Product Review: Pestie

 

Pestie is a bug control subscription service. It claims to be customized to the types of bugs in the area you live. It ships throughout the year, basically quarterly, just before winter, early spring, mid-summer, and early fall. You have the option to pay as you go, when each shipment is sent out, or pay once a year, which has a higher upfront cost but is ultimately less expensive. There are also options for a single application or, if you have a larger area to spray (such as a large deck or patio), a double (XL) application. The first shipment includes a spray applicator and charging cable (which you keep and reuse), a bottle of concentrate, a pair of latex gloves, and a bag for mixing the concentrate (to which the applicator attaches). In every other shipment, you get a new bottle of concentrate, gloves, and bag. The price for a single application, if you pay per shipment, is about $43; on the XL plan, it's about $90 per shipment (as of this writing). On the yearly XL plan (which is what I subscribe to), you pay a little over $200. Either way, it is much less expensive than paying for a pest control company to come out and spray. 

Basically, you fill the bag with water up to the fill line, pour the bottle of concentrate in the bag (and rinse the bottle with water to get everything out), then attach the applicator to the bag, and start spraying. Primarily, you go around the perimeter of your house and spray from the ground about 2 feet up. I also spray around the windows on the ground floor and doors, around my garage doors, and my back deck and patio. I also spray in the unfinished storage room in the basement, around my sliding door, and inside the garage. 

I originally purchased a subscription when I lived in my old townhouse, because my association would not spray around individual units. The main issue at the townhouse was paper wasps, and Pestie really helped reduce their numbers. I moved into a new house last year and had a lot of spiders and boxelder bugs both inside and outside. It took a couple of applications, but I now notice a drastic decrease in the amount of boxelders and spiders inside the house. When I first moved in, there were tons of spiders on the back patio off the basement, and now there are almost none. So, it is definitely working.

The company has wonderful customer service. I had an applicator that was not working correctly, and they immediately shipped a new one. Also, when I discovered that one application would not provide enough coverage for my new house, they sent a second kit out free of charge and switched my subscription to an XL plan. Ultimately, if you are looking for a more affordable pest control option, this is a very good one. 

Product Review: Adoric Wasp Trap Catcher

 

I have had wasps getting into my townhouse for years and tried this a few summers ago, putting it outside of my patio door. It took a while to catch anything, just using sugar water, but then did get a bunch of wasps. Later in the summer, however, it did get a honeybee. When the flowers in my garden were blooming the bees pretty much ignored it, but after things started dying off, the bee got caught in it. After that, I did not use it again. Over the course of the spring and summer, just one wasp got in the house, which is much better than in prior years when I would get at least 3-5.

Product Review: Tomcat Kill & Contain Mouse Traps (2-pack)

 

Back before my townhouse was renovated in 2020 I had a family of mice in the walls, and they would occasionally get into the living areas. I used these with peanut butter as the bait and placed them on the side of the refrigerator. I caught a mouse in each one the first night, and neither escaped nor was left alive. I got a couple more and was able to get rid of all of the mice and have not had any in the house since (thanks to sealing up holes and cracks in the walls). These are very preferable to the open traps or the sticky kind. I would definitely recommend them.

Product Review: Tomcat Kill and Contain Mouse Trap, 2-Pack

 

I had a mouse problem in my townhouse a few years ago. I used these to catch a total of four mice within a couple of days. I used butter and peanut butter as the bait, putting a little dollop of each on in the door on the back of the trap, then put them alongside the refrigerator and stove. It is very easy to tell when the trap is activated and I have never had a problem with a mouse escaping from the trap. These are much safer than the old-fashioned traps because it is nearly impossible to accidentally trigger it as you are setting it, and you never have to see the mouse once it is trapped (although you can look to make sure one is in there if you want). I definitely recommend these.