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Homeowner considers extreme scheme to deal with neighbor's infestation: 'Don't ask'

"I had to do this."

A Redditor took to the r/Austin subreddit to ask for help after their neighbor's neglected pool became ground zero for a mosquito outbreak.

Photo Credit: iStock

Neighbor interactions can be awkward. It doesn't help if you've never spoken to them and their pool has become a breeding ground for one of nature's most infamous pests.

A Redditor took to r/Austin to ask for help after their neighbor's neglected pool became ground zero for a mosquito outbreak.

"I was doing some work on our roof and noticed that their swimming pool hasn't been maintained this year," they said in the post. "It is very green and looks like a swamp."

It didn't take a rocket scientist to connect the dots for why their neighborhood was teeming with mosquitoes. The situation was eating away at the OP's quality of life.

"I can't really mow my back lawn, enjoy grilling or working outside on my back patio, or anything else without being eaten alive by them," they shared.

Making matters worse, they weren't familiar with the neighbors and didn't know how to broach the topic without being "inherently confrontational." They didn't live under a homeowners association, either, so they turned to the online community for help on how to resolve the situation.

Their concern about the situation was well warranted. A single female mosquito can lay hundreds of eggs, highlighting why the flies are among the deadliest animals globally. Beyond just irritating bites, they can spread diseases such as malaria, Zika, and West Nile virus.

Commenters on the thread jumped to the solution of using Mosquito Dunks, a larvicide safe for humans, animals, and the environment. That fix beats pesticides that can kill not just mosquitoes but just about everything in the ecosystem while spreading far and wide.

It also could be done incognito.

"Toss a Mosquito Dunk into it. Don't ask for permission and don't say anything," a user advised.

What's the most you'd pay per month to put solar panels on your roof if there was no down payment?

$200 or more 💰

$100 💸

$30 💵

I'd only do it if someone else paid for it 😎

Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

As it turned out, the OP got a resolution without having to resort to confrontation or sneaky moves. They revealed in an update that their neighbor had their pool cleaned and that they hired help to take care of their own yard, which made for a big improvement.

Still, from the community's enthusiastic response, it certainly seems a healthy amount of dunking could've done the trick.

"I had to do this with a neighbor's mostly abandoned above-ground pool for years," a user shared. "It works."

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