Asian lady beetles are a nuisance pest that can be difficult to exterminate. They can quickly infest homes and buildings. The key here is that you have to act fast. This article will provide you with the most effective methods to get rid of Asian beetles, from natural DIY solutions to chemical treatments. With the right approach, you can rid your home of these pesky pests and keep them away for good.
1. Keep them outside
Asian lady beetles often enter your house in autumn or early winter. In this season, they will look for a place to sleep in winter. The easiest approach to get Asian beetles out of your home is not to let them in. There’s no reason to be concerned about an infestation if these beetles they can’t get inside.
Here are some tips to prevent Asian beetles from entering your home:
– Ensure that all your windows and doors are securely fastened and there’s no screens are broken or damaged. Replace or repair broken window/door screenings.
– Replace or install weather stripping as necessary.
– Apply insecticides around windows, doors, and other access sites (such as gaps and cracks) will keep beetles out of the house.
– Cover any holes, crevices, or cracks that may allow lady beetles to penetrate your house. Siding, doorway, window frames, roof and roof joints, overhang vents, cornice, fascia boards, staircases, eaves, spaces around pipes, cables, conduits, and electrical wires are all areas that you should pay special attention to. You should use high-quality silicone to seal these holes. Larger holes should be filled with urethane foams, copper mesh, or cement.
– Repair, replace, or add screening behind loft vents, in roof vents, etc.
– Door sweeps should be installed on all outside doors.
Giving these bad ladybugs a feasting area (such as a garden) is also a way to keep them outside your house.
Asian lady beetles enjoy eating garden pests like aphids. The presence of plants on your property can be appealing enough to keep such insects away from your house.
Or you can adjust the colors of your house. Ladybugs are drawn to dwellings that are lightly painted or have contrasting colors. You can consider painting your house a darker hue.
2. Vacuuming
The most straightforward method to get rid of Asian beetles in your house is to vacuum them up. This technique will not kill the bugs instantly, but it will help you eliminate them easier.
To vacuum these ladybugs, you should use a shop vacuum instead of your standard home vacuum. This’s because Asian lady beetles emit their foul odor when threatened. Seal and dispose of the vacuum bag once you’ve sucked them all up.
You can move them to your garden and let them help you to eliminate aphids. If you don’t have a garden, you can put the vacuum bag in a ziplock bag.
Likewise, after sweeping up the insects, discard them outside. Don’t squish or smack them, because this will result in a yellowish mark with a heavy smell.
3. Light Traps
Using black light traps is also an effective method to get rid of Asian beetles in your home. This is suitable for those who don’t want to use chemicals.
You can buy light traps for insects in stores or make one on your own with simple materials. You can use a water bottle and cut it in half horizontally. Then put the top half on the bottom half of the bottle, like in the picture below, to create a funnel.
Insert a light source into the funnel, leaving enough room for the insects to enter the opposite section of the bottle. The Asian lady beetles will swarm to the gleaming light and become stuck inside once they fall. To have the best result, make sure you put the bottle in dark places. The light from the trap is the only light to draw the insects to it rather than other lights. You should check and clean the trap frequently.
Light traps, on the other hand, do not keep insects from invading or infesting your property. They just work best in dark and confined spaces (like attics) where the ladybugs are active.
4. Insecticide Spray
Insecticide spray is one of the best ways to get rid of Asian beetles. This also works for ants, cockroaches, boxelder bugs, flies, and other pests.
Alcohol, menthol, camphor, and mineral oil are common ingredients in sprays. You can use the spray to get rid of Asian beetles both outdoors and indoors, in storage spaces, around window and door sills, in crevices and gaps, and in any area where the ladybugs congregate. Because these insects do not breed indoors, you do not need to attack their nests.
You can also make homemade spray to kill Asian beetles. Mix water and soap together, then pour them into a bottle. This can kill quite a few of them.
However, the repellent sprays only work in small regions. You need to reapply to the areas regularly to get rid of orange Asian beetles.
5. Use vegetation
If you want to get rid of Asian beetles more naturally, you can use some plants that these insects can’t bear.
– Bay leaves are effective at repelling Asian beetles. These leaves have a pungent scent that these ladybugs find repulsive. You can put these leaves around your house, near doors or windows, and wherever else you’ve spotted an infestation.
– Cloves
Cloves are another unpleasant fragrance for Asian lady beetles. Place small packets of cloves or a bowl of whole cloves in locations where the beetles are present. The smell will deter Asian beetles and cause them to move to another site.
Instead of using whole cloves, you can use clove oil. Just add some drops of the oil into water, shake it well and spray it at points of entry.
– Mums: Planting mums is a simple and low-cost solution to keep Asian beetles away. Because the creatures dislike mums, they will avoid your property. You can plant mums close to points of entry like doors or windows.
6. Remove The Scent
If you don’t want to kill Asian ladybugs, you can get them out of your house by eliminating their smell from your house. This can be tough because you often cannot detect their scent unless they emit it when feeling frightened.
The odor of Asian lady beetles is unique. You can conceal it using essential oils such as citronella, lemon oil, wintergreen, and peppermint. To use these oils, you can mix one of these oils (about 5-10 drops) with water. Then shake the mixture well to thoroughly blend everything. Spray the mixture in places where there are lady beetles.
By covering the smell, the beetles can’t sense their house, and they’ll go elsewhere.
7. Natural Predators
Using natural predators is one of many natural ways to get rid of Asian beetles in your garden. Their natural predators include spined soldier bugs, frogs, and birds. Some wasp species also feed on ladybird larvae. This way won’t get rid of Asian beetles immediately, but it will gradually lower their population.
8. Sticky Tapes
To get rid of Asian ladybugs, you can use sticky tapes. They work pretty well in catching and eliminating the beetles. You just need to simply wrap the sticky tape around window frames and other surfaces where the beetles may gather.
9. Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth is a powdery compound made of fossilized algal remnants with abrasive qualities. Simply, this chemical kills Asian beetles and other insects by dehydrating them.
You just need to spread this powder around the ground of your home or wherever you’ve noticed the beetles. This will not only keep lady beetles out of the house at the ground surface, but it will also keep other pests out. Diatomaceous earth is not harmful to people or pets.
You can mix this powder with water (4 water: 1 DE) to spray the insects and their hiding places. When the water evaporates, it will function just like raw powder.
10. Call a professional
All of the methods above just work for a small number of Asian lady beetles. Seek a professional if you have a serious infestation in house. They will help you to find the source of the problem, and use their professional ways to eliminate the pests and prevent them from coming back.
Takeaway
When you detect any Asian lady beetle, the best thing to do is to respond fast. These bugs reproduce quickly, so you have to act swiftly to get rid of them before it’s too late.
Prevention is the most effective way to control these insects. You can also use other home remedies to get rid of Asian beetles, such as vacuuming, using herbs or essential oils, or using sprays. These options, however, are not always suitable. It may be overly time-consuming or perhaps unfeasible.
There is no quick fix if you have an Asian beetle infestation. In this situation, contacting a pest control professional is the best way to get rid of them. Remember that you will most likely be bothered by them every year. That’s why you’ll need routine treatments and continuous prevention from a professional.
How do these ladybugs get in your house?
The Asian lady beetle finds protected refuge from mid-September to October to overwinter. They search for warmth and shelter in adjacent cracks, fissures, and gaps. That’s how they eventually make their way inside homes and buildings. They concentrate inside attics and wall cavities, and stay inactive until spring.
These insects are easy to be drawn to buildings and constructions in woods and fields, near sun-exposed locations, or have light or contrasting colors. If they discover a favored overwintering spot, they can release an attractant scent that encourages the beetles to return year after year.
