‘Mosquito Dunks:’ Here’s how to use your standing water to kill mosquitoes

With so much rain lately, you’ve probably noticed masses of mosquitoes in your yard. Just one adult female mosquito can lay hundreds of eggs (larvae) in one sitting.

Orlando Entomologist (someone who studies bugs) Josh Hogan told us about something called “Mosquito Dunks” — tablets of mosquito-specific bacteria that destroy the larva of thousands of mosquitoes.

The bacteria is not harmful to humans, pets or anything else.

Hogan said the bacteria has been an effective pesticide on farms for years, and the Mosquito Dunks tablets are available in any home improvement store. Hogan added that he’s been using them for years, and they work well in his yard, so we tried them out!

We purchased:

• Mosquito Dunks

• 5-gallon bucket

We brought with us:

Step 1

Fill up a bucket with water.

Step 2

Place the bucket in the shade or under a roof eave. Mosquitoes love dark places.

Step 3

Throw a bunch of leaves into the water in the bucket. Mosquitoes love rotting leaves because as the leaves decompose, they give off carbon dioxide. Mosquitoes are attracted to carbon dioxide, according to Hogan.

Step 4

Break off a piece of Mosquito Dunk tablet and crumble it up sprinkling it into the water in the bucket. Directions on how much of the tablet to break off are on the back of the package.

Step 5

Wait. Hogan said the mosquito larvae ingest the bacteria and die within 48-72 hours.

You just got results at home!

If you have a project you’d like Erik to tackle, send us an email at GettingResultsAtHome@wkmg.com, and next week, Erik might just show up at your door!

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