The Index → Avoid
✕Avoid
Ultrasonic pest repellers
Sold for everything, tested repeatedly, and they do not work.
What it is
Plug-in or solar-staked devices that emit high-frequency sound, sold to repel rodents, deer, raccoons, insects, and essentially anything else the package can name.
The numbers
- They have failed controlled testing repeatedly, across decades and across target species.
- The FTC has taken enforcement action against ultrasonic pest-control marketers over unsupported claims.
- Where any effect is observed at all, animals habituate within days.
Why it's here
It's here because it sits on the same shelf, at the same store, for the same money as the motion sprinkler — which works. That pairing is the most useful thing about it.
The catch
There's no catch to manage; it's just not a thing. Put the money into a fence, a motion sprinkler, or an owl box. For rodents in a building, the answer has always been exclusion — find the hole and close it.