Article concerning most effective mosquito repellents

[oldwetherman]

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsand...es-from-biting

[nsherry61]

Sadly, they don't include picaradin in the graphics and they don't discuss permethrin at all. And combined, they probably provide some of the best repellent known.

[Feral Bill]

Those are insecticides, not repellents.

[nsherry61]

Those are insecticides, not repellents.

Feral Bill, you really should do your homework before spreading misinformation!

Yes, permethrin is an insecticide, but it is also a very effective repellent. Permethrin is applied to cloths or other fabrics, it is not applied to the skin. A very small number of people will have mild skin irritation from contact with permethrin treated clothing, but the occurrence is rare. Aside from the occasional skin irritation, permethrin is considered extremely safe to people and livestock with the exception of cats when it is in liquid form, before it dries on the cloths.

As for picaridin, it is NOT an insecticide. It is a repellent, and a very good one. "Picaridin was developed in Germany by Bayer as an alternative to DEET. Picaridin has less smell, feels better to put on and has lower mammalian toxicity than DEET, in fact Picaridin is even approved for use on children under 12 months in Europe."

[sfdoc]

Permethrin is the substance used in all the insect repellant clothing (Duluth Trading Co, Rail Riders, ExOficio, etc.) We also used it in the military; saturated our clothing to prevent malaria and leishmaniasis.

[MuddyWaters]

The best repellent I know of, is the thermacell. The heated chyrsanthemum oil vapor is extremely effective. Sitting in a swampy woods deer stand on a windless day, in a thick cloud of mosquitos that you can hear, with no mosquito closer than about 3 ft from you is absolutely glorious. Words cannot describe how wonderful this little device is when theres no wind.

No doubt that DEET isnt the best repellent at all, plant based may be.

[gravitino]

Thanks for sharing the article, oldweatherman. For me, the most important fact in the article is that there's a natural alternative that is almost as effective as DEET.

"... researchers from New Mexico State University... found that a product containing lemon eucalyptus oil was about as effective and as long lasting as products containing DEET."

Here's a link to one such product:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004N59OFU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3GUX BPXG89W6W&coliid=I152YEQQLJL7WP&psc=1

[WingedMonkey]

The best repellent I know of, is the thermacell. The heated chyrsanthemum oil vapor is extremely effective. Sitting in a swampy woods deer stand on a windless day, in a thick cloud of mosquitos that you can hear, with no mosquito closer than about 3 ft from you is absolutely glorious. Words cannot describe how wonderful this little device is when theres no wind.

No doubt that DEET isnt the best repellent at all, plant based may be.

I've been using the Themacells for the last few years that I inherited from my brother.

One of the drawbacks to me is that you have to get them started at least 15 minutes before they seem to start repelling.

Then again you can also sometimes turn them off 15 minutes before you are done needing them.

[Traveler]

Body chemistry plays role in what works well for one person but not another. For me, 100% Deet tends to be the best repellent most of the time, but its not 100% effective all the time. I doubt any repellant is, especially one that is used when one is walking a lot of miles.

[egilbe]

I've had really good results with Sawyer's permethrin. No ticks, very few mosquito and black fly bites, this year. I'm sold

[u.w.]

A word of caution.

I bought and used some picaridin last year on a short section I did. Turns out I am allergic to it, and not in a good way. Felt like someone put my esophagus in a vise and closed it. Not good.

I'm not saying it isn't good, but it may not be good for all. Maybe even down right bad, for some.

For me, I treat my clothes with permethrin and use a mid% deet (say around 25%-33%).

For non-deet, I have found the geranium spray to be flat out amazing. I live in a very high mosquito area and they seem to literally run (fly) away from me when I have that on me. It's very noticeable. Like they vacate the entire area! I have no idea on how it would work in regards to ticks, black flies, deer flies, or horse flies though.

u.w.

[nsherry61]

The best repellent I know of, is the thermacell. The heated chyrsanthemum oil vapor is extremely effective. . .

For what it's worth, apparently, permethrin is actually a synthetic analog to the active ingredient in chyrsanthemum flowers. Permethrin is designed to act in the same way that the pyrethrum from chyrsanthemums works, but the permethrin is modified to have increased anti-insect activity and be more persistent (adhere better to clothing and not break down as quickly).

[Five Tango]

A word of caution.

I bought and used some picaridin last year on a short section I did. Turns out I am allergic to it, and not in a good way. Felt like someone put my esophagus in a vise and closed it. Not good.

I'm not saying it isn't good, but it may not be good for all. Maybe even down right bad, for some.

For me, I treat my clothes with permethrin and use a mid% deet (say around 25%-33%).

For non-deet, I have found the geranium spray to be flat out amazing. I live in a very high mosquito area and they seem to literally run (fly) away from me when I have that on me. It's very noticeable. Like they vacate the entire area! I have no idea on how it would work in regards to ticks, black flies, deer flies, or horse flies though.

u.w.

Could you please tell us more about geranium spray?What is it?Is it made from geraniums or do you spray geraniums with it?
As an aside,in the past when I spent a week at the time in the heart of the Everglades National Park,my clothes had deet based repellent on them,especially the hat etc.Only a little on the ears and back of hands as that stuff eats plastic and synthetic material down to a watery goo.Did not know about soaking clothing in permethrin then but I do now and it works!I understand Cutter makes a lemon eucalyptus product now.Anybody use it?

[Feral Bill]

Feral Bill, you really should do your homework before spreading misinformation!

Yes, permethrin is an insecticide, but it is also a very effective repellent. Permethrin is applied to cloths or other fabrics, it is not applied to the skin. A very small number of people will have mild skin irritation from contact with permethrin treated clothing, but the occurrence is rare. Aside from the occasional skin irritation, permethrin is considered extremely safe to people and livestock with the exception of cats when it is in liquid form, before it dries on the cloths.

As for picaridin, it is NOT an insecticide. It is a repellent, and a very good one. "Picaridin was developed in Germany by Bayer as an alternative to DEET. Picaridin has less smell, feels better to put on and has lower mammalian toxicity than DEET, in fact Picaridin is even approved for use on children under 12 months in Europe."

I stand corrected, happily.

[Furlough]

"... researchers from New Mexico State University... found that a product containing lemon eucalyptus oil was about as effective and as long lasting as products containing DEET."
1

I have used lemon eucalyptus oil, unfortunately our mosquitos here in Virginia are the illiterate type and have not read this research, and they were unimpressed with this as a repellant. Would like to hear more about the geranium spray.

[nsherry61]

I was reading up on bug repellent research some time ago, and I thought it was interesting to note that, for instance, one of the studies comparing DEET to picaridin showed that they protected pretty much the same ON AVERAGE. But, the details were that some species of mosquitoes were more sensitive to one repellent and other species were more sensitive to the other.

So, it may be that it is worth generally experimenting with different repellents in different environments/locations at different times of year and then opting for the best for that moment in time.

Geranium extract is generally considered "not effective" but obviously, some times in some places it is. I found the saltwater mosquitoes in the south coastal everglades to be completely impervious to DEET after about 15 minutes. It was ridiculous. And, apparently the midges in Scotland don't respond to DEET at all but are repelled by picaridin.

Why can't all these darn biting bugs just hate the same stuff?!

Maybe we should start a thread about what each of us has found to work where against what bugs for how long? Might come up with some really interesting insights. There aren't many groups that could compare with a good poll from people on these forums.

[u.w.]

Could you please tell us more about geranium spray?What is it?Is it made from geraniums or do you spray geraniums with it?
As an aside,in the past when I spent a week at the time in the heart of the Everglades National Park,my clothes had deet based repellent on them,especially the hat etc.Only a little on the ears and back of hands as that stuff eats plastic and synthetic material down to a watery goo.Did not know about soaking clothing in permethrin then but I do now and it works!I understand Cutter makes a lemon eucalyptus product now.Anybody use it?

Hi Five Tango,

Here's what I've got on the "geranium spray". First, I got it at Lowe's, locally here. I live a stones throw, in the swamps, from OBX (Outer Banks, North Carolina). For sure we've got plenty of mosquitoes, lol. It's called "Mo's OBX Skeeter Beater".
I did a quick internet search and found it. In fact, the exact one I got - the 4oz bottle.
Here is a link to it: Skeeter Beater. FWIW, I'm NOT affiliated with these guys in any way. I bought some on a whim, and found it works amazingly well for me. Really Amazingly well.

u.w.

[u.w.]

Hmmm.... wish there was an "edit" feature...

I'd like to add: I have not taken it on any hikes with me. The reason being, it has a bit of "a light flowery" smell. I don't know if the smell would attract animals. Maybe nothing to worry about, but I just don't know.
As I posted, when hiking, I use a mid-strength deet & treat my clothes with permethrin.

u.w.

[Puddlefish]

I have used lemon eucalyptus oil, unfortunately our mosquitos here in Virginia are the illiterate type and have not read this research, and they were unimpressed with this as a repellant. Would like to hear more about the geranium spray.

That's unfortunate. I'm a big fan of slathering DEET on myself to keep the ticks from biting. I probably flicked a hundred ticks off my legs last year, but not one of them chose to bite through the DEET. It works great, but I hate the smell.

I'm always skeptical of natural replacements. Natural doesn't always equate to safer, as there are a lot of nasty natural substances as well. I've found that some people overstate the effectiveness of natural replacements because they want to believe. I lost my entire tiny crop of tomatoes because my Hippie girlfriend convinced me to try a bunch of organic remedies. (Which apparently also involved standing next to the plant and removing each pest by hand) ... and I'm rambling.

I'll still give this a try, because I prefer the stink of Eucalyptus to the stink of DEET.

[nsherry61]

. . . I'll still give this a try, because I prefer the stink of Eucalyptus to the stink of DEET.

Actually picaridin smells pretty okay. It is not a plasticizer like DEET. And, it tests as good as DEET against mosquitoes, and better than DEET for black flies and midges. And, picaridin is starting to finally be readily available in the USA. I have heard it is the dominant repellent in Europe and has been for about five years.