Several fly species are common indoor and outdoor pests within Massachusetts. Some of the most commonly encountered fly pests in the state include houseflies, fruit flies, greenhead flies, horse flies and deer flies. While biting horse and deer flies mainly pose a threat outdoors, houseflies and fruit flies are common indoor pests. Not long ago, a study revealed which insect pests are mentioned in Google searches most frequently within each state. In Massachusetts, residents search Google for information on indoor fly pests more often than any other house pests, including mice, cockroaches and mosquitoes.
As everyone knows from experience, successfully swatting an indoor fly is quite difficult and frustrating, as the airborne pests always seem to avert fly swatters at the last minute. Very few fly control methods effectively kill indoor flies, and in a world where driverless cars have become a thing, the fly swatter is still the most popular method of indoor fly control. However, this may soon change, as a new indoor fly control product has recently hit the market. This product resembles a plastic shotgun, and it is used to shoot salt at indoor fly pests without causing damage to homes.
This new fly control product is appropriately named “bug-a-salt,” and it works like a gun to shoot regular table salt at fly pests. While the table salt does not kill flies, it does knock flies out for a period of time long enough to remove the pests from a home. A commercial for the product has generated a “buzz” on social media sites for the humorous way in which the product is advertised. The idea of using a gun-like product that shoots salt at indoor flies without causing internal damage to a home may sound like a joke, but this product is already netting a sizable profit. The company that has been selling the product, Skell Inc., recently sold 20,000 units for more than a half million dollars. Bug-a-salt is available on Amazon for around 40 dollars, and a new model includes a scope so shooters can perfect their aim.
Do you think that Bug-a-salt is likely to be an effective fly control product?