Talk of The Villages Florida - Bugs and Critters coming up through the drains!!!

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- - Bugs and Critters coming up through the drains!!! (https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/villages-florida-general-discussion-73/bugs-critters-coming-up-through-drains-330039/)

Quote:

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby (Post 2070396)

Which is bunk? That bugs come up through the drain? Or that people are so afraid of it they cover the drains when they go away?

Here's some info for ya:

1. Bugs come up through the drain.
2. Some people really do cover their drains when they go away to prevent bugs from coming up through the drain.
3. Sometimes, small critters will find their way up the drain as well - frogs in particular.
4. Often, bugs will come in through open doors and spaces between screen windows and the windowsill, and use drains as their nesting location. They lay eggs under the flap of the kitchen sink drain and one day you'll notice upon rinsing the dishes that there are a dozen tiny little flies hopping around the sink. Congrats - you now have a household of adorable baby fruit flies.

It happens.

Friends of ours are snowbirds from NY. I went over to check on their house occasionally. They put cellophane over their commodes. Went once and checked the commodes and there was a small tree frog swimming in it. Flushed him down the commode.
:ho::shocked::shocked:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Garywt (Post 2070399)

Not sure what bunk is but…

I cover things when gone. After 6 months water in traps and toilets can evaporate so I add Plastic wrap over the toilets and tape the sinks and showers. If only going to be gone a few weeks to a month I don’t do any of it. Not sure why you might have an issue with it.

No need to do this. For drains, add a small bit of cooking oil. The water can’t evaporate because the oil floats and, therefore, the water is not exposed to the air. As for toilets, turn off the water, flush, and put the lid down. Done.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael G. (Post 2070407)

Anyone get those "ghost ants" in the house?
Any idea how to get rid of them?

I just got ant spray and also liquid application ant killer for the floor and behind the fridge. Then continued to squish ants coming back for about an hour. Haven't had them since.

When going away pour 1 cup of white vinegar into every drain. If you can close the drain (sinks and tubs) do that as well. It doesn't evaporate like water does. For the toilets clean them first, then pour white vinegar into the bowl. This will also ward off any mold from forming while you are away. If you get mold then your toilet wasn't clean enough. For your dishwasher pour in 1/4 cup vegetable oil, this will help keep the seals from drying out of you're away for while. We did this process every time before we moved here full time. Worked like a charm, no bugs, no mold.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom W (Post 2070390)

I hear people are so afraid of this they cover the drains in the house when they go away. I think it is bunk.

I have Deans scheduled to treat outside during the year. Only once in 4 years have I seen a small roach, German roach I believe. Deans came back at no additional charge and I haven’t seen one since. I have been told by other villages that you should be sure to run water in the guest tub occasionally…sometimes I even remember to do this, usually I forget and have never seen a bug in the tub.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael G. (Post 2070407)

Anyone get those "ghost ants" in the house?
Any idea how to get rid of them?

Yes, Deans took care of them. We use them for our lawn service so treating the ants was free. They set traps with poison for the ants to take back to the nest. Also applied a product that works the same way along the side of our house inside neighbor’s fence. Do not spray them. It will cause them to spread. Do not squash them or they will not be able to take the poison to the nest.

After reading all the replies I still think it is bogus that critters of any kind crawl all the way up the sewer system and out your drain. That is a very long path with flowing water at the street to overcome. NO WAY!

Even if the water in the traps evaporated, that is still a long pipe to travel up from the street with water flowing from other houses.

It is like believing in ESP or flat earth.