Electric Bug Zapper
By Butch Nelson
Welcome to our website about electric bug zappers. We hope that we can answer some questions here and help you to find the right solutions to your bug problems.
There is no doubt that insects, as small as they may be, can really cause a lot of aggravation and discomfort. Depending on your situation you may have a greater or lesser need to control flies, wasps or any number of a million other bugs.
Electric bug zappers have been around for many years in commercial and farm settings, and now they’re also available to the average homeowner.
Electric bug zappers work by using a light to attracts the insects, since most insects are attracted to light. When the bug gets close to the light, it lands on the metal strips that are near the light. By landing on two of these closely-spaced metal strips the bug actually completes the electrical circuit and 120 volts goes through him - and that’s the end of that bug.
Electric bug zappers are a very effective way to inexpensively kill many insects, and without chemicals or other toxic agents.
Many years ago, my introduction to this kind of insect control was on the dairy farm where I grew up. Since we were producing a food product, the concern of using chemicals was very real. When these commercial electric insect zappers came out we got one right away and put it in the barn close to the milkhouse. It was amazing how many flies were attracted to it and killed every night! It was easy to see the effectiveness, since there was literally a pile of flies on the concrete floor every morning when we started the milking process.
This is what sold me on the effectiveness to this day.
Now a person does not need to get one of these ugly commercial units, though. If you’re wanting one for your home, you can get many models that are made for household use, and are made with some decorative appeal (if such a thing can be said for an insect killer!)
We now live near a cattle feedlot, about a quarter mile away. In the summer, flies are a major problem. We are using an electric bug zapper outside to kill flies and we’re sure that it helps.
Inside, we have a similar product that attracts the flies. This one has a sticky strip that they land on. The sticky strip means they are caught, no getting off. (These are similar to the old fashioned fly strips you may have seen that hang inside some work buildings.) You’ve probably seen these units hanging on walls in some restaurants, and they are quite effective, without the disadvantages that an actual zapper might have inside your home. (It’s not so attractive to have that “buzzing” sound nearby when you’re trying to enjoy your evening dinner!)
All in all, electric bug zappers and related appliances are available for just about any application that one may have. When you do some research we’re sure that you will be able to find the tool that will do exactly what you’re looking for.