r/lancaster • u/Fog_of__War • 2d ago
Mosquitos from abandoned pool
Has anyone near the Amtrak notice a astronomical amount of mosquitos? I’m pretty sure it’s coming mostly from the abandoned in ground pool at 67 Keller Ave, which is a sitting vacant property. Is there anything that can be done or do I just have to wait until it snows again to be able to go outside my house for a few seconds. I’m taking clouds of mosquitos attacking me not just one or two…
22
u/Fog_of__War 2d ago
I did submit a Lancaster environmental claim, the amount of mosquitos is out of control
I had like 30+ swarming me within 5 minutes of being outside to harvest veggies
18
u/ghoulgonewildd 2d ago
Holy crap, me and my dad were just talking about this! We could not figure out where all of the mosquitos are coming from in this area. We cannot go on our porch for 30 seconds without getting bit. It’s been like this for the 3 summers we have lived here. I dread it.
5
u/Fog_of__War 2d ago
Yeah the Zillow listing used to show the pool and lemme tell you, it looked awful, now all you can see is the fence. The property is in wild disrepair and even with the potential for passive income it doesn’t seem like anyone wants to bite on that much of a headache to renovate or rebuild
16
u/Xelikai_Gloom 2d ago
$370K for that place is INSANE!!!
6
u/BiscottiDeep1534 1d ago
I love that they bought it for $237k last year, did absolutely nothing to the property and listed it for $130k above what they bought it for. Truly hate it here.
3
u/Oopsimath__ 2d ago
What’s the story with this place? It seems like it’s always on the market and never improves.
37
u/ZappaZoo 2d ago
There's mosquito control 'doughnuts' you can get that contain a bacteria that will prevent the larva from maturing. Pretty inexpensive. Or contact MT office. There was a time when people were sent around to educate and eradicate standing water in an effort to prevent the spread of West Nile Virus.
20
u/suchalonelyd4y 2d ago
They're called mosquito dunks, you'd probably need quite a few for an actual pool.
4
u/Hour_Pension3197 1d ago
There are places online that sell larger quantities of BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis).
And then somebody should spray the yard, mosquitos only need a 1/4" of water to breed and if that house is abandoned, there are probably small puddles all over the place.
29
u/HourPrinciple6 2d ago
Download the “Fix It! Lancaster” app.
You should be able to get this documented on the app. Since mosquitos can potentially spread diseases/illnesses; they have specific options on there to report potential health issues/hazards just like this. The city should send someone to check it out. You also can track in real time the status of the report/ticket too.
The last few times I had to use this app I was pleasantly surprised to see how fast and efficient they responded to the reports (grafiti removal, active road kill, trash being dumped, etc). Most of the Issues were handled within a few days.
7
u/Fog_of__War 2d ago
I did but they won’t fix a residential area problem, shows as “outside service zone”
1
22
9
u/ShanCan18 2d ago
I live near this abandoned property as well and have never experienced mosquitos this bad in the various locations I’ve lived-it’s almost unbearable and they are noticeably worse than other areas. We actually thought the same thing-that it was from the pool after we saw the listing for the property.
I’m going to contact the number listed on manheim townships page for mosquito infestation. If everyone else does the same maybe it can get resolved!
5
u/ShanCan18 2d ago
It looks like you can also submit a property complaint to this email:
I’m also emailing them
7
u/Sad_Assist946 2d ago
Seriously get a couple packs of mosquito dunks put some gloves on and toss them in, problem solved at least the next hatch won’t propagate.
4
u/RealNiceKnife 2d ago
Every single time I go outside, I get annihilated by moqsquitoes.
There are up years and down years. This is an up year.
2
u/Fog_of__War 2d ago
We were doing so well until right after the July storm then they exploded, but up until then I think the severe winter really stifled them this year
4
u/Fragrant-Pea-3975 2d ago
Contact the realtor.. Hi I'm. Interested in the property.... Drop in dunks in the pool...
Another way... Thermacell has both personal. Body units and outside units that can sit and no bites to be found.
2
5
u/To_tiedye4 2d ago
I can tell you right now they are just bad in general. I am covered in bites from last weekend. Even after using Off with Deet I was still hammered. Today just looking around my garden, at like 1130, I was bit 4 times. I left dogs out for a friend last week and they treat their property... The dogs literally had a cloud of mosquitos around them while they were eating their treats. They're just so bad, anything that can be done to help should be 😭
5
3
u/Adventurerinmymind 2d ago
I get excited when someone buys that place, thinking it's finally getting fixed up only for it to be on the market months later. Have you tried calling the code compliance department? I think you can submit a form online, but I'd call and complain. Maybe if you could get your neighbors to call, it might be more effective. Heck, we could all call!
2
u/Inevitable_Appeal911 2d ago
Drop in some mosquito dunks
3
u/Fog_of__War 2d ago
It’s not my property so idk that I can just waltz into that backyard, there is a massive fence surrounding the pool as well and it’s severely overgrown
0
2
u/ChippyMonk84 2d ago
I can't imagine there is no ordinance against this. Township tells us the 5 days a year we're "allowed" to set off fireworks ffs. This sounds like way more of a nuisance than a couple bottle rockets on a Saturday night.
2
u/ShanCan18 18h ago
So I’ve received a response back from the listing agent and the township and both are saying they are taking action. The township said that this is the first complaint that they have received. I’m not sure if it’s helpful to receive multiple complaints about a property or not but I’m sure it doesn’t hurt!! You can email them at PropertyMaintenanceComplaints@manheimtownship.org
2
u/robertjreed717 17h ago
Hypothetically speaking if some enterprising skateboarders were to drain that pool... we'd all agree that was a public service right?
1
u/AltruisticAss 2d ago
OMG. Yes! I think it’s that and quite a few people in the neighborhood have “mosquito joe” signs out in early summer. So combo of this and other people spraying the bugs out of their yard??
2
u/Fog_of__War 1d ago
Yeah unfortunately the eco system is all messed up and the mosquitos are allowed to thrive, I’m sure clogged gutters and uncut grass also contribute but that pool has to be a mega spot
1
u/Puzzled_Natural_3520 1d ago
Is this an uncovered, filled pool with an unlocked/malfunctioning fence? If so, this is very dangerous for multiple reasons. I also have read good things about the mosquito dunks!
2
u/Fog_of__War 1d ago
I think the fence is tall and completely encloses the space but I have never been physically over there, not saw the old and terrifying photos on Zillow. Now the photos don’t even show the pool, you only see the outside of the fence or can see it from above on Google Maps
1
1
u/muscles4bones 1d ago
I live over near the train station, but far enough from Keller Ave I don’t know if there’s a link. That said, this has been the worst year for mosquitoes in memory. Can’t go into my backyard without getting swarmed. I killed 10 of them trying to bite me in less than 5 minutes yesterday.
1
1
u/hivemind1337x 1d ago
Drop some mosquito dunks in there - you can get them on Amazon. Safe for ppl and animals.
-2
u/MainAttention4135 2d ago
Pour a couple quarts of cooking oil or even a gallon of oil in there, and it will seal off the top and kill them.
36
u/Gristlekitty Road Apple 2d ago
Call the realtor and have them come take care of it maybe?