If crickets are chirping in your garage, basement or shop this fall, this is the time of year they move indoors. This guide pulls together what two university extension services say about why crickets come inside and how to keep them out, and what the Health Canada-registered labels say about the five insecticides we list that name crickets. Label wording is quoted from each product's registered label as it appears on our product pages; read the full label before you use any of them.
Why is my garage full of crickets?
University of Missouri Extension urban entomologist Emily Althoff says crickets "make their way indoors for warmth and shelter once temperatures start to drop". According to MU Extension, "Crickets are drawn to light and find their way inside through small openings in foundations or under doors as they search for food and safety." They "prefer cool, dark and damp places and like to move at night".
The chirping is a mating call. Iowa State University's Yard and Garden page on field crickets says chirping "is done only by the males as a way to attract the females of their own species." The same page says field crickets "spend most of their life outdoors" and that "Only during a limited portion of their life cycle do they wander indoors by mistake and create an annoyance." It adds: "Ultimately, cricket problems end in the fall when the adults are killed by heavy frost or freeze."
Are crickets in the house or garage a problem?
Mostly they are a noise problem, but MU Extension says that once inside, crickets "eat and damage items such as cotton, linen, wool, silk and fur," and that "Materials soiled by perspiration or food are more likely to be damaged." That matters most in basements and storage rooms where clothing, blankets or pet bedding are kept.
How do I keep crickets out of the house and garage?
Both extension services put keeping them out first. MU Extension's list:
- "Seal cracks. Use weatherstripping, caulk and door sweeps as barriers."
- "Avoid clutter. Remove clutter from around the foundation of buildings. Clutter can serve as hiding places for crickets and other pests."
- "Remove vegetation. Fall is a good time to tidy up vegetation from flower beds, gardens and bushes to avoid providing shelter for crickets and other insects."
Iowa State adds: "Seal cracks, gaps and holes in foundation, siding, windows, doors, screens, and other possible entry points." and "Remove vegetation and debris from next to the house that serves as a hiding place or breeding site." For crickets already inside, its advice is simple: "For invaders already inside the house, vacuum or sweep them up and discard." The Iowa State page also says indoor treatments with residual insecticides are of little benefit, so treat sealing and cleanup as the main job and a spray as a spot treatment for the crickets you can reach.
What kills crickets in the house or garage?
In Canada, an insecticide sold for crickets has to be registered by Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency, and its label carries a PCP registration number and the list of pests it is registered for. Five products we list name crickets on their registered labels: three Ortho sprays, an Ortho diatomaceous earth aerosol and a Doktor Doom dust.
Ortho Home Defense Max Home Insect Killer (aerosol)
Ortho Home Defense Max Home Insect Killer Aerosol 400 g: PCP Reg. No. 33763, d-phenothrin 0.20% and tetramethrin 0.20%. The label reads "FOR INDOOR AND OUTDOOR USE", and crickets are on its crawling-insect list along with ants, carpet beetles, centipedes, caterpillars, cockroaches, fleas, silverfish, earwigs, mealybugs and spiders. Directions from the label: "Hold container with nozzle aimed away from you. Depress valve and spray lightly from a distance of 20-25cm (8 to 10 inches)." After treating a room, "Vacate for at least 15 minutes and aerate before re-entering." Precautions include "KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN AND PETS." and "Remove animals for a minimum of 1 hour when spraying room. Cover fish aquariums before spraying."
Ortho Home Defense Max Perimeter & Indoor Insect Control (ready-to-use)
Ortho Home Defense Max Perimeter & Indoor Insect Control Ready-To-Use 1 L: PCP Reg. No. 27521, permethrin 0.25%. Crickets are on the label's indoor pest list; outdoors, the registered pest is ants, on the exterior surfaces of buildings, so for crickets this is an indoor product. The label says: "Apply as a crack and crevice or spot treatment only." Indoors, "Treatment must only be repeated after 7 days if pest problem persists". Precautions include "KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN.", "Remove pets and birds and cover fish aquarium before surface applications." and "After use and at least one (1) hour drying time, wash all surfaces that may contact food."
Ortho Ant B Gon Max Ant & Roach Killer Spray (aerosol)
Ortho Ant B Gon Max Ant and Roach Killer Spray Aerosol 400 g: PCP Reg. No. 33725, permethrin 0.25%. Despite the name, its label's pest list reads "Kills Ants, Cockroaches, Earwigs, Spiders, Sowbugs, Silverfish, Dog & Cat Fleas, Brown Dog Ticks, Crickets, Firebrats, Red Flour Beetles and Rice Weevils". Hold the can "approximately 30 cm from surface being sprayed". Indoors, treatment is "only repeated after 7 days if pest problem persists". Precautions include "KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN", "Cover fish bowls and remove pets for one hour when spraying rooms" and "Remove or cover all exposed foods and cooking utensils before spraying."
Doktor Doom Go Green Pyrethrin Powder (dust, indoors)
Doktor Doom Go Green Premium Quality Pyrethrin Insecticide Powder 350 g: PCP Reg. No. 29759, pyrethrins 0.2% and piperonyl butoxide 1.0%, from Ultrasol Industries of Edmonton. The label reads "For indoor use in buildings to kill ants, cockroaches, silverfish, spiders, crickets, earwigs, sowbugs, boxelder bugs, bed bugs and fleas". It is a dust, applied only as the label's crack and crevice, perimeter, spot or furniture treatments: "DO NOT apply as a broadcast treatment. Apply as a crack and crevice, perimeter, spot or furniture (pet bedding, mattresses, box springs and bed frames only) treatment only." The label also says "DO NOT apply to overhead areas or in confined spaces (e.g., attics, crawlspaces, small storage rooms, closets)." and "DO NOT exceed 20-25 g per m2." Precautions include "KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN." and "DO NOT apply when people or pets are present."
Ortho Bug B Gon Diatom Diatomaceous Earth Multi Bug Killer (aerosol, indoors and outdoors)
Ortho Bug B Gon Diatom Diatomaceous Earth Multi Bug Killer Aerosol 340 g: PCP Reg. No. 32673, silicon dioxide (present as diatomaceous earth) 6.56%, from Scotts Canada. Its front panel lists ants, cockroaches, crickets, earwigs, fleas and silverfish and reads "For Use in Homes and Outdoors". Indoors, the label says: "Spray an even layer to the areas where these pests are found or may hide such as cracks and crevices, behind and beneath stoves, refrigerators, sinks, cabinets, baseboards, garbage cans, around pipes and drains, window frames and in attics and basements." Outdoor sites on the label include "patios, windows, door frames and sills, outside of entrance ways, around foundations, and along ant trails." The label also says "Do not use as a general space spray." and "When used indoors in residential settings, do not apply in the immediate vicinity of people or pets." The front panel carries "CAUTION DANGER EXPLOSIVE EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE".
Each label also carries first-aid, storage and disposal directions. Read them on the product page or the label before use.
Which one fits the job?
- A cricket you can see, in a room, garage or basement: either aerosol, the Home Insect Killer or the Ant & Roach Killer Spray, lists crickets on its label.
- Cracks and crevices along baseboards, around doors and in basements, indoors: the Perimeter & Indoor ready-to-use bottle, which its label limits to crack and crevice or spot treatment.
- Cracks, crevices and baseboards indoors where a dust suits better than a spray: the Doktor Doom Go Green pyrethrin powder, within its label's limits (no attics, crawlspaces, small storage rooms or closets).
- Outdoors around foundations, door frames and sills, or indoors in cracks and crevices, basements and attics: the Ortho Bug B Gon Diatom aerosol, whose label is for use in homes and outdoors.
- Keeping the next ones out: sealing, door sweeps and cleanup around the foundation, as above.
Does dish soap or WD-40 kill crickets?
Home remedies come up a lot when people search for crickets. Only products registered under the Pest Control Products Act carry a PCP number and label directions for the pests they control, and dish soap and spray lubricants are not sold as registered cricket controls. If you decide to spray, use a product whose Canadian label lists crickets, and only where and how that label allows.
Where to buy cricket sprays in Alberta
Pipestone Farm Supply lists all five in store in Millet, Alberta, between Leduc and Wetaskiwin south of Edmonton, and online. Browse the Home and Structural and Ant Control categories, the full Ortho range, the Doktor Doom range or all of Pest Control. Mice move indoors at the same time of year; our fall mouse control guide for barns, shops and outbuildings covers bait stations and traps. Directions are on our Millet store page. Provincial and municipal pesticide rules differ, so check yours. Pesticides are regulated by Health Canada; read and follow the label before every use.
Sources: University of Missouri Extension, "It's fall, and here come chirping crickets" (September 25, 2025), extension.missouri.edu; Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, Yard and Garden, "Field Cricket", yardandgarden.extension.iastate.edu; Health Canada Pest Management Regulatory Agency registered labels for ORTHO HOME DEFENSE MAX HOME INSECT KILLER (PCP Reg. No. 33763), ORTHO HOME DEFENSE MAX PERIMETER & INDOOR INSECT CONTROL READY-TO-USE (PCP Reg. No. 27521) and ORTHO ANT B GON MAX ANT & ROACH KILLER SPRAY (PCP Reg. No. 33725), as quoted on our product pages, for ORTHO BUG B GON DIATOM DIATOMACEOUS EARTH MULTI BUG KILLER (PCP Reg. No. 32673), and for Doktor Doom Go Green Premium Pyrethrin Powder Insect Killer (PCP Reg. No. 29759), viewed September 2026.