Control Mosquitos at Home
You can help control mosquito populations with some simple actions at your home. We appreciate everyone’s help in managing mosquitos and keeping our community safe and healthy.
Call mosquito control services at 843.383.3006 to report a mosquito issue in your area. You can also visit DHEC’s Local Mosquito Control page for information on state mosquito control efforts.
Comprehensive Mosquito Control
The City of Hartsville has put every effort to provide the residents with a safe and environmentally-friendly mosquito control program. Members of our team are certified by the state of South Carolina as non-commercial pesticide applicators. Our applicators continuously attend training and conferences to stay up-to-date on best practices so that we can provide the best and safest pest management program possible. The City assists DHEC in the trapping and monitoring of mosquitoes to protect against infectious diseases such as West Nile virus, dengue fever, Zika virus, and more as a Vector Specialist.
We do not solely rely on the night spraying to control mosquitoes. We also place mosquito-eating fish in ditches and ornamental ponds and treat the stormwater system to reduce the population. Adulticide spraying is conducted as the last line of defense in reducing mosquito populations.
If you’d like to report a mosquito issue, please call 843.383.3006 and we will be happy to help.
Our Activities
Mosquito habitat abatement
Throughout the year we work to clean up areas in our community that can harbor mosquitos to prevent their populations from ever being established.
Larviciding
For areas where standing water is common, such as ditches, we place solid larvicides that prevent mosquito larvae from developing into adults.
Night-time adulticide spraying and fogging
When necessary, we spray minimal amounts of mosquito adulticides per regulatory guidelines to control mosquito populations and prevent the spread of infectious disease in our community. We schedule our spraying in the evening to minimize any disruption to residents and to protect day-feeding pollinators and other wildlife. Our spraying schedule is provided below.
Equipment & Materials
The equipment used in these efforts is some of the best available for controlling mosquitoes. Our sprayers are tested and calibrated every year to ensure delivery is accurate. The treatments are water-based and we only use products that are tested and approved by the Environmental Protection Agency. We do not use products that have proven to be damaging to either public health or the environment. The products are designed to affect mosquitos that are in flight. They have a half-life of six hours and residual life of 12 hours.
If you have any questions about our equipment, products, or practices, please contact us at 843.383.3006 and we will be happy to help.
Product Details
We’ve collected information on the actual products used as part of our Mosquito Control Program below so that you can learn more about them.
DeltaGuard from Adapco is the first and only Type II pyrethroid registered in the United States for wide-area mosquito control and contains small quantities of deltamethrin. Pyrethroids are a group of man-made pesticides based on and similar to the natural pesticide pyrethrum, which is produced by chrysanthemum flowers. Click here for more information about DeltaGuard or download an SDS from the manufacturer.
Aqua-Reslin from Adapco is a water-soluble product containing permethrin. Permethrin is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines, the most effective and safe medicines needed in a health system. Click here for more information about Aqua-Reslin or download an SDS from the manufacturer.
ALTOSID® XR-Briquets from Adapco contain a larvicide and is used in ditches and storm drains to prevent larvae from developing in small, stagnant bodies of water such as catch basins, ponds, lakes, ditches. ALTOSID XR Briquets are designed to control mosquitoes. Click here for more information about ALTOSID briquets or download an SDS from the manufacturer.
Altosid XR-G from Adapco is a similar product used to treat larger areas and also contains a larvicide for use on sites that support mosquito larval development with multi-broad potential. Click here for more information about Altosid XR-G or download an SDS from the manufacturer.
City Spray Schedule
The City of Hartsville has begun our yearly partnership with SCDHEC for mosquito trapping. We use the results and information obtained to help guide our spraying efforts. We will conduct mosquito larviciding to all city stormwater ditches and drains beginning in April. Our city staff will continue to monitor daytime and nighttime temperatures as well as results from our mosquito trapping.
Our spraying and trapping dates are as follows: (Note: Spraying is highly dependent on environmental conditions such as rain and wind. These dates are given but may be amended upon current conditions.)
- Mid July Mosquito Trapping
- Late July Possible Spray dates
- Late July Mosquito Trapping
- Early Aug Possible Spray Dates
- Mid Aug. Mosquito Trapping
- Mid Aug. Possible Spray Dates
- Late Aug. Mosquito Trapping
- Late Aug. Possible Spray Dates
- Mid Sept. Mosquito Trapping
- Mid Sept. Mosquito Trapping
- Late Sept. Possible Spray Dates
- Early Oct. Mosquito Trapping
- Mid Oct. Possible Spray Dates
For questions, concerns, or to report mosquito problems, call City of Hartsville Mosquito services at 843.383.3006.