Lizards are common on porches, especially in warmer climates where they seek warmth and shelter. While they naturally control insect populations, their presence can be bothersome near entryways or outdoor furniture. The most effective approach to exclusion involves understanding their motivations and applying practical, non-lethal methods to make your porch less hospitable. Repelling these reptiles requires a combination of environmental modification and the strategic use of deterrents.
Identifying What Is Attracting Lizards
Lizards are drawn to human habitats by the requirements of food, water, and refuge. The primary attractant is an abundant food source, typically small insects such as ants, spiders, flies, and crickets. Lizards are insectivorous and gravitate toward any location with a steady pest population. Outdoor lighting inadvertently creates a nocturnal hunting ground by attracting flying insects.
Lizards also seek cool, damp spots and tight crevices for shelter from predators and heat. Sources of standing water, such as an overflowing pet dish or a leaky faucet, provide necessary hydration. Clutter, including piles of firewood, yard debris, or dense vegetation near the porch, offers lizards ideal hiding places. Eliminating the resources they depend on is the first step toward long-term exclusion.
Habitat Management and Environmental Deterrents
Lasting lizard control begins with modifying the porch environment to eliminate hiding spots and food sources. Start by removing unnecessary clutter, such as stacked items, leaf litter, and excessive potted plants, which create shaded refuges. Open spaces under sunlight are less attractive because lizards feel exposed to predators.
Addressing the insect population often involves changing exterior lighting. Lizards are drawn to areas where bright lights attract a concentrated supply of insects. Switching to yellow or sodium vapor bulbs, which are less appealing to nocturnal bugs, can significantly reduce the lizard’s food source.
Sealing potential entry points in the porch structure prevents lizards from accessing deeper shelter. Use caulk or weather stripping to close cracks, holes, and gaps around windows, doors, and utility pipe entry points. Repairing leaky outdoor taps or hoses will also eliminate sources of standing water, which lizards use for drinking and which attract moisture-loving insects.
Safe and Effective Repellent Solutions
Once the environment is managed, applying targeted deterrents creates a sensory barrier that lizards will avoid. Lizards possess a highly sensitive sense of smell, making strong, natural odors an effective, non-lethal repellent.
A homemade spicy spray is a popular option, created by mixing cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce with warm water and spraying it near entry points and along baseboards. Certain essential oils, such as peppermint, eucalyptus, and lemongrass, also produce scents lizards find repulsive. Mix a few drops of the chosen oil with water in a spray bottle and apply the solution around the perimeter of the porch and in areas of frequent activity. This mixture should be reapplied every few days, especially after rain, to maintain potency.
Sprinkling dry, strongly scented materials can also deter them from crossing thresholds. Used coffee grounds or crushed garlic cloves placed near crevices or in dark corners emit odors lizards dislike. These natural remedies work by overwhelming the lizard’s sense of smell, encouraging them to relocate elsewhere.
Humane Removal and Safety Considerations
If a lizard needs immediate removal from an enclosed porch area, use a gentle, humane approach. A simple method involves covering the lizard with a small cup or container and then sliding a piece of stiff paper or cardboard underneath to trap it safely. Once contained, the lizard can be released outdoors, ideally about a yard away from the house to discourage its immediate return.
Avoid touching wild lizards directly. Although the species commonly found on porches are harmless, all reptiles can potentially carry Salmonella bacteria on their skin. Maintain good hygiene on surfaces they frequent. After handling the container or cleaning an area where a lizard has been, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water.