Noisy Crickets Will Sing Their Song Elsewhere Against This Pest Control Solution

Pest control can be a dicey situation for some people. Often, there's a very understandable desire to avoid using spray pesticides, plus the most tender-hearted of us simply hate to think of any living creature being exterminated. For people who fall into either of those camps, an ultrasonic pest repeller or two is a great option to keep noisy crickets from invading your property too closely.

The concept of ultrasonic pest repellers is pretty ingenious because such devices put out sound waves so high in frequency that unwanted pests like crickets can hear them, but humans can't. The repellers function by emitting frequencies ranging from 20 to 100 kilohertz with the goal of annoying pests and making them uncomfortable enough to want to leave the area. Sometimes, they can experience physical effects like seizures or death, but hopefully, they scoot away before that becomes a risk. For the pet lovers out there, don't fret about Fido or Fluffy — dogs and cats are far too large to be affected by the sound. All that said, it seems that there's a tremendous variation in effectiveness depending on the specific product you choose.

Ultrasonic pest repellers purport to drive away a myriad of pests, including moles, mice, cockroaches, spiders, and more. The evidence that they repel any of these creatures is murky, however, with some experts cautioning people to lean on other methods to avoid getting their hopes up and wasting money in the end.

Fortunately for people who wish to avoid the significant din that crickets can create, there are some of these particular devices that seem to work against the noisy bug. In a study conducted by Kansas State University, researchers found that two ultrasonic devices with peak frequencies ranging between 26 and 42 kilohertz (kHz) saw a reduction in crickets by 33% and 38% respectively. It's certainly worth noting that the most effective ultrasonic pest repellers are not the cheaper, commercially available variety. Instead, the ones that work the best tend to be those developed and installed by pest control companies. 

So if cricket-related noise is a major concern, consult your pest control company to see what they have in the way of ultrasonic repellers. You can always try to purchase one and install it outside yourself, but keep your expectations in check and adjust as needed to keep cricket noise to a minimum.