Ticks are a huge problem in the area where I live. I was reading an article the other day that my county had more cases of Lyme disease reported from 2000-2015 than any other county!

Ugh. I hate them. I am constantly looking for ways to keep them at bay. We are surrounded by woods on all three sides of our house so it’s hard to keep the little critters and the deer that bring them into the yard out.

While doing some research I found an interesting way to help kill the ticks but not the critters- create tick tubes!

Apparently mice can carry over a 100 ticks on them at one time!  Tick tubes help eliminate the ticks but are safe for the critters. Basically how they work is the critters will take the lint out of the tubes to make their nest. The lint that was sprayed with the Permethrin will kill the ticks but not harm the mice.

How to make Tick Tubes:

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1. Save your empty toilet paper and paper towel rolls for the “tube”
2. Save your dryer lint, if you don’t have dryer lint you can also use cotton balls.
3. Outside, lay out the lint/cotton balls and spray Permethrin on one side. Use gloves!
4. Let dry for two hours and then flip it over and spray the other side.
5. Let dry for another two hours.
6. Take the lint and stuff it into the tubes leaving about an inch on each side.
7. Place the tubes around the perimeter of your property.
8. These tick tubes last about 3-4 weeks then you will need to replace them. In this video I show how to make them using small cuts of PVC pipes so you only need to replace the lint not the whole tube. 

***Please follow the directions on the bottle carefully and wear gloves. This is not something you use on skin, but you can use it on clothing and outside gear to repeal insects.

You can get Permethrin here with my affiliate link.

For more uses of Permethrin and how you can use it on your outdoor gear and clothes see my other post: How to keep Ticks at Bay