How bad are the bugs in the triangle area? (Cary: hotels, houses)

[mysticpearl]

We are relocating away from NY. While Sacramento is an option for us as we previously lived in NorCal, we have also recently zeroed in on this region due to affordability, weather, year round activities and most importantly, it is a great place to raise children.

However, and I'm asking this on behalf of my wife as she is simply terrified of bugs, how bad are they in reality? We never really had them in CA. On Long Island we have some. I spray the perimeter of the house regularly, we spray for mosquitos and I take good care of the lawn which generally alleviates 95% of any issue.

I personally would just learn to deal with them and for the most part I'd be the one spraying and killing them anyway. And I don't want to rule out moving to such a seemingly beautiful area because of bugs. But I've got to be honest with my wife! She jumps and screams if she sees a spider the size of a nickel.

How often do you really see black widows and other spiders in and around your house? How often do large cockroaches seem to find their way inside? Is the back porch and backyard usable in the summer for BBQing and kids playing or are the mosquitos relentless?

I'm asking because this is a topic that people online will generally exaggerate the severity of. Just like humidity. Some act like you can't leave the house between 10-4 during the summer because it's just unbearable. Where the majority just go out and enjoy the day.

I generally expect to deal with bugs or see snakes with hiking as you're in their territory. But my question is more regarding a developed suburb community in the triangle like Cary, Apex, Morrisvile, etc.

Thanks!

[m378]

There's no avoiding the big cockroaches getting in your house once in a while. Mosquitos can be bad, but no worse than the northeast. I don't think I've seen a black widow in 8 years here.

We pay a pest control company 75 bucks a quarter or whatever to spray, it seems to work well. On the rare occasion we have an issue inside, they come right out.

[pierretong1991]

Palmetto bugs (cockroaches) are a way of life and will just wander in no matter how clean you keep your house because there's food/warmth in your house and they'll get in any crack. So just be ready to kill a few each year (though if you start seeing the little german ones, not the larger palmetto ones, then that's more of a concern)

[Myghost]

Originally Posted by pierretong1991

Palmetto bugs (cockroaches) are a way of life and will just wander in no matter how clean you keep your house because there's food/warmth in your house and they'll get in any crack. So just be ready to kill a few each year (though if you start seeing the little german ones, not the larger palmetto ones, then that's more of a concern)

This^

My wife is also not a fan of them, so it is understood in my house that "bug management" is my duty. "Honeeeeeeeeyyyyy, can you come here please? NOW!?!?!?!"


We used to have a blind Siberian Husky. She was smart as a whip and curious about everything, using her other senses to compensate for lack of site. One day she was sniffing around a Palmetto. It grabbed her nose and innocently latched on. This was some of the better entertainment we've had down here, what with not having Broadway or Times Square nearby.

(Nobody was hurt. Well, the dog was fine, but she stamped out the palmetto with her nose. Quite the independent one she was...)

[m378]

For the record, people like to call them palmetto bugs or water bugs, but the reality is they are really big and really fast cockroaches.

[mysticpearl]

Originally Posted by pierretong1991

Palmetto bugs (cockroaches) are a way of life and will just wander in no matter how clean you keep your house because there's food/warmth in your house and they'll get in any crack. So just be ready to kill a few each year (though if you start seeing the little german ones, not the larger palmetto ones, then that's more of a concern)

So I presume dealing with them is seasonal, as the weather cools?

[Gearcrasher]

We vacation back in Michigan for the summer and bugs are much worse there, especially spiders. My grandson moved back from Texas and said anything is better than the scorpions there. When we sprayed more outside it took care of the Palmetto bugs. Getting away from chemicals we have cultivated a good supply of lizards in the shrubs. They and Roach Hotels get most of the cockroaches now. The other “C” word comes up a lot on Nextdoor though.

[don6170]

Originally Posted by m378

I don't think I've seen a black widow in 8 years here.

I see Black Widows occasionally, usually around a crawl space or shed.

The fun ones are the camel crickets that usually hide out in a crawl space. They will jump at you

[Myghost]

Originally Posted by mysticpearl

So I presume dealing with them is seasonal, as the weather cools?

Correct, mostly just in Spring, summer, fall and occasionally winter.

It's not that bad, and there's always something where you live. Here it's mostly palmettos and a few other bugs, plus snakes, most of which are harmless. And being from NY, you'll probably have some issues with our pizzas and bagels. <--sort of a running joke on this forum. It's a great place to live, and IMO very welcoming.

[udelslayer]

My wife goes nuclear if she sees any bug inside. I dont care if its a brown recluse - I usually end up catching it and putting it outdoors. Sometimes I get creeped out too but damn nature, you scary!

In the past year, I have seen more than a dozen different pest control companies in my hood. I'm not exaggerating and that might allude to the bug presence strength here. That must be one easy to set up and profit business. Just dont hire Vamonos Pest. If you want to be bug free, keep the trees at least 25ft away from the house, dont mulch with pine straw or leaves and ffs, dont roll your garbage can up against the side of your building or chimney. Keep a kill zone around the property. Spray with something good like Taurus SC or Tempo SC quarterly yourself and save that money. Advion is a great bait too.

I see too many houses around here with cute little forests and overarching trees and IVY. Who thinks ivy growing up your siding is a good idea? Thats a roach, ant, termite highway. Roaches (American Cockroach/Palmetto bug) live in the pines and will get blown onto your house in a storm. They eat the decaying leaves mainly, but they also attract the snakes.


...and don't go outside at night holding a light source too close and if you have to, dont hold your mouth open too much lol.