Just when I thought I'd seen it all I get a new problem. A cricket has taken up residence in my rod room which is on the 2nd floor of my townhouse, how it got up there I have no idea but it is driving me up the walls. It is a brazen little monster that will come out in the open and start it's noise making when I'm sitting down drinking my coffee. I have tried a couple of times to stab it with my cane and can now empathize with the one legged wall paper hanger. To add insult to the situation, it always gives me the one finger salute just before going out of sight under the work bench.Any suggestions Jesse

I've killed 3 of the darn things in the past 2 years. They are really high pitched, more than I ever realized before. They seem to like corners, the last 2 I took a spare Ugly Stick and walked near where I heard the noise coming from. IT stopped, waited a minute before belting out it's cricket music. I ran the tip of teh rod all over the bottom of the wall along the edge, and killed it. The first time it was in a box, spent 2 days driving me crazy.

I think a piece of bread with sugar water on it attracts them, but I'm a city slicker and have no clue about those things.

Get a BB gun, pump it once, sit near where you saw him last, and then let him have it. I've got them in my basement, 1st. floor, and 2nd floor. I actually like them and don't mind the noise/music, but I've gotten rid of mice using this technique. It ought to work better with crickets because they won't "bleed out" on your floor.

If you want a more passive method (but not as challenging or fun), you can put out a shallow container of sugar water, like a cake pan would be good. Filled 2/3, it will have a low enough edge for him to get up there and drown himself when he can't crawl or hop out. Don't use a drywall compound bucket or you might drown some children - just look at the picture on the side. Whew, thank God we have government warnings or hardly any children would live to adulthood!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/18/2006 02:49PM by Steve Kartalia.

Pesty little buggers -quick too! We had one on our porch, darn near drove me insane. Barring blunt force trauma (squishing it), a can of Raid will do the job - they make some unscented stuff. Hopefully it wouldn't cause any problems with any rodbuilding chemicals or anything....

How did the cricket get upstairs? Better question is how in the world did YOU get upstairs?? Doing better in your recover are ya? Good to see you up and about.

Now back to the cricket..... the bug spray method works good, but many have an oil base so make sure you spray downward to keep the spray droplets away from rod building surfaces. Another idea is to place one or two cardboard boxes near where the cricket shows itself. Put a few things in each box so they have a couple pounds of weight each. Slightly raise boxes off one of their sides (edge) and stick anything tied to a string under the raised edge so that they remain raised about 1"along that one edge. Next time the cricket comes out and sees movement from you it'll dive for cover under the raised box, at which point you pull the string and spring the trap and drop the box on it. Crikey! Criket gone!!

Lou

Gee, I thought they were good luck ! And good bait too...

With all the bugs I've seen in the rod photo's, I'd bet Terry Henson has some neat ideas for catching Mr. Jim-Enemy Cricket

Quit drinking strawberry shakes and take a couple of shots of JD and join him in chriping at the moon!

Encapsulate the thing in front of a Bone and sell his carcass! That is the only way I could figure out how to last three letters of the last word in the last sentence past the text editor on the site!

Gotta Love It!

Gon

I still have & shoot my Benjamin #137 air pistol. two(2) pumps gets the velosity about even with the average Daisy BB-gun. My second choice is; get a cat. Ralph

If at first you don't succeed, go fishing, then try, try again.

Are the fogger type sprays (the ones you have to leave the house for) oil based? If not, I'd do that for sure.

Jay

Try getting some more from a bait shop and set the container in the room---He may come to it---That chirping is their mating call.

I suppose another option would be to chirp back at him---You may get lucky.

Jay - If that cricket survived all the solvent, finish, tolulene, epoxy, acetone, MEK, alcohol, mineral spirits and goodness knows what else in Jesse's encapsulation castle he will drink the Flit and ask for more!

Gon

Bad, bad luck to kill a cricket.

Jesse,

Great to hear you are back and chirping! Get yourself one of these sticky boards that glue down mice. I seem to glue down more crickets than I do mice. Once glued they committ suicide. No violence, no shotting, no chemical exposure and you don't risk your cane. You might even catch a mouse or two. Once they get glued they cannot chirp!

Ed Smith
Flat Rock, NC

Play bad music at maximum volume with ear protection...cricket will be on the next bus.

If you have an air rifle....Use it! Just load it with the felt cleaning pellets and the risk of ricochet is minimal. THey are also pretty damn accurate at short ranges making flies a target as well.


Derek L. McMaster
Rohnert Park, CA

Born to Fish, FORCED to Work

I would study the creature then tie a pattern after it, then when you finally do kill it, do an inlay in a cork handle as your trophy !

Regards

I would study the creature then tie a pattern after it, then when you finally do kill it, do an inlay in a cork handle as your trophy !

Regards

Scott

Simple cure;
If you've ever looked into the cricket tank at a tackle store you will they feed them potato's because they love them and keeps them alive.

Soultion cut potato in pieces place in center of a sheet of fly paper, put fly paper on floor where he sings and he will hang himself

Hi Jesse,

Don't get rid of it. Get 2 more, teach them song and dance then take them on the road.

Jesse's Dancing Cricket Show!!!!!!

Glad to see that you're back and up and around.

All the best


Hank
On The Rocks Fishing
Wells, ME.