If you prefer sweltering weather, then you are not alone – mosquitoes love them and summer is their most favorite season. Just imagine that you’re outside doing your thing and all of a sudden, a swarm of ‘million’ mosquitoes will fly at you and bite every inch of your exposed skin.
I don’t think this would be a pleasant situation.
True, there are products out there that will solve your mosquito problem. But the thing is, they are a bit on the pricey side and are probably made with dangerous chemicals. Considering that they also require frequent reapplication, you don’t need to think hard about what the cost is going to be.
The good news is, you can fight this problem by making your mosquito trap for only less than $5 of materials. This mosquito trap only takes 2 steps to make and can be fabricated easily with materials found in your home.
So what are we waiting for? Let’s get right into it!
How Will This Mosquito Trap Work?
The thing with mosquito traps is that there are plenty of variations out there. But this one takes advantage of the mosquito’s behavior to trap them and eventually dwindle their population down.
This trap works exactly like a Pitcher Plant – lure the pests into its belly using bait fluid and stop them from getting out. Unlike the Pitcher Plant which uses its slippery surface to keep its prey inside, this trap uses a top funnel that makes it difficult for mosquitoes to fly out.
Materials Needed
Body
- 2-liter plastic bottle
- Scissors or cutter
- Duct tape
- Dark-colored paper or other opaque material
Bait Liquid
- 1 cup of hot water
- 1 cup of cold water
- ¾ cup of sugar
- 2 teaspoons of active dry yeast
The Mosquito Trap Body
To make the trap, start by cutting your plastic bottle around the top where it starts to taper. To maintain a straight cut, you can draw a line around the body using a permanent marker.
Be careful! Your craft knife or cutter is very sharp! If you don’t have either of the two, you may use a regular knife to puncture the bottle and continue the cut using a pair of scissors.
Take the top part of the bottle and insert it inside the body in an upside-down position. Make sure to keep it in place using duct tape.
The top part of the bottle then becomes your funnel which will lead the mosquitoes inside the bottle. Once they’re inside, they won’t be able to turn around and fly out
Put the body aside for now as we’ll first need to create the bait fluid.
Making The Bait Fluid
To make concoct the bait fluid, first, you have to boil one cup of water with ¾ cup of sugar to create a simple syrup. When the sugar has completely melted, set it aside in a heat-proof bowl. Afterward, add a cup of cold water and allow it to cool down.
The next thing to do is to add yeast to the mixture. You’d want to add one packet or two teaspoons. Remember that this is the kind of yeast that is meant for baking – not the brewer’s yeast or nutritional yeast.
Normally, you’d want to follow the directions recommended by the packaging of the yeast. But in general, you should add yeast to lukewarm water. That is, the temperature should not be more than 90 °F. Any hotter and you’ll kill off the yeast and they will no longer be effective.
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Finalizing The Mosquito Trap
The last step is to put everything together. Pour the bait liquid into the body but make sure that it doesn’t reach the neck of the bottle. This is important as you have to lure the mosquitoes in so they won’t escape. You can do this also at the end.
Wrap the bottle with duct tape or other opaque materials such as kraft paper, or vinyl sheets. This is important because mosquitoes are attracted to darker colors. Why? Because mosquitoes have highly sensitive heat sensors and darker colors tend to absorb more heat.
When all is set and done, it is now time to place the trap where you think mosquitoes are most likely to frequent and wait for it to work its magic!
Why This Mosquito Trap Is Super Effective
This trap takes advantage of the mosquito’s instincts to lure them into an inescapable trap. Two essential things make this trap highly effective – carbon dioxide and dark colors.
I will show you the result after just one hour of using the trap (I took off the opaque material).
Mosquitoes detect increases in carbon dioxide and equate this as a potential host. The yeast and syrup mixture release this gaseous substance due to the chemical reaction of the two. The Mosquitoes will then follow the source of this gas, guided by the funnel.
The black covering also helps attract as explained in the previous section. Another thing: female mosquitoes are always in the hunt for wet, dark places to breed, and this coincidentally combines both things.
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While this trap is effective in trapping mosquitoes, there are unfortunately so many of these tiny pests around that this trap alone will not be enough. The key is to set more than one of these while applying other control methods as well.
One of the key things to remember is to get rid of any stagnant water around your home. Planting mosquito repellent plants will help as well. Plants like lavender and citronella are known to keep these bugs out. Burning citronella candles is also highly effective.
The important thing is that you used natural methods and be exposed to harmful chemicals less. If you have other methods, please don’t hesitate to share them with us in the comment section.
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Why can’t they just fly out of the hole?
It’s very difficult for them to do that once they are in that space inside the bottle. Especially when they get wet by the bait fluid. I do similar trap but smaller to catch fruit flies if they show up (apple cider vinegar and drop of dish liquid as bait fluid)
The apple cider yeast NEVER worked for me
How long will this trap be effective? How often does the bait fluid need to be changed?
O
How long will this last? Luke how often should we make new ones?
How long does the trap last, before needing extra sugar to feed the yeast? Are there any visible signs of activity or sugar depletion, or is it just “mosquitoes no longer falling in the trap so it’s done”?
Hi,
Thank you for the questions.
The fluid can be changed once a week. If you catch a lot of mosquitoes and the recipient becomes full, in order to be effective, you need to change it sooner (when you decide that it is full).
I must try this. Thanks.