Bifen IT - Questions & Answers

Bifen IT would be a good choice and it does leave an active residual. You may need to reapply every month through the season. Springtails can be tough to get rid of because of their large populations in infested areas and the often covered areas where they harbor. Springtails are usually a sign that there is a moisture issue close by. Check all around the outside of your home for built up leaf debris or yard clippings, leaking faucets, mulch that is too damp or other moisture problems. Springtails need a very high level of moisture to survive, so correcting that issue may hel. Here are some helpful articles with lots of hints and tips for springtail elimination: How To Get Rid of Springtails and Springtime and springtails

The Bifen It would be a great option for control of mosquitoes, gnats, ticks and hundreds of other insects around the home. We highly recommend if you want the most control out of this pest populated area, mix Pivot IGR with your first spray of Bifen IT. The Pivot is birth control for the bugs in the area and will make a huge dent in knocking back the activity. By stopping the insects reproduction, you get a much better grip on the problem than just killing the ones that land on a surface treated with an insecticide. You will typically mix 1 ounce of Bifen IT and 4-8 ml of Pivot IGR per gallon of water. Focus on the areas that are most dense in foliage and tend to stay the most moist and shaded. Spray the undersides of leaves of bushes and trees as these are prime breeding areas for the mosquitoes, ticks and other pests. The Bifen will last roughly 30 days outdoors and the Pivot should last up to 5 months. If you feel the Pivot is needed again before the 5 month period you are welcome to spray it again with the Bifen. Both products are completely safe for pets and humans when used according to the label and when kept out of the area until the products have dried.

Yes, Bifen IT is labeled for silverfish and will do a great job helping to eliminate them. Be sure to spray in all of the cracks and crevices where silverfish are known to harbor for best results. You will mix 1 oz per gallon of water per 1,000 sq ft. and it can be applied every 30 days on the outside of the structure and every 90 days to the indoor cracks and crevices. Keep in mind that these pests frequent humid areas such as bathrooms and stored paper goods like files and wallpaper, so non-chemical steps to correct those conditions will help eliminate this pest.

Bifen is not used to control moles. This product is an insecticide that will control lawn infesting pest like ants, roaches, crickets, worms, caterpillars, ticks, etc. The best way to control moles is with a product specifically labeled for them, such as Talpirid Mole Worms, or Giant Destroyer Gassers. You can review all of the available options on our Mole Control page. Please let us know if you have any questions.

Yes, Bifen IT will help control carpenter bees when it is applied to surfaces where the carpenter bees land.  We also recommend dusting the carpenter bee holes with an insecticide dust such as Delta Dust to help kill any larva inside. Do not plug the holes for at least 30 days after dusting to prevent the developing larva from drilling a new hole to exit.

Please view our Carpenter Bee Treatment Guide for more information 

 

The Bifen IT would be an excellent option for mosquito control. As you know, with that heavy of a wooded area around you, you wont be able to completely eliminate the entire population, but you can certainly bring it down to a tolerable level when you can enjoy your yard again. We highly recommend if you want the most control out of this heavily mosquito populated area, mix NyGuard IGR with your first spray of Bifen IT. The NyGuard is birth control for the bugs in the area and will make a huge dent in knocking back the activity. By stopping the mosquito reproduction, you get a much better grip on the problem than just killing the ones that land on a surface treated with an insecticide. You will typically mix 1 ounce of Bifen IT and 4-8 ml of NyGuard IGR per gallon of water. Focus on the areas that are most dense in foliage and tend to stay the most moist and shaded. Spray the undersides of leaves of bushes and trees as these are prime breeding areas for the mosquitoes. The Bifen will last roughly 30 days outdoors and the NyGuard should last up to 5 months. If you feel the NyGuard is needed again before the 5 month period you are welcome to spray it again with the Bifen. Please let us know if you have any other questions.

Bifen IT can be used to help control cluster flies indoors and outdoors. If the cluster flies have already made their way indoors, they will be harder to control because they usually hide in a wall void or other inaccessible area and are only visible when the house warms up. If the cluster flies are in an attic or drop ceiling or other dark area, a fly light would do a great job controlling the population. Using small fly lights such as the Fly Web in the house would also help to catch the flies. Spray Bifen IT directly on baseboards, window frames, door frames, and places where utilities (pipes, wires, cables) enter in to the building and any other crack, crevice or gap where insects can enter.

Here is an article that will give you a little bit more information on cluster flies and cluster fly control methods: How to get rid of cluster flies

Bifen IT is labeled for springtails and should work well to help you get rid of them.  It does not kill on contact.  The amount of time it takes for a springtail to die after coming into contact with a treated area will depend on a number of factors such as how healthy the springtail is, what stage of life it is in, and how long it spends in contact with a treated surface.  It could take anywhere from a couple of hours up to a full day. Also, keep in mind that if you are not treating the main nest, and only the satellite colony, you are only be temporarily fixing your problem. More will appear as they continue to migrate.  Springtails are attracted to areas that are high in moisture so if there is a moisture issue this will need to be identified and addressed as well. Until the moisture is gone or the main nest is found and eliminated, you will have an ongoing battle with this pest.  You may want to look over our Springtails Treatment Guide for more tips and information. 

When using Bifen IT to treat for soil dwelling pests such as sob webworms, the rate is not per gallon of water but per 1000 sq ft as you would use sufficient water to cover the target area and get the product to the pest.  Per the product label: To accomplish uniform control when applying to dense grass foliage, use volumes of up to 10 gallons per 1000 square feet.  You would use 0.18 - 0.25 fluid oz. per 1000 sq. ft for sod webworms.  Higher treatment rates (up to 1 fluid oz. per 1000 square feet) may be necessary if high pest pressure exists and if the grass is maintained taller than 1 inch.

In general 1 gallon can cover 1000 sqft but for sod webworms the amount of water needed could be higher depending on the grass foliage, equipment used, how fast you walk, etc.

Bifen IT is labeled to eradicate ticks. How long it takes the ticks to die after they come into contact with a treated area will depend on a number of factors. It will depend on the maturity of the tick as well as how long they stayed on the treated area, how long it has been since the area was treated and the concentration that was used to treat the area. Typically it can take anywhere from a couple of hours to a day or so for them to die. It can take several weeks for you to stop seeing ticks indoors because the ticks like to stay hidden which also means they could be staying out of treated areas and eggs may hatch out prolonging the infestation. We recommend doing follow up treatments every two weeks at the highest usage rate of 1 oz of product per gallon of water until you do not see any ticks. It is also recommended to add an insect growth regulator such as Archer IGR to impede the reproductive cycle of the insect. For more information on treating ticks, please check out our article on Tick Control.