Love Bugs Infest the Harmony at Port Canaveral

[Snit13]

As soon as possible take A&H baking soda and a wet soft cloth and wash them off your paint on car or they will destroy your paint job.  Year or so ago driving from Port Everglades on Turnpike we had to stop 2 times at service plazas to clean windshield as we could not see to drive.

I live on West Coast of FL and drove home from Gainesville last week and they were not as bad as described at Port Canaveral. 

The rain deluge as Harmony sailed away yesterday should have helped a little.

Happy Sails to all on Harmony now.

[ryano]

They seem to REALLY love white!   Prevelant in May and September and very annoying but harmless.  Ive known people in FL that will spray the whole front end of their car in PAM to keep them from sticking to the paint.  If you dont get them off fairly quick and they dry on there, it can ruin a paint job.

Edited May 7, 2019 by ryano

[AlexMar]

 

39 minutes ago, Snit13 said:

As soon as possible take A&H baking soda and a wet soft cloth and wash them off your paint on car or they will destroy your paint job.  Year or so ago driving from Port Everglades on Turnpike we had to stop 2 times at service plazas to clean windshield as we could not see to drive.

I live on West Coast of FL and drove home from Gainesville last week and they were not as bad as described at Port Canaveral. 

The rain deluge as Harmony sailed away yesterday should have helped a little.

Happy Sails to all on Harmony now.

 

We drove US27 from Sebring 2 weeks ago and they were "raining" - had to stop and clean the windshield halfway just to see.  We don't even think much of it anymore.  Part of living here.

[Pratique]

 

[Sloryd66]

An old myth is that they were created in a lab at the University of Florida to combat mosquitoes....not true. They actually migrated from Central/South America. With that many on the ship(s), I can see this becoming a problem all over the western Caribbean as they hitch free rides to the various Islands. We just deal with the nuisance twice a year here in Florida. We save our used dryer sheets leading up to the two "seasons"....helps scrub them off our cars. 

[BirdTravels]

In a futile attempt to clean up, the crew had every available pressure washer and wetvac out this morning trying to clean the lovebugs off all outside decks and surfaces. (They forgot to spray the ship with Pam yesterday). 

[dreadpirate3]

58 minutes ago, ryano said:

They seem to REALLY love white!   Prevelant in May and September and very annoying but harmless.  Ive known people in FL that will spray the whole front end of their car in PAM to keep them from sticking to the paint.  If you dont get them off fairly quick and they dry on there, it can ruin a paint job.

 

They really love white and I have a white house!

 

They are much worse this year than I can remember and I've lived in the Orlando area since 1990.

[BirdTravels]

Still crawling around the cabin this morning. 

[awestover89]

18 minutes ago, dreadpirate3 said:

 

They really love white and I have a white house!

 

They are much worse this year than I can remember and I've lived in the Orlando area since 1990.

 

Move to the Keys, we don't have any lovebugs.

 

Of course, we do have insanely expensive houses and rents, bikes and scooters that appear to have a death wish on the roads,  drunk tourists, and only one road in and out that is highly susceptible to accidents.

[Milwaukee Eight]

12 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Still crawling around the cabin this morning. 

That one is looking for a partner. 

[dreadpirate3]

5 minutes ago, awestover89 said:

 

Move to the Keys, we don't have any lovebugs.

 

Of course, we do have insanely expensive houses and rents, bikes and scooters that appear to have a death wish on the roads,  drunk tourists, and only one road in and out that is highly susceptible to accidents.

 

Yes, but I could eat at Hobo's Cafe and go to Pennekamp all the time. 🙂

[KeywestK]

There are more love bugs this year that in recent previous years.  They should be gone soon, but will return around September.  For some reason, they are attracted to white.  Basically harmless, but definitely annoying.

[molly361]

29 minutes ago, awestover89 said:

 

Move to the Keys, we don't have any lovebugs.

 

Of course, we do have insanely expensive houses and rents, bikes and scooters that appear to have a death wish on the roads,  drunk tourists, and only one road in and out that is highly susceptible to accidents.

And 4 ft iguanad

[awestover89]

23 minutes ago, molly361 said:

And 4 ft iguanad

 

4 foot are the little ones 🙂

 

I'm one of the few people I know down here that like the iguanas. We even have a pet iguana we got a couple years ago before we moved here.

[Milwaukee Eight]

A picture in the media from Disney. 

 

 

[BirdTravels]

3 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

In a futile attempt to clean up, the crew had every available pressure washer and wetvac out this morning trying to clean the lovebugs off all outside decks and surfaces. (They forgot to spray the ship with Pam yesterday). 

The cruise director made an announcement that they would try to have the ship cleaned up by the time we return from shore. 

[klfhngr]

I don't see the pineapple signs?!

[ZoeyVictoria]

We drove from Ocala to Miami on Sunday. The love bugs were so thick that they sounded like rain hitting the windshield.  There were cars stopped everywhere at the service plazas on the Turnpike, trying to scrape them off with dry squeegees (used so much that all the fluid was gone) and lined up twenty deep to use the windshield washing stations.  We found a car wash as soon as we got to Miami.  Fingers crossed that they will be done by the time we return home on the 12th.

[island lady]

Aw come on guys...It's "The Love Boat".    LOL...why I the first to point this out?  😄 

 

We drove from St. George Island in the Florida Panhandle on Saturday to where we are currently staying in Silver Springs (near Ocala...Central Florida).  Our motor home was plastered with the nasty critters the whole trip...so they are up there too.  You would think we would all eliminate the entire population due to the millions we smush on our windshields!  😮  

[Pratique]

It's a conspiracy by the car wash and windshield wiper fluid industries. 🤫

[MJSailors]

Ah yes,the love bugs !

We experienced them on Hutchinson Island when we were there one May renovating a condo we had just purchased.

We then sold it.

No desire to live there permanently due to those bugs,alligators,snakes, heat, humidity, hurricanes and crazy drivers.

Florida is a nice place to embark on a cruise though !

Just MHO

[gatour]

8 hours ago, Snit13 said:

As soon as possible take A&H baking soda and a wet soft cloth and wash them off your paint on car or they will destroy your paint job.  Year or so ago driving from Port Everglades on Turnpike we had to stop 2 times at service plazas to clean windshield as we could not see to drive.

I live on West Coast of FL and drove home from Gainesville last week and they were not as bad as described at Port Canaveral. 

The rain deluge as Harmony sailed away yesterday should have helped a little.

Happy Sails to all on Harmony now.

This is a new home remedy I haven't heard before.  

 

How much baking soda do you apply.  Thickly or just a dusting.  Or is it mixture of water and the baking soda.  If so what ratio?

 

Or do you apply water first, then the baking soda, and then rinse with more water.

[Iamcruzin]

7 hours ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

That one is looking for a partner. 

Maybe it’s sailing solo to get double points to make Diamond for it’s next cruise 

[eroller]

Nasty.  I live in South Florida (Fort Lauderdale and Miami before that).  I don't recall ever seeing them here, certainly not in mass quantities.  Of course we have plenty of other bugs to contend with.  

[Snit13]

3 hours ago, gatour said:

This is a new home remedy I haven't heard before.  

 

How much baking soda do you apply.  Thickly or just a dusting.  Or is it mixture of water and the baking soda.  If so what ratio?

 

Or do you apply water first, then the baking soda, and then rinse with more water.

Wet cloth and pour some baking soda on and scrub the bug.  Connect hose and rinse.  Kin in JAX told us about this years ago.  Works every time.  Matter of fact I need to find someone to work on my car soon as caught quite a few coming home from Gainesville last week.