Machar se chutkara: how to stop mosquitoes breeding at home
Where machar breed around a Karachi home, a weekly check that cuts dengue risk, how to keep them out, and when fogging helps.
Most machar (mosquitoes) biting you were born within a short distance of your home, often in water you can see from your door. Find that water and empty it, and you cut their numbers more than any spray can.
Machar kahan paida hote hain? Where they breed
Mosquitoes lay eggs in still water. The dengue mosquito prefers small amounts of clean water, close to people. Look for:
- Water tanks without a tight lid, on the roof or underground.
- Flower pots and the trays under them.
- Buckets, drums and bottles left outside or on the roof.
- The AC drain tray and the water dripping from AC pipes.
- Old tyres, broken pots and rubbish on the roof or in the lane.
- Blocked gutters and drains, and water standing on a flat roof after rain.
- Coolers and fountains that are not emptied.
A weekly 10-minute check
Mosquito eggs take about a week to become biting adults, so a weekly check stops the cycle.
- Empty, scrub and refill pot trays, buckets and any water containers.
- Turn over or throw away anything that can hold rainwater.
- Check the lid of every water tank fits tightly.
- Clear the AC drain tray and any water pooling under AC pipes.
- Sweep standing water off the roof and clear blocked drains.
Do this most carefully after the monsoon. In Karachi, dengue cases rise after the rains and peak in October and November.
Keeping them out of the house
- Fit mesh on windows and doors, and repair any tears.
- Use a mosquito net over beds, especially for babies and older people.
- The dengue mosquito bites in the daytime, early morning and late afternoon, so use repellent and long sleeves then too, not only at night.
- Keep doors closed at dusk.
When does fogging help?
Fogging kills the adult mosquitoes resting in plants, corners and boundary walls. It does not stop new ones flying in from the neighbours, so on its own the effect lasts days, not weeks. It works best together with treating the water where they breed, which stops larvae from developing.
When to call us
If you have done the weekly check and are still being bitten, or someone at home has had dengue, book a visit. We find the standing water where they breed, treat it with larvicide, fog the lawn, roof and boundary walls, and give you a list of the breeding spots we found. In dengue season we repeat every two weeks.
