Skeeters and Citronella

[Surveyor]

Originally Posted by zeehag

if ANYONE finds REAL way to get rid of them let me know--none of the above worked with or for me---the closest thing was spraying my bedding and clothing every 8 hours with the strongest cutter mix i couod find PLUS using citronella oil in my oil lamps indoors--not recommended--and my asthma did a number on me---there is nothing that works...even spraying the ceiling/headliners with bug spray didnt do any good....yipes!!!..

Have you tried camphor? Camphor oil (small amount) in water allowed to evaporate from, say a bowl, will drive mosquitos out of a room if they are already there. It will also keep them from entering. To get instant action, use hot, not boiling water. It works, try it.

[tager]

Pennyroyal works great. I spent weeks working a gate at a festival, 200 feet from a bog in Oregon in June and July. After trying deet, cutter, mosquito coils, and every "natural" repellent available, I found that rubbing pennyroyal on your skin worked the best. Honest.

It is probably just as dangerous as DEET. It just works better.

DEET is honestly a pretty poor repellent. The mosquitoes still land on you and bite, but they die immediately. That is what happens with DEET.

Cutter works better than deet, but pennyroyal is the best. It is extremely toxic and dangerous, but it works great.

After trying more than 12 different sprays and 4 or 5 different burning things, pennyroyal is the best option.

If you are concerned about the health effects, you can just rub it on your clothing, it will work.

[Astrid]

I'll stick with my lemon zest which amuses people greatly.. till they try it... no mozzies buzzin me at night keeping me awake.

That works well on gnats too. I suspect the mosquito and other bloodsuckers (of the insect variety and not the tax and toll collector kind) are repelled by the acidic smell in much the same way as vitamin B12. I have had good results with vitamin B12 as well and a combination of the two works quite well for me.

[Astrid]

Camphor oil is also good as a topical treatment for mosquito bites as well, being both antimicrobial and a mild topical anesthesia.

[Solitude]

I was once told not to mix DEET with sunscreen.

[boatman61]

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/m...ct%20Sheet.pdf

Grab yer DEET.....

[Astrid]

You can use both together, applying the sunscreen first, followed by DEET according to its directions, at least according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. The best combination is to wear long sleeves and long pants, and apply the DEET to the clothing rather than directly to the skin over the suncreen.

[boatman61]

What does West Nile virus do in humans?
The vast majority of humans who are infected with the virus have no symptoms and make a full recovery. A small number of people (about 20%) have a flu like illness with fever and headache and make a full recovery. Very occasionally (less than 1%), the virus may be fatal especially in the elderly and those who have reduced ability to fight infection.
Like Swine flu, Chicken flu and other lets scare the shits outa you viruses.
More people die of every day flu in the UK every winter than died in the last so called epidemic...

Hemmorhagics include dengue, yellow, ebola, etc.. and are spread by rodents, lice, ticks, in fact any blood sucking/biting arthropods including leechs... as is encephalitis for which there are vaccines
and I still don't believe the "experts" when they tell us HIV cannot be transferred the same way
Oh, not forgetting blood transfusions.

So avoid all birds, rodents and insects... and needles

[Boracay]

I have a childhood memory of visiting friends in Brisbane. A fire occurred during the night when a burning mosquito coil fell on their daughter's bed. No one hurt thankfully but a very bad fright.

I've never trusted mosquito coils.

[sarafina]

that's an excellent example of why they should ALWAYS be used in a burner, a covered container with vents, that contains the smoldering ring.

The same as never using a candle with out an appropriate holder!

[Reckless]

My Family just puts me on the boat, my blood is like Crack to these nasty buggers, We just put the mast up tonight and I counted, 53 bites on me, my oldest has 3, and my wife none.

I have tried everything from Skin so soft, vitamin B, Deet. and as much as I don't like it, Deet works the best, it varies based on the time of year and how bad they are.

Citronella or the coils do work, but I find they only protect the one so, so I can be sitting in front of a candle and my back will get eaten.

I have resorted to carrying a mosquito new jacket with a hood.

[tager]

I find that skeeters like some more than others, but after being in a "skeetery" area for a while, you tend to get less bites per hour.

Either your body adapts to the threat, or your psychology makes it seem less of a threat. I wouldn't bother trying to figure out which one is the case.

[GordMay]

Death rates from West Nile Virus (encephalitis) range from 3%-15%, and are higher in the elderly.
There is no specific treatment for West Nile virus infection. Intensive supportive therapy is directed toward the complications of brain infections. Antiinflammatory medications, intravenous fluids, and intensive medical monitoring may be required in severe cases. There is no specific antibiotic or antidote for the viral infection. There is also no vaccine to prevent the virus.

[boatman61]

There is no way for the government to accurately measure the number of worldwide cases at this time. However, the United States keeps records of West Nile infection cases. In 2009, there were 663 cases. 335 of these cases were Encephalitis or Meningitis infections, a reaction to the virus that approximately 1 in 150 people who get the virus will show. 302 cases were filed for West Nile fever, the most likely symptom of the virus. 26 cases were unspecified. The state of Texas had the most cases, with 104 total. The total mortality rate for 2009 was 30 deaths of the 663 reported serious cases. That is a 4.5% casualty rate, but only of the severe infections. Approximately 80% of cases have no symptoms, and therefore the total casualty rate would be less than 1% of total infections in the U.S. This data and earlier years data is available from the CDC here:[10]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Ni...Mortality_rate

There have been 3 cases in the UK since 2001 all of whom had visited Canada...
2 in the Republic of Ireland who had been to the Algarve, Portugal

[SabreKai]

It was pointed out to me a couple of years ago that if you take the trays that most donut places use for multiple cups of coffee and cut them into strips, they burn nicely and do a great job of getting rid of skeeter too! I'm talking abou those grey pulpy paper shaped trays.

I tried it last summer and it works.

Sabre