Blue Bottles - any ideas/suggestions?

[julfren]

Hi all

We have had a problem with blue bottles for a good while. Any little bit of sunshine and out they come onto the window panes. At this time of year it is the babies that are out mainly. They are the bane of my life - I swot non-stop and my windows panes look so horrible. We live in an old house not too far from a farmyard. There seems to be an infestation just above an upstairs window on the outside. I don't want to use fly sprays. Myself and the environment would suffer too much from that course of action! I realise that they are very dangerous too if they get onto food. Does anybody have an ecologically friendly method of dealing with them. Any suggestions welcome. I'm sure there is a proper insect name for them but I've always known them as blue bottles. They are actually a very attractive - looking bee with that lovely royal blue colour on their backs. But unfortunately they are deadly hygienically speaking. Any suggestions/ ideas/experiences?

Regards
Jul

[Back Stabbath]

Get a Doberman. Mine catches flies.

[kilk]

there could be something dead where the infestation is, they usually breed in places like this.

[amethyst]

Hi Julfren,
Try this natural method:

32 ounces water
8 drops peppermint essential oil
8 drops lemon essential oil
4 drops tea tree essential oil

Add oils to water, shake well and put in a dispenser bottle.
Spray as needed.
Bugs hate this.

Hope it works for you.
Good luck,
Amethyst.

[JulieSherris]

Hi Julfren,

We moved into a brand new house for the year last october & before we moved in, we swept up thousands of the little b*ggers from the rooms! There was SO many!

The 'infestation' lasted until about early december - and it started again just as we were about to move out. They were getting in through the seals on the velux windows, and god only knows where else.

Anyway, we got some of those outdoor citrus candles & hubby popped them on the windowsills & around the house.
Indoors, we got those sticky fly traps (not attractive) and I also got some stickers that go the windows.

As it wasn't an old house, I have no idea where they come from, but I've noticed that they're a lot worse on white houses...?

Anyway, good luck with it - you have my sympathies.

Julie.

[noddytown]

I think Kilk is right . There must be something dead in there somewhere .You should find it and it should end your problem. It's a health hazard . You should take whatever measures necessary, even removing slates or facia board or whatever needs doing to find the corpse which will be full of crawling maggots which hatch into your bluebottles.
I often wonder when peoplle lay rat poison in a house , where do the rats go to die ? More likely in the house .

Also a tip when spraying a fly in the house.
I use furniture polish usually , but you could use your own mix of something safe and sticky or sugary ,
. When a fly lands
Just spray Two feet above him and then a foot above him and the spray mist will fall about him and will make flying away difficult with sticky wings

Then give him both barrels up close .......Be sure to KILL him and not release outside heh heh

[HappyHunter]

Originally Posted by julfren

Hi all

We have had a problem with blue bottles for a good while. Any little bit of sunshine and out they come onto the window panes. At this time of year it is the babies that are out mainly. They are the bane of my life - I swot non-stop and my windows panes look so horrible. We live in an old house not too far from a farmyard. There seems to be an infestation just above an upstairs window on the outside. I don't want to use fly sprays. Myself and the environment would suffer too much from that course of action! I realise that they are very dangerous too if they get onto food. Does anybody have an ecologically friendly method of dealing with them. Any suggestions welcome. I'm sure there is a proper insect name for them but I've always known them as blue bottles. They are actually a very attractive - looking bee with that lovely royal blue colour on their backs. But unfortunately they are deadly hygienically speaking. Any suggestions/ ideas/experiences?

Regards
Jul

One simple word Jul

Neem

HH

[julfren]

Hi again

Thanks for the suggestions and for going to the trouble.I could get vibes of disgust and annoyance with the hapless insects coming through! Much like my own feelings! I have already broken a few fly swats and I worry about the glass in the windows! Keep the suggestions coming. I have a theory myself about it too. I think it's a mixture of a lot of factors ... cattle in the farmyard, our dog droppings in the vicinity of the house + a visiting dog's contribution! I think the fact that we are now recycling more means that the food bins don't get taken to landfill as often as is needed (we don't have a collection service so have to take our bins ourselves), and as we aren't a vegetarian family conditions in the bins won't always be the best. The chimney idea that was mentioned could be another factor. The neem oil remedy I will definitely look into.And the recipe from Amethyst. Any other ideas?

Many thanks
Jul

[tasmin]

i was just about to ask for these, thinking they where those beautiful blue coloured "bottles"

jesus imagin collecting these lmao.

sorry julfren, but i had to laugh at my stupidity.

and here was me thinking"ah lovely blue bottles will make nice vases"

gosh i can be boggle headed sometimes lmao.


hope u all get a laugh out of it anyway :-D

all the best,

tas

[summersun]

Hi Julfeen,

If you look at www.epinions.com they have a eco friendly "woodstream fly trap with bait that is supposed to be excellent....but i agree with kilk there has to be either a dead carcus or rotting meat in the vicinity to have an infestation... if you google getting rid of bluebottles you will be inundated with ideas.
Or rentokil offer a free survey on getting rid of bluebottles contact 1890 333 888
Goodluck Summersun

[franib]

hi saw your post i found if i burned citronella oil (available in most health shops) that for the last 2 years i have been fly free. the plus side of this as well is that your house smells really great.

best of luck Fran

[Bubbles2]

Tasmin you have me in stitches here you are a real tonic.

Reading about the infestation brings me back to when I was living at home. There was this huge blue bottle flying around and my brother got really annoyed with it, so he picked up this rather thick book and followed the fly around until he landed, which was on the front window. Well you can guess what happened next, he broke a big hole in the window and the bloody fly flew out!!!! Not the best way of getting rid but it did the job that day.


Bubbles

[tasmin]

hiya bubbles,

tipical of what a fella would do!
my hubby would do something like that lol, daft as a they come.

what made me laugh was i really thought they were blue "bottles" being giving away lmao.

god love my innocents.

i can imagin what ur mam said when ur bro broke the window...i know my dad would have had a fit, mam on the other hand was so laid back that she would have said"ah sure there olny kids, they didnt mean it" while dad would have been turning purple lmao

all the best,
tas

[Bubbles2]

Hiya Tamsin

Yes thats men for you (we could have the start of a new forum here moans and groans on men he he he) anyway my Dad RIP would come in from work in the evenings and see what we had been up to with the geese and all and he would ask my Mam 'could she not keep an eye on us, did she know what we had been up to' and it was never much at all really just typical kids stuff!!!!

Bubbles2

[julfren]

Hi all

Me again with the bluebottles problem. Of course, this isn't the worst time of the year for the bbs. They are more active in the warm weather. Thanks again for the replies.

I have my bins outside the kitchen windows, maybe they need relocation. I am thinking along the lines too of investing in a wormery or composter so that I can deal with food waste on a daily basis rather than waiting for full bins before taking them to landfill(we don't have a bin collection service). I'm sure lots of you have experience of using a wormery or composter. I'm very squeamish when it comes to worms. Any comments?

Jul