Pest (mostly bug) control in garage

Due to our recent addition to the family, I had to relinquish my man cave and am in the process of setting up a TV and some hobby stuff in the garage. I don't plan on putting A/C in the garage as the walls are not insulated and the only windows (for a window unit) are on the front of the house anyway. That being said, when I have buddies over to watch the game in the heat of the South Louisiana summer, I'd like to leave the garage door open.

Therein lies the problem, summer in South Louisiana with a garage facing the woods mean insects. LOTS of insects. June bugs, all kinds of beetles, mayflies, spiders, gnats and of course the state bird, the mosquito. Are there any means to protect my garage for the few hours it may be open from enormous quantities of these insects entering? What is most effective? I hear spiders are particularly hard to keep out (granted they manage to get in even with the door shut). I put some diatomaceous earth in the corners and that seemed to help soemwhat. What about mice? I've already caught a couple that managed to scurry into the garage (luckily didn't make it into the house).

 

I don't remember where but I saw a 'screen door' for sale that was the same size as a garage door. I would think that and routine pest control would be your best bet.

 

I too was going to suggest a “screen curtain” or equivalent. Otherwise, for the crawling insects I would suggest using a residual insecticide where the slab meets the wall as a perimeter spray. When it dries it will leave a residual insecticide in place. Buy the concentrate and mix it with water yourself. Much cheaper that way. You can treat exterior perimeter, high and low, of house and garage too. Backpack sprayers are great for the volume needed for the exterior and can be used in garages and unfinished basements too.

Look for any of the active ingredients: Bifenthrin; cyfluthrin; deltamethrin; lambda-cyhalothrin; those are all good. They are sold under any number of brand names, but I want you to look at the “active ingredients” part of the label for any of those names. The enclosed label should tell you how much to mix with a gallon of water, etc.

For the mice: keep snap traps set inside garage; purchase exterior rodent bait stations for garage/house perimeter. I like baiting them with bait blocks as opposed to pellets or meal baits. Check weekly/bi-weekly in humid weather as the bait gets moldy and stale.