Looking to get rid of those pesky, winged, eight-legged or sometimes scaly house guests? Here are a few DIY bug repellent solutions for you to try around your house!

Get Rid of Ants

Make a 50/50 mixture of water and white vinegar, and pour it into a clean spray bottle. Spray the mixture on the areas where you have seen ants marching around. The vinegar will naturally repel the ants because of the unpleasant smell, and it will mask the scent trails that the ants use to get around.

Get Rid of Spiders

According to Smithsonian Education, spiders taste and smell through sensory organs on their legs — as if spiders could be any creepier! This means that they hate walking on anything that tastes or smells bad to them. This is where essential oils come in! The Journal of Economic Entomology published a study in 2018 deeming peppermint oil and chestnut oil hated by spiders. So, get a small spray bottle with dark glass and mix 10 drops of mint oil or chestnut oil, one cup of water and a few drops of dish soap. Shake the bottle and spray the mixture on spidery areas in your house.

Keep Flies Away

Flies detest the smell of cloves! For a DIY bug repellent, cut a lemon in half and stick cloves into the cut side of the lemon – you should be able to stick about 10 or 15 cloves in the lemon depending on the size. Set this lemon and glove contraption in a bowl and place it in your home where the flies are the worst, or make multiple and place them all around the house! Just remember to throw the lemons away after a few days to avoid rotting.

Fly Traps

If you are trying to actually catch the flies, you can make a fly trap by pouring some apple cider vinegar into a small bowl, covering it with plastic wrap and poking holes in the plastic. The sugar in the apple cider vinegar will attract the flies into your trap, and the plastic will keep them from escaping. Or, you could always buy a Venus Fly Trap!

Keep Snakes Away

Snakes are a little trickier than bugs, but there are definitely some ways that you can decrease the presence of snakes around your house. One DIY bug repellent is planting snake repelling plants like garlic, lemongrass and marigolds around your house. Most snakes do not like to slither over strong-smelling plants like this.

Another lesser-known and slightly stranger method is to spread hair from your hairbrush or laundry lint around your house and yard. This basically sends a “humans live here” message to snakes as they pass through your yard, and their dislike of humans will hopefully keep them away. Turns out they hate us just as much as we hate them!

Other Snake Repelling Tips:

• Keep your lawn cut, as snakes don’t like to hang out in short grass.
• Use a water hose to shoo away snakes instead of trying to chase them off.
• Don’t keep wood piles or rock piles close to the house, these are great hiding places for snakes.

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