Keep Your Home Lizard-Free With A Handy Liquid You Already Own

If you live in a southern state like Texas or Florida, you've probably encountered your share of small lizards darting across sidewalks or even scurrying around in your home. The smaller ones are more likely to find a way in, but even the larger ones can end up in your kitchen through an opened front door. If you've noticed a lizard hiding in your cabinets or elsewhere in your home, a popular kitchen item can keep them away: vinegar.

Just as with many other pests, there are certain scents that lizards don't like, and vinegar is one of them. Many humans also dislike the pungent smell, but this solution offers a wide range of benefits, especially when it comes to cleaning. Vinegar is commonly used as a disinfectant and odor remover (even though it's odorous itself).

Lizards tend to hang out in dark places, like under kitchen appliances and furniture and kitchen cupboards and pantries. By spraying these areas with a homemade vinegar solution, you can deter these roaming reptiles and hopefully prevent them from staying in your home.

When it comes to creating your DIY lizard-deterrent vinegar solution, you have many options about what to include in it, but first, you'll need a spray bottle. You can purchase one at a department or beauty store for under two dollars. According to Magic Bricks, water and white vinegar alone can keep lizards at bay, but if you want to create something a little more pungent, there are other ingredients you can add.

Pai Hygiene & Healthcare recommends mixing vinegar with water, black pepper, and a few drops of lemon, as these latter two ingredients also have a tendency to repel lizards. iProperty claims mixing chili powder and water with vinegar can also be effective. Never Pest suggests a solution of vinegar, lemon, and finely ground cayenne pepper.

Regardless of what your vinegar solution consists of, make sure to spray the surfaces well, whether it's the walls of your kitchen cabinets or the shelves of your pantry. This can be a humane, natural way of ridding your home of lizards while disinfecting and deodorizing at the same time.