The wonderful weather means open windows, eating outdoors and - unfortunately - lots of flies, wasps and mosquitoes. So what can you do to beat the little biters? We tried six different solutions... Scroll down for video . Cruel: This high-tech swatter doesn't always kill flies but can injure them . The Executioner Bug Zapper Racket, £10.99 amazon.co.uk . A battery-operated racket that emits a static charge to 'zap' flies, mosquitoes and wasps. Simply press the button on the handle and take a swing at the annoying flying insect of your choice to kill it. Not suitable for children under eight. Pros: This racket is sturdier and gives off a more powerful charge than some I've seen. And of course, as soon as you get it out, everyone wants to have a go. CONS:  It's cruel. Although the racket zaps all manner of bugs with a satisfying sizzle, it doesn't always kill them, so you end up having to put flies out of their misery with your flip-flop. Some get stuck in the wires. Not nice. VERDICT: 1/5 . Cute but ineffective: Lovebug Electronic Mosquito Deterrent . Lovebug Electronic Mosquito Deterrent, £9.95, johnlewis.com . Designed to protect babies from mosquitoes, this cute, battery-operated, clip-on device emits a low-level tone that imitates the sound of a dragonfly's wing beat - mosquitoes' natural predators. PROS: There are no insecticides or chemicals involved. Neat and well-made. It looks good, too. CONS: We took this to a lakeside restaurant, where my 12-year-old son had been bitten badly by mosquitoes a couple of weeks ago. I clipped the Lovebug to the top of his sock...  and he was bitten again almost immediately. VERDICT: 0/5 . The waspinator: Not pretty but could keep wasps away . Waspinator, £9.50 for a set of two, qvc.com . This sinister-looking grey bag is designed to deter wasps by mimicking a real nest. The theory is that when foraging wasps see the Waspinator they will mistake it for another colony's nest and stay well clear. PROS: A cheap and natural way to deter wasps. They did seem to keep their distance with the Waspinator hanging from a garden parasol. CONS: If there is an established nest in your garden this is unlikely to work, as the resident wasps will assess the threat of the 'new' nest and realise it is not real. It's not pretty but who cares if it keeps the wasps away? VERDICT: 3/5 . Useless: Plastic bag filled with coins and water . Plastic bag filled with water and copper coins, 10p . If the thousands of online testimonies and the butchers in some of London’s poshest farmers' markets are to be believed, you can deter flies by hanging up clear, plastic bags filled with water and a few copper coins. No one seems to know how they repel flies, but most seem to agree that the refraction of light from the water and shiny coins in the bags upsets their vision and sends them packing. PROS: Cheap and cheerful, this is a fly deterrent that anyone can make. CONS: It didn't work - at all. I hung two bags of water and copper coins next to the open French doors that lead from our garden into our kitchen. I was inundated with just as many annoying flies as usual, leaving me feeling distinctly  short-changed. VERDICT: 0/5 . Small but powerful: The Prevent Scentrel candle . Prevent Scentrel, £5.99, from Robert Dyas stores . This is a small tin containing seven tiny candles and a ceramic ring infused with pyrethrin - an insect repellent extracted from chrysanthemums. The candle is placed in the centre of the ceramic ring, and when lit its heat releases the pyrethrin into the air to repel mosquitoes, flies, midges and wasps. The manufacturer claims one candle will clear an 8m x 10m space of flying insects for up to 24 hours. This will also keep bugs away if you burn it at a picnic or barbecue. PROS: Small but powerful, this almost odourless set-up is just the thing for camping, eating alfresco or keeping a hotel room mosquito-free. When I burned one during an evening meal outdoors, bugs did not bother us. CONS: As with any candle you have to be very careful where you burn it - and make sure you extinguish it afterwards. Inhaling any sort of insecticide is never going to be a good idea, so make sure it's not too close to you while it's alight and you are in an area where there is plenty of fresh air flowing through. VERDICT: 4/5 . Useful but unattractive: Adjustable Insect Repellent Block . Adjustable Insect Repellent Block, £3.79, lakeland.co.uk . This tea tree and citronella fragranced block contains permethrin, a powerful insecticide - so it's not just a repellent, as Lakeland describe it, but also promises to kill bugs, too. The block is saturated with the fragrance and the insecticide, so when opened it should keep a small room free of flies, wasps and mosquitoes for up to 60 days. PROS: The compact shape and pleasant fragrance of this product make it an ideal table companion for eating outdoors. The smell of citronella has been scientifically proven to repel mosquitoes and flies - and it did seem to drive a random fly out of my office quite quickly after I placed it on my desk. CONS: The block is pictured in a tasteful, pale green on the Lakeland website, but when it arrived it turned out to be a horrible, cheap-looking bright yellow. Insects have to come into contact with permethrin for it to kill them, so I can't see how this product - with its insect-repelling fragrance - could actually annihilate many bugs. Confusing all round.              VERDICT: 2/5 .
The Executioner Bug Zapper Racket is a battery-operated fly swatter .
It's cruel but fairly effective .
Other useful products include candles which repel inspects .
The wonderful weather means open windows, eating outdoors and - unfortunately - lots of flies, wasps and mosquitoes. So what can you do to beat the little biters? We tried six different solutions... Scroll down for video . Cruel: This high-tech swatter doesn't always kill flies but can injure them . The Executioner Bug Zapper Racket, £10.99 amazon.co.uk . A battery-operated racket that emits a static charge to 'zap' flies, mosquitoes and wasps. Simply press the button on the handle and take a swing at the annoying flying insect of your choice to kill it. Not suitable for children under eight. Pros: This racket is sturdier and gives off a more powerful charge than some I've seen. And of course, as soon as you get it out, everyone wants to have a go. CONS:  It's cruel. Although the racket zaps all manner of bugs with a satisfying sizzle, it doesn't always kill them, so you end up having to put flies out of their misery with your flip-flop. Some get stuck in the wires. Not nice. VERDICT: 1/5 . Cute but ineffective: Lovebug Electronic Mosquito Deterrent . Lovebug Electronic Mosquito Deterrent, £9.95, johnlewis.com . Designed to protect babies from mosquitoes, this cute, battery-operated, clip-on device emits a low-level tone that imitates the sound of a dragonfly's wing beat - mosquitoes' natural predators. PROS: There are no insecticides or chemicals involved. Neat and well-made. It looks good, too. CONS: We took this to a lakeside restaurant, where my 12-year-old son had been bitten badly by mosquitoes a couple of weeks ago. I clipped the Lovebug to the top of his sock...  and he was bitten again almost immediately. VERDICT: 0/5 . The waspinator: Not pretty but could keep wasps away . Waspinator, £9.50 for a set of two, qvc.com . This sinister-looking grey bag is designed to deter wasps by mimicking a real nest. The theory is that when foraging wasps see the Waspinator they will mistake it for another colony's nest and stay well clear. PROS: A cheap and natural way to deter wasps. They did seem to keep their distance with the Waspinator hanging from a garden parasol. CONS: If there is an established nest in your garden this is unlikely to work, as the resident wasps will assess the threat of the 'new' nest and realise it is not real. It's not pretty but who cares if it keeps the wasps away? VERDICT: 3/5 . Useless: Plastic bag filled with coins and water . Plastic bag filled with water and copper coins, 10p . If the thousands of online testimonies and the butchers in some of London’s poshest farmers' markets are to be believed, you can deter flies by hanging up clear, plastic bags filled with water and a few copper coins. No one seems to know how they repel flies, but most seem to agree that the refraction of light from the water and shiny coins in the bags upsets their vision and sends them packing. PROS: Cheap and cheerful, this is a fly deterrent that anyone can make. CONS: It didn't work - at all. I hung two bags of water and copper coins next to the open French doors that lead from our garden into our kitchen. I was inundated with just as many annoying flies as usual, leaving me feeling distinctly  short-changed. VERDICT: 0/5 . Small but powerful: The Prevent Scentrel candle . Prevent Scentrel, £5.99, from Robert Dyas stores . This is a small tin containing seven tiny candles and a ceramic ring infused with pyrethrin - an insect repellent extracted from chrysanthemums. The candle is placed in the centre of the ceramic ring, and when lit its heat releases the pyrethrin into the air to repel mosquitoes, flies, midges and wasps. The manufacturer claims one candle will clear an 8m x 10m space of flying insects for up to 24 hours. This will also keep bugs away if you burn it at a picnic or barbecue. PROS: Small but powerful, this almost odourless set-up is just the thing for camping, eating alfresco or keeping a hotel room mosquito-free. When I burned one during an evening meal outdoors, bugs did not bother us. CONS: As with any candle you have to be very careful where you burn it - and make sure you extinguish it afterwards. Inhaling any sort of insecticide is never going to be a good idea, so make sure it's not too close to you while it's alight and you are in an area where there is plenty of fresh air flowing through. VERDICT: 4/5 . Useful but unattractive: Adjustable Insect Repellent Block . Adjustable Insect Repellent Block, £3.79, lakeland.co.uk . This tea tree and citronella fragranced block contains permethrin, a powerful insecticide - so it's not just a repellent, as Lakeland describe it, but also promises to kill bugs, too. The block is saturated with the fragrance and the insecticide, so when opened it should keep a small room free of flies, wasps and mosquitoes for up to 60 days. PROS: The compact shape and pleasant fragrance of this product make it an ideal table companion for eating outdoors. The smell of citronella has been scientifically proven to repel mosquitoes and flies - and it did seem to drive a random fly out of my office quite quickly after I placed it on my desk. CONS: The block is pictured in a tasteful, pale green on the Lakeland website, but when it arrived it turned out to be a horrible, cheap-looking bright yellow. Insects have to come into contact with permethrin for it to kill them, so I can't see how this product - with its insect-repelling fragrance - could actually annihilate many bugs. Confusing all round.              VERDICT: 2/5 .
can injure them . The Executioner Bug Zapper Racket, £10.99 amazon.co.uk . A battery-operated go. CONS:  It's cruel. Although the racket zaps PROS: Cheap and cheerful, this is a fly deterrent