It was late on a Sunday night and I headed into the laundry room to take some freshly laundered clothes out of the dryer to put in a laundry basket.
I dumped that basket of clean clothes out onto the living room floor (with about 2 other loads) also I could get started and fold them to put them away before bed. Everything was a-ok… until I lifted up the HUGE comforter to fold and put in the linen closet.
Photo Credit: Pixabay/Cleverpix
A lizard.
I don’t think I have ever jumped so high or screamed so loud in my life, as I did that night. I have lived in Arizona sine 1998 and never once encountered a lizard in my house.
It’s a pretty uncomfortable feeling when you find one that bolts out from under your freshly laundered clothes, or when you turn on the light and see a lizard smiling back at you from the wall. Believe it or not, you don’t have to resort to nasty chemicals to keep lizards out of your house – there are several home remedies that you an turn to that are incredibly effective.
Egg Shells
If you eat eggs, keep those shells, and crush them up – sprinkle them around the doors and windows on the outside of the house to keep away lizards. Lizards despise the smell of eggs – so by laying egg shells they won’t be as tempted to cross into those areas.
Garlic
Much like egg shells, lizards also despise the smell of garlic. You can choose to hang garlic around the house or keep cloves near the entry and exit points to ward off lizards.
OR, you can crush 6-7 cloves and add to a gallon of water – allow that gallon to sit in the sun so that the garlic can steep, and then the next day, pour that around the house and areas you don’t want to see lizards.
Hot Sauce and Pepper Spray
Lizards despise the spicy odor of hot sauce – and likewise, pepper – you can mix water with some chili powder and a tablespoon or two of hot sauce, and spray around the house to keep them away.
It’s a wonderful idea to make a few – keep one inside and one outside, and then spray down the house once a week.
Cats
Cats love lizards, and by having a cat around the house, you’ll also be able to keep your lizard population in check. They will nab on them as they run around the yard.
Phenyl Tablets
Phenyl tablets are a non-toxic option for keeping lizards at bay – they smell incredible, yet they drive away lizards. Find them on Amazon.
Essential Oil
Lizards despise the smell of Eucalyptus and Peppermint Essential Oil – so use them to make a spray that you can spray around the baseboards of the house and on the outside of the house near the foundation.
Simply take a glass spray bottle that’s 8 – 16 oz, and fill with distilled water. Then add 15 drops of each Eucalyptus or Peppermint and spray away.
With these natural remedies in mind, how do you keep them from entering the house?
Lizards enter your house through small holes – areas of your home that are poorly sealed. By placing egg shells around the house once a month, you can keep them from pestering you indoors. Lizards love bugs, and bugs love the light so keep your backyard or front porch patio on at night to ensure that the bugs are readily available, and thus, lizards will be prone to stay outside to eat them.
If you do see one indoors, grab a cup of cold water and splash it on the lizard to set them in a temporary shock – grab the dust pan and a broom and scoop him up, then walk him back outside to his natural habitat.
Egg shells, garlic, peacock feathers, that ultrasonic thing – nothing works.
Essential oils don’t work at all
I need help, is there anything that works. I have a terrible phobia for them and it’s pretty much affecting my sleep.
Did u try moth balls
So far nothing is helping will and exterminator help ?
An exterminator should be able to help! Or a local pest control service. They may have something that will deter them.
Tried mothballs all around my house. Geckos still mating and reproducing like crazy. Borax, spicy sprays, eggshells, dichotomous earth, vinegar not deterring them, but possibly the huge dreaded, invasive Cuban tree frog here that seemed to come out of nowhere and is now showing up in people’s bathrooms, outside on lanais, injuring pets, etc..
Oh no! We have wild frogs here in Arizona that are deadly – I don’t know how similar they are to the Cuban tree frog but many pets (not knowing that the frog is poisonous) will ingest these frogs and end up at the Vet fighting for their lives. We have Geckos here too and they mate as well. DE works in cases that nothing else does, but at the last cost is a pest control/exterminator as they can sometimes find ways to conquer the critters that everyday items cannot. Obviously -a last resort!
I’ve had really good luck with ultrasonic post in the ground. However you must get the ones that deter snakes , moles etc and place them about 10 ft apart from each other. I’ve tried EVERYTHING else and nothing worked except for these. Look on amazon