Stink Bugs?

jimmer2880 · Feb 18, 2008

We can't seem to be able to control our Stink Bug population. I've lived in MD all my life and only within the past 1-2 years we have had this problem. Everytime there is a warm day, they seem to flock into our house. With Spring around the corner, I want to start doing something to prevent them soon.

Here are the critters I'm talking about:

Monitoring for the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug: How to Control the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug

Has anyone been successful in killing/deterring these things?

JDGREEN4ME · Feb 18, 2008

They are a pain in the ***! We started seeing them here about three years ago.

jimmer2880 · Feb 18, 2008

During the winter, we typically flush 2-3 a day. When it warms up above 50, it's 3-5 a day. When it's in the 80's, we easily flush close to 10 a day. The siding on the west side of my house would easily have 20 of those little things on in mid afternoon. What a nuisence.

If you have them, check things like exhaust fan covers (on the inside ceiling side). We also have a set of wall-mounted folder pockets. They seem to love that also.

There has to be something that gets rid of them.

hockeypuck · Feb 18, 2008

I have not seen hardly one in the past 6 months, but a year ago and before they were all over the place, in my house, in the storm windows... ect. They are no where to be found. We finally had a serious winter this year and maybe that had something to do with it. I have heard some nasty rumors about those things, like they can cause rashes ect.

puck

Matt_W · Feb 19, 2008

Here in PA have noticed more than usual in 2007. I have noticed them camouflaged onto the logs we burn in the fireplace.
Maybe another source that they are getting in.

jimmer2880 · Feb 19, 2008

Last summer, we had the aluminum siding and soffet removed and replaced with Vinyl. When they pulled off the old siding, there were thousands of them living inside the siding. Before they put the vinyl on, we had them wrap the house in Tyvek. I hope that helps, but they actually seem to be worse since then.

Good point on the firewood. We burn a couple cords a year. They could be coming in there as well.

JDGREEN4ME · Sep 23, 2010

I know this is an old thread however we are over run with stink bugs this year! I have used Raid flying insect killer that works but it seems to take forever to kill them. According to research their only natural predator are bats but I would need to live in a cave for that to work for me.

WVBill · Sep 23, 2010

Yep - big time invasion here in northeastern WV too.
Farmers are starting to notice crop damage. I'm hoping that will spur on some research on something to kill them.

I've been coating the outside of the house in Permetherin (sp?) bug killer every two weeks in the late summer/fall. It worked pretty good last year but this year, there's just too many of them.... it's not getting them all.

Freds · Sep 23, 2010

I see those once in a while. I never knew what they were called. At least mine are outside.
Right now I am being overun by cluster flies. I'll have them all winter now and every warm day they will come to life. Spraying every year did not seem to help as you need to time it just right, when they are about to move in. I imagine those stink bugs are the same way.

buckeyefarmer · Sep 23, 2010

bad here also

JDGREEN4ME · Sep 24, 2010

Right now there are so many in my storage shed it smells like a big stink bug! There must be something that will kill these things effectively. If not I can't wait until someone comes up with something. They are supposed to be attracted by that scent, I was thinking about crushing a few on a Japanese beetle trap and seeing if that would work...

dmccarty · Sep 24, 2010

I googled for stink bugs and did run across a story that mentioned/showed a stink bug trap....

They also said it was not commercially available.

I have not seen many around the house but last weekend I cut down a tree that was dying. When I was cutting the notch and the felling cut stink bugs started running up the tree. They had to have been "attracted" by the vibration of the saw. Twas very odd.

Later,
Dan

Chuck52 · Sep 24, 2010

I had a bad year for squash bugs in the garden. They look very much like stink bugs and are often mistaken for them. My garden is done for the year, but I still have gourds drying on the vine and I noticed the other day that they were covered with either stink bugs or squash bugs. Since I don't plan to eat the gourds, I hit them with Sevin. It didn't work all that well and they are still out there. I did notice these bugs stink when squashed and I never paid any attention to the smell of the squash bugs. Maybe that is one way to tell the difference?

Chuck

teg · Sep 24, 2010

A couple of new stink bug pests out there... you're in VA so it will be the first link (most likely). Second link is a new pest that might mean big trouble...

Brown marmorated stink bug - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Clemson - platspid

Gem99ultra · Sep 26, 2010

We're seeing them down here on the Texas Gulf Coast as well. They attack our garden, ruining tomatoes, squash, and whatever else they can get to. They lay their eggs in the vegetables and fruit, leaving a big splotch that I would not want to bit into.

Seven Dust seems to kill them right off, but has to be reapplied every couple of weeks when the product starts riipening.

coachgrd · Sep 26, 2010

Apparently, from what we are hearing up here in NW Pa., the Pittsburgh area is being overtaken by stink bugs.

Of course, being Browns fan, I don't have much sympathy.

Chuck52 · Sep 26, 2010

Here, and in many parts of the country, we had a really hot and wet summer. My garden suffered from both the weather and from fairly heavy insect damage. I espect we'll see more insects right into fall. This year we may have different bugs trying to move into the house for the winter. In past years it has been ladybugs. I hope the stinkbugs that are still on the remains of the garden don't find the house.

Chuck

Royboy · Apr 3, 2011

Stink Bugs here in NW VA are a real and growing problem. Last August/September there were so many on the sunny sides of our house that I had to stop using my BBQ Grill way early last year. Literally a 50 to 100 on my sliding glass screen into my kitchen. I kept a shopvac plugged in there to get them whenever we tried to use the door. They worked their way into everything and if I did not entirely clean out the grill the smell of roasting stink bugs ruined everyone's appetite. Thousands wintered in my garage, hibernating anywhere they could squeeze into. My son's paintball gear bag had 50 or more in it when he took it down off it's hook in the garage. If it is any worse this year than last it is going to be nearly unbearable here where I live. I stopped to look at a house near here one day last late summer the had so many on the side of it that the white house looked like a gray house.
This is a growing problem and farmers will take the brunt of the damage I fear!
Roy