When should mosquito treatments start each year?
Spring, when the ground is wet and days warm up, is the ideal start for a Chapel Hill property. Treatments continue every 3โ4 weeks until frost ends the season. Homeowners in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with a humid subtropical climate may see a longer season and should plan visits accordingly.
What is the difference between larvicide and barrier spray?
Larvicide kills larvae in water; barrier spray kills adults on vegetation. A complete Chapel Hill program uses both. Larvicide is the cheaper, longer-lasting half, and a Chapel Hill provider who skips it is leaving the source untouched.
What does a mosquito inspection involve?
A walk of the full Chapel Hill property looking for water: gutters, drains, containers, low spots, tree holes, and anything under a tarp. The inspector also notes resting cover like ivy and dense shrubs. You should get a list of sites to fix and a plan for the ones a Chapel Hill provider will treat.
Do I need a seasonal plan or is one treatment enough?
It depends on how you use the yard. A Chapel Hill family that eats outside most nights benefits from a plan; someone who hosts once a year does not. Ask a Chapel Hill provider to price both and note whether the plan includes re-treatments between visits.
Can mosquito control help with West Nile risk?
Yes, in the sense that it reduces bites. West Nile is carried mostly by Culex mosquitoes that breed in dirty standing water and bite at night, so a Chapel Hill program that treats gutters, drains, and barrels helps. Check county health alerts for Chapel Hill during late summer when cases peak.
Did people hire mosquito professionals because of Zika?
Mostly not, at least by intention. Homeowners in Chapel Hill ask about this often: even a frightening health story nudged few households toward hiring help: 6% of U.S. homeowners in Mosquito Squad's provider-sponsored 2016 survey (TNS Global, sample undisclosed) planned professional treatment after Zika news, as a matter of intent. If you are in Chapel Hill, use this as a starting point for questions rather than a prediction for your home.
Do most people use mosquito repellent in their own yard?
About half do, at least occasionally. Context for Chapel Hill, not a local measurement: Forty-nine percent of U.S. homeowners in Mosquito Squad's 2016 Fight the Bite survey, a provider-sponsored TNS Global poll with an undisclosed sample, said they had used repellent outdoors, making it the single most common mosquito precaution reported. Providers serving Chapel Hill should be able to explain how their recommendation fits what they actually found on your property.