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Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: brimic on February 03, 2006, 05:00:14 AM

Title: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on February 03, 2006, 05:00:14 AM
My house is completely infested with boxalder bugs over the last few weeks. They are everywhere along the south facing wall of my house. I caulked/ sealed up my house a few years ago to keep ladybeetles out and haven't had a problem with them, but somehow the B-A bugs got in. We can't seem to pinpoint where they are, but they congregate around the south facin windows and seem to be around heating ducts, we almost think they came in through the pressure equalization duct that exits to the outside.

 Anyone have a way to get rid of them, or do we just need to ride them out and vacuum them up like ladybeetles?

Title: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: charby on February 03, 2006, 05:50:11 AM
Mine are invading too, probably from the warmer winter we have had.  Just got to suck them up with the vacuum like those damn ladybugs. Dish soap really thinned down with water do a pretty good job of repelling them if you spray the surfaces of your house, but since you are inside they will find another place to hide. Also who really wants a soapy film on everything.
Charby
Title: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: danny on February 03, 2006, 05:53:53 AM
If the box elder trees are on your property, cut 'em down.
Title: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on February 03, 2006, 06:13:06 AM
Quote
If the box elder trees are on your property, cut 'em down.
The back edge of my property is well, infested with box alders. I endup cutting up one of them pieces of crap every time we get a wind storm. Sad



If its not a box alder its a poplar. The crap trees really grow like weeds in my area.

Even if I cut down every one of them near my property, the row of them is about 30 yards deep and a 1/2 mile long.
Title: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on February 03, 2006, 06:15:44 AM
Too bad my wife didn't by me the Husqvarna I wanted cor Christmas. Tongue
Title: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: charby on February 03, 2006, 06:52:44 AM
I don't think box elder bugs are dependent upon box elder trees. I have a yard full of redbud, hackberry and lilac and have plenty of the bugs.

Tap those box elders when the sap flows, you can make a syrup that is damn close to sugar maple syrup.

Charby
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Krulak99 on October 04, 2007, 11:16:50 AM
I have a one gallon pump sprayer that I fill with water and dish soap.  Those bugs just swarm all over our house, and I spray them with that.  Almost kills them right away.  Cant get rid of all of them but it helps get rid of a few dozen at a time.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Manedwolf on October 04, 2007, 11:21:00 AM
Will diatomaceous earth kill those like it will beetles? Nontoxic, too.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: ilbob on October 04, 2007, 12:15:06 PM
I don't get them every year, but about every 5 years I get a pretty serious infestation. Yard Guard works pretty well. They seem to congregate on the house when it gets cool in the fall. Spray the Yard Guard on the house where they congregate and they seem to not be a problem any more.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Gewehr98 on October 04, 2007, 03:27:17 PM
I'd rather have the Box Elder bugs than the damned Japanese Beetles that took over my garden.   angry
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Scout26 on October 04, 2007, 04:20:16 PM
They're all over the high house on the skeet field at my club.

It's that time of year !!!!!!   shocked shocked

Cue up some Barry White music and try doing the "Pied Piper" thing and leading them to a new location.   grin   They seem to be like salmon in that they return to the "mating ground" year after year after year after year.

If that doesn't work, here's what Ortho recommends:  Ortho® Bug-B-Gon® MAX® Lawn & Garden Insect Killer Concentrate Ready-to-Spray.

http://www.ortho.com/index.cfm/event/ProductGuide.product/documentId/6e5b658e5a4c6b598d2e511e5f5fed7a





Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: 280plus on October 04, 2007, 04:28:53 PM
Flamethrower?  grin
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on October 04, 2007, 05:09:01 PM
Flamethrower sounds about right.

I don't have nearly as many as last year. Dish soap does kill them fast, I've sprayed two entire sides of the house with dish soap, but they come back the next day undecided
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on October 04, 2007, 05:11:01 PM
I'll have to try that ortho stuff this weekend.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Paddy on October 04, 2007, 05:12:40 PM
y'all are crawlin' with bugs that are not a problem here.  Another reason to love California.  grin
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Big_R on October 05, 2007, 08:12:52 AM
Find yourself some Cypermethrin.  I bought some from bugstop dot com a few years ago under the brand name Viper.  It also works for Asian beetles, but must be sprayed every few weeks to remain effective.  I put it outside my house, especially around windows, doors, etc.  You mix it 1/2 ounce per gallon of water so a bottle lasts for a long time.

Ryan
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: K Frame on October 05, 2007, 08:17:29 AM
Ride them out.

They don't hurt anything, they're kind of pretty as far as bugs go, and they will disappear in short order.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Bogie on October 05, 2007, 08:50:24 AM
1) Buy a brick.

2) Buy another brick.

3) If you can't fill this section in, go turn in your IQ card...
 
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on October 06, 2007, 02:50:08 AM
Quote
1) Buy a brick.

2) Buy another brick.

3) If you can't fill this section in, go turn in your IQ card...

Another use for Bricks of Bubba?
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on October 06, 2007, 02:52:50 AM
Quote
They don't hurt anything, they're kind of pretty as far as bugs go, and they will disappear in short order.

They're kind of cute and harmless and all, but 2 years ago, they found their way into my house when driven by the cold. I had large numbers of them coming out of the walls every day throughout the winter shitting on the walls and windowsills and worst of all, causing daily levels of high distress for my neat-freak wife. undecided
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: K Frame on October 07, 2007, 04:39:06 AM
OK, if you have large numbers of them actually getting inside, I see your problem.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: deuceindtown on April 28, 2011, 01:35:04 PM
I think someone may have mentioned this already, but.... I have had these pests around three different places that I've lived over the past 10 years and could never get rid of them...UNTIL...I tried the dish soap and water idea. I grabbed my 2.5 gallon sprayer, put water in it and added about 2 ounces of dish soap. I was told to use Dawn. Didn't have any but had some Amway Dish Drops. Shook it up pumped and sprayed...what a blast. it WILL kill them quickly!!!! I had thousands down. came back later, more were out. Killed them. Did this for a few days and there were next to nothing after a while. This spring, a few came back and I knocked them out. NO, they do not come back to life like my wife thought, because the body count at the base of the house was piling up. I don't know how much soap it really needs, maybe only one ounce per 2 gallons, don't know, but it's not expensive to use and it works great so I didn't really care to measure. i also sprayed pine trees with it that had the critters all over. The one thing it doesn't do, is continue killing after yiou spray. You have to spray them with it to kill them.....Have fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: zxcvbob on April 28, 2011, 01:52:44 PM
The were taking over the church, so I sprayed around the foundation with Diazinon.  Also sprayed around all the casement windows, the fresh air intake for the furnace, and the front porch. (all outside the building)  That seems to have done the trick.  There's still a few box elder bugs and Asian ladybugs flying around inside, but very few; as long as new ones can't come in the ones trapped inside should die off quickly.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: charby on April 28, 2011, 01:55:37 PM
I think the new dude is trying to sell Amway soap.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: TechMan on April 28, 2011, 02:57:18 PM
(http://i953.photobucket.com/albums/ae14/adively/APS/Necro.jpg)
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Boomhauer on April 28, 2011, 07:02:55 PM
We've got cicadas coming out down here...loud bastards they are.

Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: grampster on April 28, 2011, 07:58:31 PM
First, you need to buy a BassOmatic (tm)........
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: sanglant on April 28, 2011, 08:18:30 PM
should be TTT, again. well that or bump. ;) [popcorn]
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Pharmacology on April 28, 2011, 11:08:52 PM
Why does soapy water kill them  ???
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: brimic on April 28, 2011, 11:26:02 PM
Quote
Why does soapy water kill them
Probably low surface tension, gets sucked into their breathing orifices which are designed to keep out water with normal surface tension. *shrug*
It kills them dead very fast, however it does it.

Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: RoadKingLarry on April 29, 2011, 01:44:46 AM
When we were cleaing out my late uncle's farm I found a full, sealed, gallon jug (glass) of Chlordane. I'm good to go for a while =D
I also still have a full gallon of Diazanon concentrate for back up.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: mtnbkr on April 29, 2011, 08:18:19 AM
When we were cleaing out my late uncle's farm I found a full, sealed, gallon jug (glass) of Chlordane. I'm good to go for a while =D

No thank you. 

Chris
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: HankB on April 29, 2011, 08:21:18 AM
When we were cleaing out my late uncle's farm I found a full, sealed, gallon jug (glass) of Chlordane. I'm good to go for a while =D  I also still have a full gallon of Diazanon concentrate for back up.
Wish I still had some . . . but I used up my stockpile a while back; The "green" bug killers aren't a fraction as effective as Diazanon, Dursban, or the other stuff they took off the market.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: zxcvbob on April 29, 2011, 09:14:38 AM
I'm saving my Chlordane (have a little less than a quart of 74%) in case I ever have to deal with termites.  For anything less than that, I have Diazinon, Cygon, a little bit of Dursban, and I think I have a bottle of Lindane (maybe have used up all the Lindane treating borers.)

I really don't use much pesticide, but when I do I don't like to mess around.
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: Harold Tuttle on April 29, 2011, 11:50:42 AM
i lindaned a pine tree that got eaten up by borers

they all died and the infection did not spread
Title: Re: Box alder bugs- how to get rid of the little bastards?
Post by: eyebrows on April 29, 2011, 09:45:25 PM
I wonder if a squirt gun with soapy water will kill the buggers. I'm gonna find out, sounds more fun than smashing them.  [ar15]