Though crickets don’t often bite, they can be one of the more annoying bugs to have in your home. Their size alone is a factor because they can grow up to two inches and also jump. While that’s not something you would ever want to see traipsing through your house, there are easy ways to get rid of crickets, and cinnamon can help prevent these pests from coming in at all.
Luckily, it’s not often that they invade a home because crickets would much rather live outside in the elements. However, from time to time, they do come into the house. You may notice immediately when you hear their loud chirping sound, which occurs when a male cricket rubs his teeth with a scraper. They can have anywhere from 50 to 250 teeth, so the sound is largely dependent on how many teeth they have.
While this is the male’s song to a female, used as a mating call, it’s not something that you want to hear when trying to relax on your couch at night. When you see a cricket, you’ll want to remove it as soon as possible as it can leave behind salmonella and E. coli from their body surfaces.
Ways to remove and repel crickets
The best way to deal with crickets is to prevent them from coming into your home at all. Cinnamon is a natural cricket repellent that’s normally safe for people and pets. Yet if a large amount is ingested by pets, it can cause stomach upset, low blood sugar, and possibly liver problems, or if inhaled, it can pose respiratory issues. Crickets not only detest the scent of cinnamon and find it overpowering, but the spice interferes with their reproduction and eating habits. Simply sprinkle cinnamon in areas where you have seen crickets in the past or where they can potentially enter your home, such as along doorways.
If you already have a cricket in your house, create a natural trap for crickets by using molasses and water. Fill a mason jar or similarly sized container with two cups of water. Then, add three tablespoons of molasses. The molasses will attract the crickets to jump in and then will ultimately drown in the water.
Alternatively, if you’d like to try to catch them in the jar but not harm them so you can set them free outdoors, just add the molasses and a drip of water. Then, when you see one in the jar, cover it quickly and set it outside. You’ll also want to make sure you vacuum thoroughly to scoop up any eggs they may have left over in your carpets and on the floor.
