs, you could find yourself spending more money than you care to spend on new vacuum bags.
• Some folks make a pretty good, handheld stink bug trap with a 2-liter plastic bottle. But, we wouldn’t suggest you leave a large bottle of stink bugs in your home. They can become unpleasant.
• Simply call in the professionals.

The most effective solution for getting rid of stink bugs is having a professional pest control company come, remove stink bugs from your home, and apply EPA-approved insecticides to targeted areas.

Reach out to Schendel Pest Services today for effective stink bug control.