The heat is here and summer is just around the corner and with it, dinners on the terrace or in the garden. For many of us, if we combine heat, garden and light, the first thing that comes to mind are mosquitoes. They are the unwelcome guests at any outdoor event, or at least they were, until the arrival of the LED mosquito-proof light bulb.
A real mosquito-proof light
Mosquito-proof lights are now a reality and are certainly a relief to many. But how can a light bulb not attract mosquitoes? The secret lies in the wavelength of the light it emits. It’s as simple as that. However, for those less familiar with this physical magnitude, we will explain it in a more colloquial way.
The light emitted by this bulb is invisible to mosquitoes.
Light is an electromagnetic wave, like that of radio, which is visible to living beings. More specifically, humans can see waves whose lengths range from 390nm to 750nm (nm means nanometre and is one millionth of a millimetre), which corresponds to colours ranging from dark blue to dark red. Insects, in turn, perceive a range of light from blue to ultraviolet. As the light from this bulb is outside these limits, it is completely invisible to them. In addition, because it uses LED technology, it emits less heat than conventional bulbs, further accentuating the effect.
How to use these anti-mosquito LED bulbs
The truth is that the only thing we have to do to enjoy a quiet dinner in the garden is to change the bulbs we already have for the LED mosquito repellent bulbs and that’s it. In this way we obtain a double benefit: on the one hand, there will be fewer insects on the terrace or in the garden, as they will not be attracted by the light; and, on the other hand, by switching to LED lighting we reduce electricity consumption.
If the LED bulb socket does not fit our lamps, we can use an adapter.
An extra benefit of minimising the presence of insects is that the spiders and lizards that feed on them will also disappear. No more cobwebs on the porch.
Other tricks to keep mosquitoes away from our garden
Apart from changing the bulbs we can use other methods to keep the insects away.
Citronella candles are an excellent option. They work very well as a repellent and will provide a very special ambient light. If placed in a glass or lantern, they become a very decorative element.
Having a ceiling fan on the porch or balcony will also help us in our crusade against insects and help us to cope with the hot summer nights.
Finally, we can add some plants that will work very well as a mosquito and other insect repellent. Many people place them on the window sill so that they don’t get in through the window or plant them near the garden furniture, so that they don’t bother them at summer dinners.
Among the various options available we can highlight mint and especially catmint (Nepeta cataria), although the latter requires more care when it comes to pruning. Citronella, ubiquitous in candles, repellent bracelets and so on, will also deter unwanted visitors in its natural form.
Rosemary is also widely used, it has the advantage of not needing a lot of water and will be very useful as a seasoning when cooking all kinds of meats. In fact, most aromatic herbs will combat insects and improve the flavour of our dishes. These include dill, sage and tarragon.
What if all this fails?
There are times when it seems impossible to keep mosquitoes away. Citronella candles, aromatic plants… nothing is enough. In these cases, it is when we usually use insecticides, but at Ledkia we offer you another alternative to kill mosquitoes in an ecological way: the mosquito killer bulb.
This E27 bulb is specially designed to attract mosquitoes and has electrified filaments that eliminate mosquitoes without the need to use chemical products.
As you can see, there are various ways of repelling insects from our garden or terrace, although the first step should be to avoid attracting them, and this is possible with the LED anti mosquito bulb.