15 Effective Ways How to Keep Frogs Away From Your Porch, Deck, Patio, House (2024)

Finding frogs in your yard isn’t usually problematic. After all, they can help keep pests under control on your property. But if loud croaking at night is getting on your nerves or your pets keep trying to chase them down, figuring out how to keep frogs away from your porch, deck, patio, or house might end up a priority.

You can take several steps to keep frogs away from your property. Eliminating water sources and dealing with pests is a critical starting point. After that, installing mesh fencing, placing predator decoys, and using a variety of repellents can do the trick.

The best options may depend on whether the frogs are congregating, whether you have pets or other factors. If you need to figure out how to keep frogs away from your porch, deck, patio, or house, here’s what you need to know.

What Attracts Frogs to Your House?

Typically, two things will primarily attract frogs to a property. First, frogs need access to water, and not just for drinking. Most frogs favor yards with wet areas, such as pools, ponds, or even wet spots on the ground that don’t drain well.

Second, frogs prefer properties that provide easy access to food. For most frogs, that means homes with ample insects in the yard. However, some frogs eat other things, including small snakes, mice, moles, or even pet food.

Food and water are the primary necessities for frogs, so they typically won’t stick around if those aren’t present. However, if your yard is also overgrown and provides food and water, your odds of having a frog problem are even higher. Overgrown foliage gives frogs places to hide and encourages insects to stay in the area, which can make your property even more attractive in their eyes.

How to Keep Frogs Away from Your Porch, Deck, Patio, House

1. Eliminate Water Sources

Frogs need water to live as well as reproduce. By eliminating water sources in your yard or near your home, frogs are less likely to stick around.

Make sure any leaky faucets are repaired. Additionally, get rid of stagnant water in containers and gutters. You may also need to improve drainage in your yard if water tends to pool and stick around.

You may have a tough choice if you have a pool, pond, or fountain. Draining them eliminates a water source, so it’s worth considering. However, if you want to use them, you could try installing fencing to keep frogs away from them. Covering a pool may also help.

2. Clean Up the Yard

Tall grass and dense foliage can be excellent hiding places for frogs. Similarly, they may seek shelter in debris piles. So, cleaning up your yard is essential if you want to keep frogs away.

Begin with basic yard maintenance. Mow down tall grass and trim the base of hedges to create a gap between them and the ground. Leaving space between plants when planting can also help.

Next, remove any piled-up debris. Racking leaves and bagging them is a good starting point. Similarly, making sure that any wood stacks are on racks and off the ground can make a difference.

3. Avoid Outdoor Lighting

Outdoor lighting often attracts insects at night. Since frogs feed on insects, the more pests around your property, the higher the chance frogs will start arriving.

While you should keep any lights needed for safety, remove any purely decorative or ornamental. That allows you to limit the light at night, decreasing the likelihood that you’ll attract many insects.

Consider switching to yellow light bulbs for any outdoor lights you keep. Yellow light is less likely to attract bugs but can still provide you with the lighting you need to move around your property safely.

4. Control Pests

By controlling pests on your property, you’re eliminating a food source that would usually attract frogs. There are several ways to prevent insects from coming to your property.

Cleaning up your yard, as described above, can also help keep insects away. Similarly, avoiding excess outdoor light and switching to yellow bulbs in the remaining fixtures helps.

You can try using some relatively common substances as deterrents or repellents. For example, peppermint oil, citronella, grapefruit oil, rosemary, geranium oil, and similar options may work, depending on the type of pest.

Otherwise, you may want to try pesticides. Working with a pest control specialist is often the safest option. Along with knowing how to correctly apply treatments, they can select pesticides that specifically target the type of insects present on your property, ensuring it’s as effective as possible.

5. Cover Pools

Swimming pools are massive water sources, so they can often attract frogs. By covering the pool, you make it inaccessible, and that can help keep frogs away.

When you choose a pool cover, you want to select one that fits tightly to the ground or side, ensuring frogs can’t squeeze through. Solid or rightly woven mesh covers can work for larger frogs, but if a mesh cover isn’t woven tightly enough, small frogs may fit through, so keep that in mind.

6. Install Fine-Mesh Fencing

Physical barriers can keep various animals away from your yard and home, including frogs. However, since frogs are often quite small, you need to use fine-mesh fencing over the available alternatives. Additionally, you may want to bury the lower edge in the ground, ensuring there’s not a gap that frogs could squeeze through.

If you have an existing fence that’s not fine-mesh, attaching fine-mesh fencing to the bottom could also help make a frog-proof barrier. If you can bury the lower end, that’s the best option. However, if that isn’t possible, ensure it’s as low to the ground as possible.

7. Place Predator Decoys

Predator decoys can make frogs think your property isn’t safe for them, encouraging them to head elsewhere. For frogs, you want to choose predator decoys that align with threats in your area. Decoy snakes could work well; you can also consider owl or raccoon decoys.

For decoys to be effective, you may need to regularly shift them around your property. Otherwise, the frogs may realize that the predators aren’t moving, causing them to eventually ignore the presence of the decoys.

8. Make a Vinegar Spray

Vinegar is acidic, and that means it may sting sensitive skin. Walking across it is typically uncomfortable for frogs, as it causes a burning sensation on their feet. That means a vinegar spray can be an effective way to encourage frogs to leave your property.

In most cases, the easiest way to apply vinegar is to make a spray. You may want to dilute the vinegar with water first, though using it full-strength is an option. Additionally, adding a few drops of dish soap or vegetable glycerin is sometimes recommended, but it isn’t technically necessary.

After making the spray, spritz areas that you want frogs to avoid. Just make sure that you keep the spray away from your plants. Vinegar can damage plants, too, but it’s safe for people and pets, making it worth considering.

9. Use Lemon Juice

Lemon juice is acidic, and it can cause frogs to experience a burning sensation if they come in contact with it. Usually, you’ll want to create a spray by diluting the lemon juice with water. Then, you can spritz surfaces you want frogs to avoid.

As with vinegar, lemon juice can damage plants since it’s acidic. As a result, you only want to use it on hard surfaces like patios, porches, and walkways and not on garden plants.

It’s also critical to note that lemon juice contains sugars, which may attract certain types of pests. For example, while frogs might stay away initially, the lemon juice could draw in fruit flies sometimes, so keep that in mind.

10. Sprinkle Coffee Grounds

Sprinkling used coffee grounds around your yard is a common way to improve soil quality when it’s low in nitrates or too basic. As a side benefit, the coffee grounds can also serve as a frog deterrent. Coffee grounds are acidic, which makes them uncomfortable for frogs to walk across.

Coffee grounds may also work to deter other types of pests that are sensitive to acidic substances. Just be aware that coffee grounds aren’t an ideal choice if your soil is already on the acidic side. In that case, it may introduce too much acid, harming plants.

11. Try Citronella

Citronella is a popular repellent that works on various pests and wildlife, including frogs. In many cases, it’s because the aroma is unpleasant.

If you want to add citronella to your yard, consider growing it in areas where frogs may go. It grows quickly, so you can typically get good coverage in a relatively short period.

Alternatively, you can get citronella essential oil to create a spray. Citronella candles or diffusers may also work well, albeit for a shorter period.

One potential issue is that citronella can be toxic to pets. As a result, it’s not recommended if you have dogs or cats.

12. Plant Lemongrass or Marigolds

As with citronella, lemongrass and marigolds naturally deter various pests and certain animals. Planting some where frogs are trying to congregate can often encourage them to leave. Alternatively, you can use essential oil versions to create handy sprays around your property.

The benefit here is that lemongrass and marigolds aren’t harmful to people. Plus, they are only mildly dangerous to pets when ingested, typically causing some light digestive distress for a short period. However, if you’re concerned about pets consuming them, limit the use of marigolds to areas pets don’t explore.

13. Sprinkle Salt

Salt is a common way to keep certain pests away, particularly slugs and snails. However, it will also work as a frog deterrent. The salt is uncomfortable on their feet, making the frogs less likely to stick around.

Too much contact with salt can also be fatal to frogs, depending on the amount of contact and the species. It can lead to dehydration and may harm the protective coatings on their skin, so frogs usually avoid areas with high amounts of salt.

If you prefer another application method, making salt water and spritzing areas you want frogs to avoid can also work. Just be aware that salt can harm certain types of plants, particularly in high doses. So, only use this method away from plants, such as on porches, patios, or walkways.

14. Apply Baking Soda

Baking soda is abrasive and dehydrating, which can make it an effective frog deterrent. Generally, you’d want to sprinkle baking soda to create barriers that keep frogs away from specific parts of your property. For example, you could surround a patio or go around the edge of your yard.

One issue with using baking soda is that it can harm plants, as it’s an alkaline substance. While baking soda is generally safe to use around people and pets, if large quantities are accidentally ingested, it can cause issues.

15. Try Commercial Snake Repellents

In most cases, you won’t find commercial repellents explicitly marketed for getting rid of frogs. However, the commercial repellents made to deter snakes usually work reasonably well.

Plus, commercial snake repellents won’t cause harm to the frogs. Instead, they mainly encourage them to head away from the property. Additionally, you’ll incidentally end up with a yard that’s also unpleasant to snakes, keeping them away.

Before you apply snake repellents, make sure to read any instructions and warning labels. Some commercial snake repellents include hazardous chemicals that could harm people, pets, plants, and wildlife. By going over the information, you can make sure that you can use the product safely, and if you have concerns, you can find an alternative instead.

Does Pine-Sol Deter Frogs?

Pine-Sol is a cleaning product known for its powerful odor. Since it has a lot of scent, it can deter some pests and wildlife from remaining in an area.

However, there isn’t clear evidence that Pine-Sol will deter frogs specifically. Plus, Pine-Sol contains chemicals that may be harmful to pets and could damage plants. As a result, it’s not a recommended way to get rid of frogs on a property.

Do Mothballs Repel Frogs?

Mothballs have an incredibly strong odor, so they can deter many different types of animals. However, using mothballs isn’t safe, and any off-label use of mothballs – which is what would be necessary if you’re using them as a frog repellent – is illegal.

Using mothballs in this manner isn’t allowed because mothballs are toxic. Along with harming wildlife, they can hurt people and pets. Plus, they can damage the local environment, so their use is restricted to specific applications.

Does Chlorine Keep Frogs Away?

Frogs typically won’t spend a lot of time in a pool containing chlorine, as it can harm them. However, they can survive in it briefly, and chlorine in the water isn’t necessarily enough to keep them from checking out a pool.

Using pool chlorine outside of a pool isn’t recommended either. Even if it could potentially deter frogs, it’s an irritant that could harm different types of wildlife, people, and pets. Plus, it could hurt the environment, damage plants, or harm local water sources.

Does Peppermint Deter Frogs?

Peppermint is a popular option for deterring a wide array of pests. However, there isn’t any evidence to suggest it’s particularly effective at getting rid of frogs directly. As a result, don’t expect the peppermint oil to drive the frogs away.

But peppermint could be beneficial if you aim to keep insects or other potential food sources for frogs away from your property. Creating a spray with peppermint oil is often the easiest application option, so consider giving it a try. You could also plant mint around your property, as it can have a similar effect.

Just understand that peppermint oil can drive a lot of different types of animals away. Additionally, it’s not safe to use around pets. Since that’s the case, you’ll want to explore other methods if you have pets that use the areas you’re considering treating with peppermint.

What Scents Do Frogs Hate?

If you want to deter frogs with scents, a few options can work reasonably well. Citronella, lemongrass, and marigolds are usually the simplest options. They’re hearty plants and affordable, making them budget-friendly choices.

You can also try essential oils to create sprays featuring those scents. Usually, around 10 drops in a spray bottle filled with water and a few squirts of mild liquid dish detergent do the trick. Then, spritz the spots you want frogs to avoid, and reapply regularly to keep it working.

With citronella, you can also try candles, diffusers, torches, or similar approaches to spread the scent. Just be aware that these aren’t necessarily the longest-lasting, so they may not deter frogs for long.

Best Way to Keep Frogs Away

Typically, the best way to get rid of frogs is to eliminate water sources and control pests on your property. Most frogs won’t stick around if food and water aren’t accessible, so that alone may do the trick. But if not, try the various repellents listed above to get them to finally leave.

Did you learn everything you wanted to learn about keeping frogs away from your porch, deck, patio, or house? If so, let us know in the comments. Also, if you know anyone who needs to get frogs off their property, share the article.