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ForumsDiscussion Forum → Do bugs go through air conditioners?
Do bugs go through air conditioners?
2004-06-15, 8:02 AM #1
I'm confused and a bit annoyed. I've sealed of any openings (including the openings around my AC with tape) in my room. I closed my windows (obviously) to trap the chilly goodness. But a handful of bugs somehow get into the room.

These insect invaders are not welcomed. I share company with small, thin flies that desperately try to violently bombard themselves into electrical lighting. There are moths (sp?) that flutter in an arrogant fashion in front of me and sometimes exhibit pugnacious attitudes. The small beetles, as if they were drunk, try to practice kamikazee rituals into my face. But why?

I assume these bugs are not stopped by the cold, metallic insides of the AC. I mean, I never seen any living things breach into my secured room by the machine. But do they really go through?

[http://forums.massassi.net/html/confused.gif]

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2004-06-15, 8:08 AM #2
I doubt it. They probably came in when you opened the door to come in or go out.

or maybe they came in deliberately just to kill you. You never know. [http://forums.massassi.net/html/smile.gif]

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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

[This message has been edited by Pagewizard_YKS (edited June 15, 2004).]
2004-06-15, 8:10 AM #3
Are they fruit flies? Very little flies, something like 1-2mm long? Maybe even 3mm... They reproduce in plant pots, the larvae eating the roots of the plants or something in the soil, I think.

I have quite a many plants in my apartment living under my gracious administration, and some times those pesky fruit flies start to invade the atmosphere in my room... They behave just like you described.

EDIT: details, details...

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Frozen by ICARUS

[This message has been edited by lassev (edited June 15, 2004).]
Frozen in the past by ICARUS
2004-06-15, 8:15 AM #4
Fruit flies suck. I generally keep them in check by keeping a sundew plant where they like to congregate. They are attracted to the plant, and end up stuck to it, in which case the plant eats them. There are days where the leaves look black under a coating of gnats and fruit flies.

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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

[This message has been edited by Pagewizard_YKS (edited June 15, 2004).]
2004-06-15, 8:27 AM #5
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Pagewizard_YKS:
Fruit flies suck. I generally keep them in check by keeping a sundew plant where they like to congregate. They are attracted to the plant, and end up stuck to it, in which case the plant eats them. There are days where the leaves look black under a coating of gnats and fruit flies.
</font>


Man, that's ingenious! Are sundews easy to grow? I seem to recall it isn't so simple... But maybe I'm wrong. I must study the issue. Although I haven't seen any fruit flies for a while.

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Frozen by ICARUS
Frozen in the past by ICARUS
2004-06-15, 8:34 AM #6
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by lassev:
Man, that's ingenious! Are sundews easy to grow? I seem to recall it isn't so simple... But maybe I'm wrong. I must study the issue. Although I haven't seen any fruit flies for a while.

</font>



Sundews are swamp plants like any other carniverous plant, so they like it wet and they like it humid.

You hvave to water it heavily each day and to ensuere humidity, you must keep it in an enclosure that has a hole in the top for insects. To attract them further, I generally put a small piece of cantaloupe peel inside.

Venus flytraps are even harder, but i've found the secret to those is that YOU CAN'T GIVE THEM TOO MUCH WATER. I leave mine with the pot half-submerged 24/7, and it LOVES it!
It's strange, b/c such conditions would rot other plants away in 2 days, but flytraps thrive under such conditions. I actually had mine flower recently. They make little white flowers, sundews make little red flowers.

Carniverous plants go dormant once during the year, so when they start to die down, keep them wet. Most people think they're dead and throw them out, but if oyu keep them wet during the dormant stage, they will come back.


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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

[This message has been edited by Pagewizard_YKS (edited June 15, 2004).]
2004-06-15, 8:41 AM #7
awesome [http://forums.massassi.net/html/wink.gif]

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2004-06-15, 8:44 AM #8
Thanks! You're the Master. This is certainly very interesting.

Heh. Who wouldn't want to have a carnivorous plant? [http://forums.massassi.net/html/smile.gif]

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Frozen by ICARUS
Frozen in the past by ICARUS
2004-06-15, 9:51 AM #9
I wouldn't if it was big enough to eat me. [http://forums.massassi.net/html/wink.gif]

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2004-06-15, 9:55 AM #10
FEED ME!

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2004-06-15, 10:06 AM #11
My Venus Flytrap has been healthy in my room for 2 years so far. I flowers usually 2-3 times a year, then the flower dies. I pick off the dead leaves, and give it water whenever it seems to be drooping and it perks up in minutes.

There are also these white insects in the soil, small, hard to see, and they never leave the soil. I've never seen them anywhere else. I'm thinking they may be the larvae of those small black beetles that sometimes get in my house. I'm not sure how to get rid of them, or if I should even try.

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Steal my dreams and sell them back to me.....
Steal my dreams and sell them back to me.....
2004-06-15, 10:12 AM #12
I tried keeping a venus flytrap, i think it didn't get enough food though, i got them about three times, each one died within a week or two. I had a pitcher plant in my back yard, though, and that survived for about two years. It probably died because i didn't keep it wet enough or it's just too cold where i am, i'm not sure, but they are really cool plants, and have a really interesting-looking flower that grows on a stalk near the end of summer.

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[This message has been edited by Noble Outlaw (edited June 15, 2004).]
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2004-06-15, 10:31 AM #13
Only the cool ones.

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2004-06-15, 11:26 AM #14
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Thrawn42689:
FEED ME!

</font>


I'M HUNGRY!

That is such an awesome but weird movie...

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2004-06-15, 3:40 PM #15
Hmm. I always wanted a Venus Fly Trap plant.

Funny though, I sometimes call them Piranha Plants by mistake. Heh.

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2004-06-15, 4:20 PM #16
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Noble Outlaw:
I tried keeping a venus flytrap, i think it didn't get enough food though, i got them about three times, each one died within a week or two. I had a pitcher plant in my back yard, though, and that survived for about two years. It probably died because i didn't keep it wet enough or it's just too cold where i am, i'm not sure, but they are really cool plants, and have a really interesting-looking flower that grows on a stalk near the end of summer.

</font>



In lean times I feed mine those blue-gray bugs you find in the soil that curl up in a ball when threatened. The plant has a tough time getting through their tough shells, so i mash them up first.

If you keep it in an enclosed container (preferably a small terrarium or something, although anything made of clear plastic with a removable lid will do) it should generate enough heat due to greenhouse effect in its enclosure.


Also, KEEP THEM SITTING IN WATER. That's the secret. I found this out by accident b/c it rained once and i left the cover off by mistake. I went outside and found the whole plant (not just the pot) half submerged. I thought it was going to die, but it grew like it never had before, so I kept on giving it as much water as it could ever want.


Two years later, The traps on mine are about an inch long and are blood red on the inside. They stand up by themselves and don't droop at all. The plant has tripled in size from when I bought it. It's the uber plant. [http://forums.massassi.net/html/smile.gif]


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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.



[This message has been edited by Pagewizard_YKS (edited June 15, 2004).]
2004-06-15, 4:36 PM #17
I give mine water only when it's drooping, and I thought that was what was keeping it alive. maybe I'll get a terrarium. When I think about it, it isn't that red on the inside, just a little hint on the older heads. Maybe it needs more nutrients.

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Steal my dreams and sell them back to me.....
Steal my dreams and sell them back to me.....
2004-06-15, 6:23 PM #18
Pagewizard...POST A PICTURE!

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2004-06-15, 7:20 PM #19
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Trigger Happy Chewie:
Pagewizard...POST A PICTURE!

</font>


The plant just came out of dormancy, so it's small due to the fact that its all new growth. Remind me in 2 months when it gets big again.

My plant was pretty big last fall. you should have seen it before it went into winter dormancy.




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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.
2004-06-15, 9:24 PM #20
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Do bugs go through air conditioners?</font>
Not in one piece. [http://forums.massassi.net/html/redface.gif]

They could come in when you open doors.
When they're very small, they can fit through small cracks.
If you hang your laundry outside to dry, they can lay eggs on your close. (Happened to me once. Gnat eggs. Now there's gnats everywhere in my room. And they like my face. *whips out a can of Raid* )
If you have a poorly sealed dryer vent, they can get in through there (once the dryer has stopped) and possibly lay eggs in your clothes or wherever.
They can get in through attic vents, and work their way further into your house through verious cracks (lightswitches & outlets if the bugs are small enough or able to compress their bodies, or more likely at cracks around duct openings, between the duct and the wall, floor, or ceiling that it connects to.)

Or possibly, people are putting bugs in your house on purpose. :-\

But most bugs can fit through some *very* small cracks. Ever see a bunch of dead bugs between your windows? *Very* small cracks, indeed.

[This message has been edited by DogSRoOL (edited June 16, 2004).]
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2004-06-16, 8:40 AM #21
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by DogSRoOL:
When they're very small, they can fit through small cracks.
.
.
.
But most bugs can fit through some *very* small cracks. Ever see a bunch of dead bugs between your windows? *Very* small cracks, indeed.
</font>

Yeah. I gotta fix that at my house [http://forums.massassi.net/html/frown.gif] -- I don't have too many flies (only 1-3 a day) but they are @#$%ing annoying!
And then two days ago I found a moth in my bathtub between the side and the shower curtain. I thought it was dead, and when I poked it with a tissue it flew at me furiously.
I hate picking them up after smacking them to death unless I have 2-3 tissues between it and my fingers [http://forums.massassi.net/html/redface.gif]

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2004-06-16, 9:08 AM #22
I hate it when spiders go between the carpet and the wall where you cant kill them. Hehe, but most dont expect me to sit there for 2 hours waiting for them to come back out.

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2004-06-16, 9:14 AM #23
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Schming:
I hate it when spiders go between the carpet and the wall where you cant kill them. Hehe, but most dont expect me to sit there for 2 hours waiting for them to come back out.

</font>


carpet sucks.

Get hardwood or laminate wood, its much easier to keep clean.




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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.
2004-06-16, 9:15 AM #24
Or better yet, get dirt. Then you won't have to clean it [http://forums.massassi.net/html/wink.gif]

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nytfyre m0d || f33l t3h p0w3r || t3h l0st c0gz || OMF > *
May the mass times acceleration be with you.

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