Month: January 2019

 

It’s a known fact: mosquitos can spread illnesses – some, much more serious than others. Worldwide, there are over 20 mosquito-borne illnesses, making mosquitos the world’s deadliest animal. It’s estimated that over one million people around the world die each year from mosquito illnesses. Fortunately, we don’t have as many of those mosquito-borne illnesses here in South Florida, but we have enough to cause problems and warrant concern.

What Diseases Do Mosquitos Cause?

You may be already familiar with the mosquito-borne illnesses found in Florida. They include West Nile virus,  the Zika virus, Eastern equine encephalitis, and St. Louis encephalitis. Last year alone, Florida reported 29 cases of West Nile, throughout the state. There are many steps you can take towards avoiding mosquito illnesses. It begins with prevention measures around your property.

Steps to Prevent a Mosquito Illness

Look around your yard or property. There’s a lot you can do to keep mosquitos at bay. For starters, drain or cover any standing water, which is where mosquitos lay their eggs. Even the smallest water reservoir is a prime breeding ground.  Keep an eye on the following:

• Clogged gutters
• Bird baths
• Wading/kiddie pools
• Pots/saucers
• Toys
• Dishes/pet water bowls
• Fountains
• Buckets
• Bromeliad plants which store water in their leaves or rosettes

By the way, there are some natural ingredients, including cinnamon and vinegar that you can add to your fountain to keep mosquitos away. If the water in your swimming pool has been treated with chlorine or is constantly circulating, there’s no need to drain your pool.

Your Landscape and Lighting Play a Role

Mosquitos love to hang out in tall grass, shrubbery, bushes, and foliage. This means you need to regularly trim your bushes and trees and mow your lawn, all of which will help keep down mosquito activity. You can also make natural repellants, such as mosquito-repelling plants, a part of your landscape. Think citronella, lavender, peppermint, marigolds, catnip, and basil. You can also replace your outdoor lights with “yellow” bug lights. We offer many LED landscaping options. Don’t forget to cover doorways and windows with screens.

Protect Yourself from Mosquito Bites

When outside, you can protect yourself against illnesses from mosquito bites in a number of ways. It helps to wear lighter-colored, looser clothing. Some research suggests that wearing dark-colored clothing can put you on a mosquito’s radar. But we highly suggested getting the entire area treated with a proven and effective mosquito misting system.

Call Us and Experience the SWAT Difference

Call the best mosquito-control company in South Florida – SWAT Mosquito Systems®️. We’ll be more than happy to come out and discuss your mosquito battle and how we can help you and your family avoid mosquito bites and illnesses. We’re the largest and most respected mosquito control company in Florida. Call us today at 1-866-900-7928 for your free estimate.

 

There’s no questioning that mosquitoes are a nuisance when it comes to enjoying the outdoors. They bite, you itch, and sometimes they’ll even carry a disease that makes you sick. Whether outside enjoying your weekend with the family or planning a big event, you don’t want these biting insects around. But, where do they come from and why are they such a bother? Today, we’ll take a look at some of the important questions. Like, what are mosquitoes? Why do mosquitoes bite? And, what are some other mosquito facts you might want to know?

What are Mosquitoes?

The first question you might be wondering is what are mosquitoes exactly? It might surprise you to find out, but mosquitoes are actually a group of nearly 3,500 different species of insects. Depending on the species of mosquito, the standard time it takes for one to reach adulthood is about 5 to 114 days. Most mosquitoes lay eggs in water, where they develop into larva, pupa, and then fly from the water source as a fully-grown adult mosquito.

Why do Mosquitoes Bite?

Of course, once a mosquito reaches adulthood, it becomes the pest that we are familiar with. What might surprise you is that many mosquitoes won’t actually feed off the blood of a human. In fact, it is the female mosquito that bites. Which raises the question: why do mosquitoes bite? Understanding it is just the female mosquito that bites, you might have a guess. It has to do with breeding. In fact, the female mosquito needs the blood to help her eggs grow and breed new generations of mosquito. Meanwhile, male mosquitoes will be found feeding on the nectar of plants.

Interesting Mosquito Facts

There are a lot of mosquito myths floating around out there, which can make separating fact from fiction difficult. Looking just at mosquito facts, another question you might wonder is what purpose these insects serve in the environment. Since most mosquitoes feed on the nectar of plants, they, like most insects, actually serve a purpose in germinating new flowers and keeping plants growing. In the wild, they can have a definite impact on the growth of local flowers and plants.

Another interesting fact about mosquitoes is that the name itself means “little fly” in Spanish, an appropriate name considering mosquitoes include nearly 3,500 different types of little flies.

Misting Systems to Keep Mosquitoes at Bay

Understanding that mosquitoes are an important part of the ecosystem, it’s important that we realize why we want to keep them around. Of course, the last thing we want is to have them bother us when we are going about our outdoor activities. It’s this reason that mosquito misting systems are such a popular option, especially for homeowners here in Florida. Rather than eliminate the mosquitoes, the idea behind a misting system is that you keep the mosquitoes away. This way, they can continue to serve their purpose in nature without biting you and your family while you’re trying to enjoy outdoor activities.

If you want a custom quote on a mosquito misting system for your home, call today 866-900-7928 for a free estimate and to learn more about how SWAT Mosquito Systems®️ can help.

 

Living in South Florida means spending an awful lot of time outdoors. After all, it’s one of the best perks about life in the Sunshine State! But sometimes our outdoor spaces aren’t all they could – or should be. If you are looking for some design inspiration, or maybe just some clever ideas to make your yard the best it can be, you’ve come to the right place! Here are a few of the best ways to maximize your outdoor space.

Think of the Sun – But Don’t Forget the Rain!

According to Russell Groves, of Groves & Co., you should always consider how exposed your yard is when coming up with a design.  In places like South Florida, you need to consider how your outdoor space will deal with constant sunshine. Groves recommends using awnings, plantings, or umbrellas to help shade from the sun. In addition, you should avoid darker colored stones for accent pieces, or as seating, as they tend to get hotter when baking in the sun.

On the flip side, anyone who lives in Florida knows that as much sun as we get, we get just as much rain! If you want to really maximize your outdoor space, you need to take in to account how you can utilize it when the dry, blue skies turn grey and wet. Awnings and patio spaces are great, as they provide guests shelter from the elements.

Landscaping

Landscaping is one of the most critical things you need to consider when attempting to maximize your outdoor space. If you are looking to maximize the potential of your yard, you need to consider how much effort you want to put into maintaining it. If you want a no-fuss yard, consider using lower maintenance plants, or even rocks to decorate the border of your property.

Landscaping, however, entails far more than just how many bushes or palm trees you’ll want. Do you, for example, have any children, or plan to have any children in the future? If so, you may want to avoid a pool. The same applies to if you have pets. Or maybe you’ll need to place a large fence to help drown out sounds from a nearby highway.

Furnishings

Maximizing exterior spaces means choosing the right furnishings for every occasion. Outdoor furniture is the perfect way to make your yard the ideal place to relax and enjoy all that South Florida has to offer. Just make sure that if you aren’t using waterproof furniture that you have adequate awnings and umbrellas to protect from damage.

Control Biting Insects

The outdoors are meant to be enjoyed – don’t let biting insects or no-see-ums ruin your perfect exterior spaces. A custom-designed, mosquito control misting systemwill keep mosquitoes and no-see-ums at bay. Once installed, you can set our misting system to activate three to four times a day for anywhere from 20 to 45 seconds. We recommend misting during the evening and nighttime hours when mosquitoes are most active.

Our SWAT Mosquito Systems®️ kills mosquitoes and no-see-ums without harming the environment. We make it hard for mosquitoes and no-see-ums, but easy for you. You can turn the system off completely, using the remote control or at the control panel. We’re the largest and most respected mosquito control company in Florida.

Call SWAT Mosquito Systems®️ Today

Don’t let mosquitoes invade your little slice of paradise. If you want to stop worrying about mosquitoes and other biting insects, and start enjoying your own backyard and patio, you can get your very own mosquito misting system set up right away. Call SWAT Mosquito Systems®️ at 1-866-900-SWAT and find out how our licensed technicians can help you today.

 

Insects, like mosquitos and no-see-ums, can seriously ruin your outdoor spaces, making it nearly impossible to enjoy your backyard. Fortunately, there are plenty of products available in stores to solve these problems.  So, if you are facing issues with biting insects, should you consider DIY insect control?

DIY May Not Get You the Best Results

Doing your own mosquito control may seem like a great idea. How hard can it be? Unfortunately, there are a great number of pitfalls to the DIY approach, which is why you should only use a professional insect control service. Here are just a few of the DIY insect control problems you may encounter:

Not Getting to the Root of the Problem

One of the biggest problems with DIY mosquito control is that often, those who try to handle their pest problem fail to actually solve it. Why? Because they don’t have the tools or knowledge to get to the root of the actual problem. Sure, you may be able to kill all of the insects you can actually see, but what about those who are lying hidden? Not only that but if you simply exterminate the insects you see, you may not be dealing with the underlying factors which allow these insects to survive and thrive.

You Make the Problem Worse

Spraying poisonous chemicals may seem like a sure-fire way of getting rid of all of those horrible insects and pests, but you may be doing more harm than good.  If your thought process is “if I see an insect I start spraying,” you are taking the wrong approach. By merely spraying chemicals wildly, you could be scattering the insects across a much wider area as they flee the chemicals, making your problem that much more widespread once the pesticides dissipate.

DIY Products Just Aren’t as Effective

Sure, there are tons of products out there to help you kill biting insects, like mosquitos and no-see-ums. Unfortunately, often, these products simply aren’t effective at much other than taking your money. These products may sound great, but unless you have a highly trained and knowledgeable expert helping you, it can extremely difficult to validate these claims. Additionally, do-it-yourselfers cannot apply these chemicals as effectively as a professional, meaning the results just don’t compare.

Get Rid of Insects Once and For All

If you are looking for a long-term, eco-friendly solution to all of your insect problems, contact SWAT Mosquito Systems®️ today. We only use a biodegradable chrysanthemum-based spray for our mosquito repellent systems, as we firmly believe in family-friendly and eco-friendly methods of insect repellant that are just as effective as artificial counterparts.

With our one-of-a-kind mosquito misting system, we have been effectively eliminating mosquitoes, no-see-ums, flies and other pesky insects that bother South Florida residents for years. Give us a call today at  1-866-900-SWAT (7928) to learn what SWAT Mosquito Systems®️ can do for you and your home.