'Cowboy' Fly spray

DIY for homesteaders

This post won’t have any images attached, since I am not supported or endorsed by any brands and don’t want to have any complications. I stumbled upon this “recipe” amongst my horse-owning friends and have used it ever since. I always have a brand bottle of fly spray in my barn, but sometimes what I need isn’t actually to spray on my horse and needs to be safe to use around my poultry, bedding, nests and eggs.

Ingredients:

Apple Cider Vinegar (cheap filtered brands are fine without the vinegar mother because you don’t want to clog the sprayer)

Brown or Gold Mouthwash (I’ve heard it called both colors, but you want to stay away from blue/green dyes. Brand is not important, but look for Menthol and Eucalyptol as ingredients. Obviously these sting, so never use near eyes, mucus membranes or broken skin/wounds!)

PineSol (it does have to be this particular brand and just the liquid, regular cleaner, nothing in a spray bottle or with foamers or other additives)

Collect your ingredients along with a funnel, measuring cup and 32 oz empty spray bottle. I’ve reused my empty fly spray bottles for this purpose, if there’s any little bit left in the bottle we’re killing bugs anyway.

Cover your work space with paper towels. This is not optional, since even with a funnel and spouted measuring cups, it ends up outside of the bottle as well. Add one cup of each product, ending with the ACV. Close tightly and mix gently by inverting the bottle a few times (no need to shake vigorously or you’ll just get foam inside the bottle). Each time you pick it up to use it, give it a gentle swirl to mix. Store away from direct sunlight and heat.

The wet paper towels - don’t just throw those away! These are great for cleaning up areas that are also prone to bug invasion (doorframes, baseboards, thresholds).

Even though flies were the intended recipients of this spray, I use it primarily for ants. The war against ants in my barn is endless because of the tiny bits of bird feed that attract ants. The spray is especially effective on the ant trails because it messes with the scents the ants themselves lay down while foraging. The spray will also work on wasps - it doesn’t kill them immediately, but will knock them down to the ground where they can be stepped on. I reapply to the area where the wasps build their nest every other day until they’re not interested anymore (I also think the smell of the spray bothers them).

I don’t spray this directly on my birds (unless they are being attacked by many ants on their legs and promptly rinse it off). You also want to avoid spraying in the birds’ drinking or swimming water and food as it has a lot of soap-like ingredients. Just in case, you can rinse well any sprayed areas after the bugs are dead, it makes an excellent cleaning product as well.

Do you have any old-timer recipes that work well on your homestead?