Homemade Bug Spray
If you are like me you really don’t like putting any type of product on your skin, if you can’t pronounce some of the ingredients found in that product. Today more than ever people are opting to either buy 100% organic health care products or making their own. I have found that having a few ingredients in your home, allows you to make virtually any item from lotions to homemade bug spray.
There are several different types of homemade bug spray you can make using a combination of water, witch hazel, and essential oils. These homemade sprays are a great alternative to the chemically laced products you find at the stores, and the best part is they actually work. The first step is to get your hands on some good quality essential oils. If you really want effective essential oils you’ll need to do your homework! I recommend only 100% Therapeutic Grade essential oils. What does that mean? It means they are the highest quality but unfortunately, some companies label the oils they carry “therapeutic grade” when they are not. Here is a good rule of thumb: if the bottle says “not safe to consume, not safe to use on children, or highly flammable” those are absolutely not pure essential oils.
So what you’ll need is pretty simple and can be found around your house! Below you will find two different recipes for two different homemade bug spray.
Ingredients:
- Small 4-6 ounce spray bottle
- Distilled water
- Citronella Essential Oil
- Peppermint Essential Oil
- Cedarwood Essential Oil
- Witch Hazel
Mosquito Homemade Bug Spray:
- 20 Drops of Citronella
- 15 Drops of Cedarwood
- Fill bottle ½ way with distilled water
- Fill rest of the way with Witch Hazel
That’s it!! Another bug spray you can use around our house is a bug barrier spray. The secret ingredient? Peppermint oil!! Gnats, flies, spiders, they all hate peppermint. They run away from it as soon as they smell or taste it. You can use it to spray bedroom door frames, windows, and the sliding door to the backyard. Or any bug trouble area you may have around the house. It smells amazing and you will notice significantly less spiders and bugs around when we use it.
Homemade Bug Spray:
- 4-ounce water bottle
- 20 drops Peppermint Oil
- Fill with distilled water until almost full
- Top off with Witch Hazel (a teaspoon)
It’s very effective for those seasons with lots of bug traffic caused by open windows and doors!
So why does it work? As I said before bugs hate the smell and taste of peppermint so they flee from it the moment they are around it. Citronella is used in many bug repellents and outdoor products because it too repels bugs, especially mosquitoes. Historically, citronella has been used aromatically (burned) and topically as both an insecticide and for bug repellents. When coupled with cedarwood it makes an excellent insect repellent.
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