Ultrasonic pest control

[Palmer88]

Greetings All,

I recently discovered these forums and decided it would be a perfect opportunity to seek assistance regarding pest control.

You see, my house often gets infected by all types of bugs and insects, so we have decided to try a new non chemical method for our property. I researched ultrasonic repellers and thought it would be worth a try.

Can anyone recommend ways to ultrasound a whole house with one major device? Do you think a ultrasonic speaker or hailing system would be effective?? - Something silent but with great sound pressure?

Looking forward to recommends?

 

[bertus]

Hello,

There are many available:
https://www.google.com/search?as_st...&as_sitesearch=&safe=images&as_filetype=&tbs=

Do you have cats or dogs?
They can hear the ultrasound and become irritated.

Bertus

 

[Palmer88]

Hi,

Fortunately we don't have any dogs or cats and none of our neighbours do as well. Thankyou for your recommendations, do you think they will be able to cover a medium sized home, we were hoping for one large one instead, that can cover quite a distance and has really good sound pressure. I looked around and didn't discover much that could cover our needs, so thought maybe a strong ultrasonic speaker could do it?

 

[bertus]

Hello,

Read the following pages about the effectivity of the devices:
https://www.grains.k-state.edu/spirel/docs/research/ultrasound-ipm/presentation/SCJ talk.pdf
https://www.nachi.org/ultrasonic-pest-repellers.htm

Bertus

 

[Alec_t]

I doubt you'd get whole house cover with a single transducer, as ultrasound is fairly directional and tends to be readily absorbed by furnishings.

 

[ChosunOne]

From Wikipedia:
"Ultrasound generator/speaker systems are sold as electronic pest control devices, which are claimed to frighten away rodents and insects, but there is no scientific evidence that the devices work."

 

[ChosunOne]

For some reason, I can't edit my former post.
I want to add that the Wikipedia quote is followed by source references, which I leave to OP to follow up on, or not.

EDIT: Now this is odd. The forum is letting me edit _this_ post. But it still won't let me edit my 1st post.

 

[Alec_t]

there is no scientific evidence that the devices work

There is also the possibility that the ultrasound could attract pests (e.g. if it mimicked the mating call of a mosquito or whatever ).

 

[shrtrnd]

About 40 (or more) years ago I looked into these ultrasonic pest devices when I lived in a roach infested apartment building.
My experience was, it took me a long time to find a piezo speaker that actually output the frequency I built my circuit to produce, because manufacturers falsely claimed frequency responses the piezo elements didn't actually achieve. So I'd be suspicious of any 'made in China' unit on the market because they have about zero quality control on their stuff.
My observation was, that after about 3 days I noticed a slight reduction in the roach population, I surmised that the unit MAY have been an irritant to a nest but only because I was using it in the kitchen, directed AT the under the sink area where they tended to be most prevalent. The downside was the experiment was a failure because roaches from the apartment next door would still come in on forays.
My conclusion was that my circuit MIGHT work if directly pointed at a specific area, over a continuous period of time, but wouldn't cover any other area, like kitchen cupboards or counters. But I may have been wrong about that. So I believe in actual practical usage, the ultrasonic pest repeller devices are impractical at best, and possibly completely useless.
As for whole-house coverage, that's a pipe-dream.
The ONLY thing that actually worked to virtually eliminate the roaches in that apartment was the liberal application of boric acid. Took a couple of weeks for full effect, but did the job.
If roaches or ants are your issue, that'll do it. Good luck if your pests are something else.

 

[Audioguru]

Ultrasonic repellers are an excellent way for the manufacturer to make lots of profit from gullible people who buy them. The repeller's ability to repel pests works the same if it is turned on or is turned off.

 

[ChosunOne]

Ultrasonic repellers are an excellent way for the manufacturer to make lots of profit from gullible people who buy them. The repeller's ability to repel pests works the same if it is turned on or is turned off.

That's nice. It's a Green machine: no need to turn it on and use electricity for it not to do anything.

 

[Audioguru]

One test showed that an ultrasonic pest repeller attracted pests when it was turned on.
Other ultrasonic pest repellers produced no ultrasonics.