Do Bug Zappers Work? Q. I believed I learn someplace that bug zappers don’t really work. My neighbor’s zapper is driving me crazy with that ZZZZT noise all evening. I’d like to show him proof that every one he’s doing is annoying his neighbor. A. Yes, there is a few scientific knowledge on the usefulness of bug zappers, but first we'd like to distinguish between the bug zappers that homeowners use of their yards to (hopefully) kill mosquitoes, and the commercial insect zapper light traps that pest management professionals use mostly in restaurants, food plants, and warehouses. These costly commercial traps are used mainly to kill house flies and so they do work. The relatively inexpensive yard bug zappers kill plenty of flying insects, simply not mosquitoes. Bug zappers use ultraviolet mild to draw mosquitoes to a metallic grid the place they are electrocuted or "zapped." Those who personal these traps swear by them. They point to the piles of lifeless insects that they empty out of the entice each morning. And people insects do appear to be mosquitoes. But largely they're midges, harmless fliers that don't chew and are thought of helpful. Bug zappers actually attract and kill very few mosquitoes. Instead, the ultraviolet light draws hordes of insects into the yard that wouldn’t have been there in any other case. Yard zappers have never fared very well in research exams. One study discovered that 89% of the zapped insects were midges