mosquito repellant

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BadReligion

BadReligion

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Just returned from a 2 night backpacking trip in the Sierras (Peeler Lake) and while the hike and scenery were awesome, we encountered mosquitos straight from hell. I think my wife ended up with 150+ bites (lost count) and I received at least 75. We did this exact same hike last August and didn't see a single bug the entire trip so we were somewhat unprepared. I didn't think there would be many insects at 9500' this time of year, even with abundant water. We had a few 30% DEET wipes but they barely were enough to cover your arms/legs and lasted all of 30 min. I had a synthetic shirt on and they were biting through it. Needless to say, we spent most of our time in the tent, wishing we had some better bug spray.

With this years Rubithon coming up (Buck Island Lake has some bad mosquitos) and more backpacking trips planned, we seriously need to rethink our mosquito repellant strategy. After doing a little research, it looks like DEET is still the gold standard, but an actual spray in the 50%+ range is the way to go. There is also a spray for clothing called Permethrin that seems to work well. I'm thinking a combination of these two, plus a few citronella candles (car camping) or some netting over clothing (backpacking) are they way to go.

What is everyone else using?
 
I did a test on Fordyce one year. The Permethrin spray worked so-so and needed to be reapplied every half hour or so to work at all. The next day I sprayed down my clothes with DEET and used the wipes on my exposed skin. I was good to go all day and that evening. Over the years I've tried every natural repellent and found them all lacking. I keep coming back to DEET. (Background info; I worked three seasons with Washoe County mosquito abatement when I was in collage so I have many hours of exposure to heavily infested mosquito environments.)
 
rusty_tlc said:
I did a test on Fordyce one year. The Permethrin spray worked so-so and needed to be reapplied every half hour or so to work at all. The next day I sprayed down my clothes with DEET and used the wipes on my exposed skin. I was good to go all day and that evening. Over the years I've tried every natural repellent and found them all lacking. I keep coming back to DEET. (Background info; I worked three seasons with Washoe County mosquito abatement when I was in collage so I have many hours of exposure to heavily infested mosquito environments.)
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Yeah it looks like DEET is the only thing that really works. Was hoping the Permethrin would do better but I guess you can just spray DEET on your clothes, backpack etc....as long as you don't spray any plastic parts.
 
Here are a few pics from the hike...

Barney Lake, the halfway point at 5 miles.

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At Peeler

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big article on this in the last consumer reports I think. There are a couple of new products that are as effective as DEET now and likely less toxic.
 
BadReligion said:
Yeah it looks like DEET is the only thing that really works. Was hoping the Permethrin would do better but I guess you can just spray DEET on your clothes, backpack etc....as long as you don't spray any plastic parts.
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Spraying down the tent with a natural repellent before you get in is a good idea, nothing worse than waking up with skeeter bites in areas that are normally covered by clothing because one or two of those rascals sneaked in your tent. Deet tends to prematurely age tent fabric.
 
e9999 said:
big article on this in the last consumer reports I think. There are a couple of new products that are as effective as DEET now and likely less toxic.
Click to expand...
Care to share the names of said products?
 
So this is a little bit of a different approach, but something I picked up from a tribal elder during my years as a river expedition leader. I was always someone that would get targeted by mosquitos (sometimes 50+ bites in just a few days), and one night the elder took notice and brought me one of her "natural remedies." I was skeptical at first when she gave me half a golf ball-sized pile of powder, but was willing to try anything at that point. It was Brewers yeast. I swallowed it down and didn't get bit a single time for the next 4 days. Ate it one time, and never had to "reapply." I couldn't believe how well it worked. I still use it all the time and swear by it. I also wear dark-colored clothing as the bugs are attracted to bright colors.
 
Bugs never used to bite me when I was under 30. Poison ivy didn't get me then, either. I have no idea what changed, but the years since then have not been kind relating to those two things.

While I swear by DEET, we had a couple seizure incidents in the family that were possibly brought on, in part, by exposure to DEET 30%. There were psych meds involved but DEET was the likely trigger.
 
I'm a big fan of permethrin on my hiking clothes. I mix up a 2% solution and spray down my pants and boots and let them dry before use. In theory, they should be good for 4-6 washes after that.
I'm doing it mainly to ward of ticks. Permethrin will kill mosquitoes but a higher concentration is required - higher than I want against my skin.
btw; a 2% solution works well on dogs too but it's toxic to cats.
 
ItWasntMe said:
So this is a little bit of a different approach, but something I picked up from a tribal elder during my years as a river expedition leader. I was always someone that would get targeted by mosquitos (sometimes 50+ bites in just a few days), and one night the elder took notice and brought me one of her "natural remedies." I was skeptical at first when she gave me half a golf ball-sized pile of powder, but was willing to try anything at that point. It was Brewers yeast. I swallowed it down and didn't get bit a single time for the next 4 days. Ate it one time, and never had to "reapply." I couldn't believe how well it worked. I still use it all the time and swear by it. I also wear dark-colored clothing as the bugs are attracted to bright colors.
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Considering the amount of brewers yeast I've consumed in my life mosquitos should drop out of the air just from getting to close to me. ;)
 
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Oh, and here's an idea I've shamelessly stolen from someone else on here:
'A small block of Dry Ice in a bucket 50ft away from camp will greatly help with keeping the mosquitoes down.'

It won't be any help to you on a hike but at camp it should work - mosquitoes are attracted to CO2.
 
Don't know where or when I heard this, but I heard that taking a garlic supplement will ward off skeeters. I've taken garlic daily for many moons and truly don't remember my last bite. Oh, they still buzz around my face and ears and are annoying. I do use a spray with deet when I remember to pack it.
 
rusty_tlc said:
Care to share the names of said products?
Click to expand...

sorry, don't recall and don't know what I did with the magazine. Some sort of oil, eucalyptus or something not sure. Google should reveal all.
 
100% DEET is the only repellant worth a s***. The low concentration products and non-DEET products just aren't effective for folks that are high-value targets so to speak.

A note on permethrin: it is an insecticide, not a repellant, that you apply to clothing, netting, etc., but not your skin. It is widely used in areas where avoiding mosquito bites is a life and death matter.
 
land crusher said:
100% DEET is the only repellant worth a s***. The low concentration products and non-DEET products just aren't effective for folks that are high-value targets so to speak.

A note on permethrin: it is an insecticide, not a repellant, that you apply to clothing, netting, etc., but not your skin. It is widely used in areas where avoiding mosquito bites is a life and death matter.
Click to expand...
We used Permethrin in mosquito abatement as an aerosol spray mixed with mineral oil. We would drive around in trucks with foggers mounted in the bed in the very early morning. Permethgrin breaks down rapidly when exposed to UV. We treated neighborhoods as well as pastures and swampy areas.

After sun up we would go out and survey breeding areas, basically scoop up a cup of water and count larva and pupae to estimate populations. Every truck had at least one or two bottles of 100% DEET in the glove box.
 
JayDoc said:
I'm a big fan of permethrin on my hiking clothes. I mix up a 2% solution and spray down my pants and boots and let them dry before use. In theory, they should be good for 4-6 washes after that.
I'm doing it mainly to ward of ticks. Permethrin will kill mosquitoes but a higher concentration is required - higher than I want against my skin.
btw; a 2% solution works well on dogs too but it's toxic to cats.
Click to expand...

Some good info in this thread....The toxicity to cats is a concern with the Permethrin because we have 2 siamese that love to hang out in the bedroom where we store most of our camping gear. If Permethrin can survive 4-6 washes, it must be tough to eliminate entirely. Will probably stick with some high concentration of DEET. 3M (good chemical company) makes a time released version used by the military, Ultrathon. If our armed forces use it, it must work.

I like the dry ice bucket idea (CO2). Might try that out on the Rubicon next week. Brewers yeast sounds interesting. Wonder if that can ferment in your stomach and cause some "side effects."
 
I work in the Moab wetlands controlling mosquito populations. Flood water mosquitoes are a special nuisance when the Colorado river rises in the early summer. I try to limit my exposure to pesticides and chemicals as much as possible. I'd surely wear deet if it was the only thing available, but have found that Picaradin works great for up to four hours on hot days. I have also had success with lemon eucalyptus oil, but found it doesn't last as long and have to reapply when that cold vick's vapor rub feeling goes away. I have spent many hours on hot days climbing through dead falls in flooded areas killing off the larvae while the fliers are so thick that without a head net, I would inhale the D&@# things and choke to death. That said, the gnats around here don't give a rat's about bug repellent.
 
Brewers yeast? I had not heard that, will definitely give it a try. When I worked land survey on Alaska Hwy in the summer, in the muskeg,
some of the guys were really 'targets'. I used to take very high vitamin B6B12 complex, wear loose fast dry military bloused pants and long sleeve shirts. Don't use any scented soap to wash clothes, do not wear any perfume, colognes. I dont' know how many :princess: still insist on makeup and scents, but this is bad. I believe in deet when needed, but I don't like putting chemicals on my body.
 
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