Insect Clothing Treatments

D

dyee

Joined
Feb 13, 2005
Messages
15
The only chemical I know is permethrin. Are there any others to consider? What are some products/brands to look for? Also do any of them affect the strength of nylon or other fabrics, like DEET?
 
Permethrin is the only one I have seen that lasts any appreciable amount of time. According to the manufacturer's label of the one I have used (Sawyer's, I think), it does not affect fabrics in any way.
 
I just recently treated a set of clothing with permethrin and I did not notice any change in the fabric. I treated 2 Under Armour shirts, a pair of cotton BDU pants, a cotton fishing shirt, a nylon hat, my desert boots, and Cool Max socks. It seems to work too. I had the mosquitoes buzz up to the clothing and then go away. :cool:
 
You can get Permethrin at Home Depot or such places in the lawn and garden section.

I had this text from some earlier email list so I can't credit the original authors:

Permethrin is an insecticide, used, among other things, for termite control in your house. Matter of fact, one of the cheapest ways to buy Permethrin is in the very concentrated form (around 35%, I think) that gets sold to folks who want to do their own termite control. Also excellent for knocking down flies in barns, etc.

The military (and the folks who make Buzz-Off clothing) use around a 13% solution, I believe, for up to 52 weeks of protection. The Sawyer stuff sold at REI is a .25% solution and good for perhaps two weeks.

While it is definitely an insecticide, it works, effectively, as a repellent when applied to clothing. Ticks jump on, ticks jump right back off again. Mosquitoes do NOT stick around. Flies don't land and stay. Mosquitoes that DO stick around die.


Depends on how long you want it to last. Higher concentrations = longer active time. Sawyer estimates that their .25% solution is good for about two weeks. Somewhere on the web there's a chart with approximate durations for given concentrations. The military figures that soaking in a 13% solution is good for 52 weeks including through washings.

I usually work with something in the .5% range and redo just before the next trip, or once a month (if it's day-hiking stuff). You should do your socks and underwear and whatever your base layers are (shorts or pants and t-shirt. I also soak head nets and hats, and I'll often spray netting on tents. Keeps them from crawling around looking for a hole. Forget exterior shells, etc., unless you really want to do your wind jacket for some reason.
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[the following is from a different thread/email]

The risk of soaking your clothing in a dilute solution of Permethrin is negligible. It doesn't really matter one way or the other whether you follow the directions on a Sawyer's spray bottle of permethrin to give your clothing a good soaking spray, or if you put the solution in a bucket and then wring it out and dry it before wearing or washing it.

This ground has been covered fairly often in this group -- I'd suggest that if anyone has problems with the process, they should probably check the message archives here to see what's been said about this before. There's a lot of information there, including some links to companies providing bottles of high concentration permethrin (36%), which will save you a LOT of money if you're doing clothing for, say, a scout troop. Here's one: http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/spec/PICK-permpro1.htm

A single quart of this stuff will produce about 96 *gallons* of .5% solution for around $55. The Sawyer product at REI is half that strength (.25%?) and runs about $10 for 16 ounces or so, though it's been a while since I've looked at that bottle...

The Ortho Basic Solutions Home and Garden..yada yada is a 2.5% permethrin solution and is available at Home Depot and other home improvement type stores.
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