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Edited on Mon Mar-10-08 08:55 PM by mike_c
Where do you live (general area of the country)? I'm interested in why your house is being filled-- I'm presuming one of two reasons: either a large aggregation overwintered in a sheltered place in the structure, but has become active as temps warm and have moved into the living space, or you're seeing new adults from this year entering your house from foliage outside. The latter is unlikely if it's still cold in your location-- essentially it's unlikely if its not effectively late spring or early summer temps where your are. I think it's unlikely in any event-- if there are resources outside, there's no reason for more than the occasional bug to wander in every now and then.
Killing them will involve using an insecticide, but if the bugs are coming in from outdoor foliage THAT'S the place to spray them.
If it's an overwintering aggregation you can try letting them out (open the windows during the day). Of course, you can kill any residual bugs in the aggregation site if you can find it-- look on warm, south facing walls for ways into the attic, crawlspace, walls, etc. A vacuum will suck them up handily from indoor surfaces. You could try something like flea bombs-- essentially just synthetic pyrethrin-- but that's so off label I don't really know how effective it is. It will probably kill most or all the bugs that are in your house, but if there are more in the aggregation space they'll likely enter later so you might have to bomb several times.
You can call a professional, licensed exterminator. I'm an entomologist-- NOT an exterminator and have NO pesticide application licensing so take my advice with a grain of salt. However, I can pretty much guarantee you that many operators will happily charge you big bucks to fumigate unnecessarily.
If it is an overwintering aggregation, and you find how they got into the structure, use your caulk gun or some other means to seal the hole. You might also look for how they're getting from there into your living space and seal that, too.
on edit-- you do know they're harmless, right? Well, except maybe they'll leave a nasty, smelly stain if you squash them on the drapes....
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