How does Adelaide do for flies in the summer? Anyone got any good ways of keeping them at bay? (mainly thinking about eating outdoors in the evenings)...

Hi stuartr,

Flies aren't really a major problem in the metro area, it's when you get out in the country they can be a problem.
The real pain in the rear are mozzies.....they are very much out and about in the metro area.
There are various techniques....none of which are particularly great! For example........
insect repellent - generally makes you smelly
mozzie coils/candles/citronella burners
"bug zappers", big electrical things that fry the little sods! However, I'm not sure they are hugely attractive to mozzies (unlike huge fat moths, that seem to fry for hours).
Prevention seems a very good idea - no standing water about your house, etc.
But I can guarantee 100% that you will still get bitten......it's a sign that summer is here!

Andy

How effective are flyscreens fitted to doors and windows for flies/mozzies etc and is it common practice for these to be fitted on houses or would you install your own

one more thing i know you can buy cans of insect killers how effective are these and which ones are best

I can see its gonna be me trapesing around the house with a swotter in one hand and a can in the other

Mark

Most houses have flyscreens on all windows, and, by and large, they work pretty well.
I don't use fly spray, as it would kill my tarantulas.

Andy

Flies can be a bit of a pest when your eating but like Andy say's mozzies are the worst, come rain or shine there bloody every where. Autan roll on repelent is what we use and find it very good as long as you don't leave any skin untouched, Darren missed one spot on his foot last Summer and got a massive bite. Some people don't react to mozzie bites but unfortunatley both Darren and myself get the most horrible bites which leave bruise like marks afterwards!

We have a Yard Guard bug zapper the rural block one and that works pretty well you can see the evidence of them afterwards and hear them frying from inside the house.

Looks like Spring is finally here !

Julie B)

Oh forgot to say Mortein and Bayon are good brands of fly spray and surface spray is also a must to keep those little critters down.

Juls B)

Hi tracey here, not been on any of the forumns for a while, but felt compelled to mention the mozzies.

I arrived here around 7 weeks ago and have been bitten twice, I am suspecting mozzies as I didn't actually see the buggers.

The first was on my wrist, it was really itcy for a week and swelled up, the sweeling spread up my arm. It also caused me to feel sickly and I had a headache.

The second bite this monday was on my cheek (face), and again swelled up into a huge lump, I looked as though I'd had some plastic surgery that had gone wrong.

Anti-histamine tablets have helped the swelling go quickly, plus I have been putting on some cream to stop the itching and spray to stop more attacks!!!

Before I came over I was very anxious about insects and other creepies, and most people told me there was not much to worry about.

Since moving into our rented house (2 weeks ago), we have removed three white tipped spiders (two adults from the bed, one baby off the wall), countless number's of earwigs, a couple of lizards (they crawled under the front door), we are having a constant battle with ants I have also witnessed the neighbour trying to stop bees from nesting in her vents.

I have only paddled in the sea acouple of times, but I am sure I will get braver as the weather warms up, and encounter the beasts lurking in the sea.

Despite all of this I wouldn't change a thing, adelaide is a fantastic place, and I actually think after a while the insect and creepies will come to accept me and stop trying to drive me out of this city!!!!