Boxelder Bugs in Illinois Hate Us, Here Are 5 Ways to Hate Them Back

The name of the game is repelling, this is the way to hate the box elder bug back. They make life inside our home miserable, here's how to do the same for them.

First, it needs to noted that box elder bugs really pose no harmful threat to you while inside your home. These bugs won't lay eggs. They won't munch on clothes or wood. The only thing these hateful bugs do is, well, make you uncomfortable in your own home.

Once these little six-legged bugs make it inside your place, it can get pretty difficult to get them to leave. No one would blame you if you went on a,

Boxelder Bug Killing Spree

Just last night, my wife was again woken up in the middle of the night, to a box elder bug crawling on her arm. That's an abrupt wake-up nobody wants. That thing crawling up your arm doesn't seem so harmless when you first feel it crawling on you in your dreams. Your subconscious built this into a horror movie creature that will be staring back at you once you open your eyes.

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Going on a bug-killing binge sounds like a pretty good way to work out some frustration and revengeful aggression, but it's not a good method to get rid of the box elder nightmare fuel situation. Plus, they give off a foul odor like a stink bug when you smash them.

There's a lot to know about box elder bugs, you should be in the know, but here's my experience with these harmless but annoying bugs.

Killing Them is Never the Answer

The name of the game here is repelling, this is the way to hate the boxelder bug back. They make life unbearable at times, so let's do the same for them.

Bye _______! (insert Samuel L. Jackson's favorite 4-syllable word).

And let's get to repelling them before they stain the curtains with their excrement. Yeah, that can happen.

Great Ways to Repel Boxelder Bugs with Scents They Don't Like

I'm so thankful to have run across a list of the scents that boxelder bugs hate including how to best use them. The bonus is that some of these scents are pleasing to have around the house. These are the 5 scents from that list that we liked the most and seemed to be the most effective, for our home.

• Lavender
• Eucalyptus
• Peppermint (anything minty)
• Lemongrass
• Cedar

What's even more important than the scent, is how you throw the scent around your house. If you're using lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint, or lemongrass, use it in essential oil form in a diffuser near places the bugs are likely to enter your home. They can also be diluted in a spray bottle of water. You'll need repeated usage to be effective at driving box elders out of the house. As for using cedar, get blocks, or cedar ball sachets (cloth-scented bags) like in the photo below.