flying bugs, Kihei (house, airport, Lowes)

[cwan]

Hi... does anyone else have these small flying bugs in their house? they're attracted to light, have clear wings, and they are everywhere!!! a lot of times i find them dead around the lights. any idea how to get rid of them permanently? they gross me out!

[hotzcatz]

Are they termites?

Sometimes you can take a pan of water, put some dish soap in it to lower the surface tension and then shine a light down onto it (put the light about a foot away). The bugs fly to the light and fall in and drown.

Or get geckos, they will eat the bugs for you.

[NandVsMom]

Gnats! We have millions of them. I'm in Kihei too. Supposedly Feb and March are the worst months so we're hoping they die down. They come through the window screens - they're so small. I can't work on my computer in the dark without inhaling a few. Tried a few things: get an all natural bug spray (whole foods, or a natural brand at Lowes or Home Depot - mostly lemongrass oil) Spray it on an old rag and wipe down your window screens from top to bottom. It smells bad though and my kids hate it. Plus once the smell goes away so does the efficacy. Tomorrow I'm trying another suggestion: Dryer sheets. use them to wipe down your screens. Its from all our rain this season. We're lucky-although Kihei is hotter than most spots on the Island it's also usually dryer and therefore less buggy. But not now that's for sure.

[Calico Salsa]

If you put some in a clear baggie, you can take it out to the Ag folks by the airport and they will tell you what they are.

They might be gnats, but if they are termites you really need to take action, especially since they are inside your house.

We had an infestation of small brown beetles, which Ag called pasta beetles and I called pain-in-the-okole beetles. It started with us noticing a few, then they grew exponentially into a major problem in the pantry. The weird thing was that they started in the master bedroom! Turns out they came in with one of those neck warmers filled with rice, and when we found that warmer on the shelf in the closet it was eaten through, filled with egg casings and larvae and truly disgusting. In the meantime the beetles had flown throughout the house, got into a lot of foodstuffs and every drawer and cupboard. It took a major cleaning to get rid of them, tossed out a lot of contaminated food, and now everything is in glass jars or tight-lidded plastic containers. Every now & then a package of food comes into the house and we put it in glass and then bugs start hatching. But at least we have it isolated.

So - long story there - but meant to illustrate that you are best served to handle the problem early before whatever these are get into spots it will be expensive for you to access.

The Ag folks are really helpful. Just call first to make sure they will have the right person available, as they are busy on the island.