Mosquito Repellant Suggestions

T

Tony Turner

Joined
Apr 15, 2003
Messages
175
I live up in the North Country so our summers and nice weather is short enough as it is due to the weather. I have used ( I think) every thing under the sun to keep mosquitos from bitting. I am looking to see what others use. Most every one will say "you gotta use deet" I have used products that I was given in the millitary that was 99.9% deet, the only thing that did was eat your rubber watch band off. It did work for awhile but was easily sweated off or washed off in the rain. Why is it that us North Dakotans get such a short warm season and have to deal with the bugs too, not fair.
 
Long sleeves and pants with the bug spray on the clothing is the best I can suggest.
 
Use a mesh bug suit and eliminate the need for repellants. I use high percent deet by spraying it onto my clothing and letting it dry. On my skin I use bug juice towlettes. I spent several weeks camped on a river bank in July heat and used this stuff. The only thing that bit me was a nasty green fly.
 
Here in Maine there's an old formula available called "Old Time Woodsman", which has the added benefit of repelling people as well as it does bugs.
 
i've never tried it but i heard premethrin on clothes and gear will not only repel bugs but kill them too

i'm going to try some on my jungle hammock
 
I used to spend a majority of time outside when I worked as a forester in the southeast. I NEVER used insect repellent. When you know you are going to the field, don't take a shower that day. Let your natural oils build up and no perfume soap. All I ever did is rub Wax Myrtle leaves over my exposed skin, including my face, when the skeeters were out.

If I went in really bad areas, like the edges of wetlands with a lot of dog fennel where the skeeters were generally unbearable, or in young pine stands in the summer when the deer flies were so thick they would create a shadow around you (not kidding), I would use a headnet.
 
I know this may sound funny but try "Skin So Soft". A park ranger suggested it to me one year when my kids were being eaten alive by those pesky vectors. It works. :)
 
I just started forging, and when I forge at night the combo of the intense heat plus carbon dioxide attract a zillion skeeters down here in Miami, Florida. I started using OFF deep woods and even though I can feel at least 5-10 flying and hitting my legs at any given moment, I don't get bitten.
 
i have given up on bug spray i now wear long pants and long sleeve shirts at night in the summer. you may be thinkin this guys is sweatin bullets. naw i wear ems underwear or performance shirts, wind blows right through them. and i either wear underwear under my shorts or a pair of breathable pants. and the good thing is when it gets cold you can use em too for skin layer.

i think deep woods would be my choice tho if i needed to use anything.
 
use about 30% DEET. i have camped next to a pond that was filled with mosquitoes and didnt get bite.

99.9% DEET can give you cancer
 
spyder8 said:
use about 30% DEET. i have camped next to a pond that was filled with mosquitoes and didnt get bite.

99.9% DEET can give you cancer
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There has NEVER been any study EVER that proved DEET causes cancer in anything. DEET has been around for more than 60 years.

It is recommended that children use smaller %'s of DEET because of their sensitivity to chemicals.

30% DEET works well but does not last as long as 99% so it must be reapplied more often.

I have tried EVERY known remedy for bugs and nothing works when in the deep dark bush but DEET.

Bug shirts and hats work but are very hot in the summer.

Skam
 
Deet does not cause cancer...

Skin-So-Soft has been shown to be slightly effective, but only for very short periods of time. Not worth using, IMO.

Working outdoors in Arkansas for five years, Deep Woods Off seemed like the best bet. The 99% Deet compounds do work better, but they cost much more - cheaper to spray a second coat of Deep Woods. Ditto the shampoo and soap thing - I did notice more mosquitos right after bathing. Long pants and shirt are a 'must'.

Keep in mind how mosquitos and ticks are attracted - they have sensors for carbon dioxide and heat. So lower your body temperature and don't breathe. :)

Best solution that I found, nearly 100% effective, get the hell out of Arkansas.

-Bob
 
A Marine once told me to drink vinegar before going to the field. I never tried it. Long pants, long sleeves, and a head net seems like your best bet.
 
Several studies have shown that 30% deet works as well as heavier concentrations.

Lemon eucalyptus products are becoming widely available and work as well as deet but must be applied more often. However, lemon eucalyptus does not have any of the negative characteristics as deet. I have used it in areas of heavy mosquito concentrations with no bites.

I second the suggestions of clothing/netting coverage, but where netting or thin clothing touches the skin, a mosquito can "bite" though.
 
Johnson's Baby Oil works well -- doesn't repel but the buggers don't like to bite through the oily film. Can be kind of messy tho and doesn't last long if you're sweating a lot.
 
Alberta Ed said:
Johnson's Baby Oil works well -- doesn't repel but the buggers don't like to bite through the oily film. Can be kind of messy tho and doesn't last long if you're sweating a lot.
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Anyone old enough to remember "6-12"? :D
 
I'd also seen recommended that B12 a few days before then during your trek will work.

Never tried it.

Since it is only the female that draws blood, try nerdy or ugly male skeeters. Should repel the biters.
 
I am very susceptible to mosquito bites, and for years I have used the Vitamin B1 as a natural repellant.
It seems that mosquitoes do not like the smell of Vitamin B on humans and will go elsewhere to feed.

You need to take large doses of the vitamin for about a week before your exposure and continue the high dose while you are in the woods.

I won't recommend a dose here, you should go talk to your pharmacist or doctor about what constitutes a safe level for you. The body will eliminate any surplus, but as with everything you ingest, make sure you are doing no harm.

Combined with DEET and protective clothing, particularly at dawn and dusk, the mossie menace will be reduced way down.

Also, another untried natural repellant I have heard is to take garlic capsules, same system as the vitamin B.

In some countries, mosquitoes are not just annoying, they are a serious health risk.
 
Thomas Linton said:
Anyone old enough to remember "6-12"? :D
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Yep, as a matter of fact I still have a can of it. When my dad died in 1973, I inherited his tackle box, which I've left pretty much as it was, "6-12" and all.
 
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