Thursday, July 7, 2011

The Best Method Of Total Protection Against Mosquitoes

By Owen Jones


Have you ever heard about clothing that repels mosquitoes and other flying insects? If not, I am prepared to bet that there have been times when you have wished you could get some. Mosquitoes and midges can ruin a holiday or even make you have to get out of your own garden once it starts go get dark.

There are several ways that you can fight mosquitoes and the other horrors of the twilight, but they always seem to find a spot where I am not totally protected. Often that place is on the shoulder blade, where they will stick their proboscis through the fabric of your shirt to extract your blood.

I enjoy my garden, but so do the mosquitoes as there is a lot of open water in the neighbouring area. My first technique of defense against mosquitoes is to plant flowers and trees that they are known to hate the smell of. I think that the odour that they dislike the most is that of lemons.

Therefore, we have a few small lemon trees, which will soon be playing a vital part in our defense, a patch of lemon grass for my wife's favourite Thai curries and some as yet poorly-looking citronella plants. (I think that Thailand may be too hot for them, but I am hoping that they will become accustomed).

Then I have two mosquito lamps. The type that entice the insects to an ultraviolet light and then electrocutes them with 25,000 volts. They are very effective, but more so in the dark than at dusk, when they are probably less discernible to the insects. I am aware that there are insect lights that use smells or pheromones to lure mosquitoes, but I have not seen any for sale over here yet. I did once try a device that emits a sound on a high frequency that was alleged to drive them away, but it did not work on our mosquitoes.

Finally, if it was a bad night I used to put on some insect repellent ointment, usually something that had DEET in it. This is pretty effective for a few hours, but it can spoil some fabrics and some plastics, which is why the makers recommend that you only put it on your bare skin. If you do that, your shoulders and your legs become targets, even if you are dressed in trousers and a top.

This is where it becomes a good idea to treat your clothing with insect deterrent. It seems that the military has been using them for years. The active ingredient used is called permethrin and it ought be used at a concentration of 0.5%. There are two means of applying it: by soaking clothing in it, as the army does or by spraying it on. I assume that you will be spraying it on.

Do the spraying in the garden well away from any fish pond as permethrin kills fish as well. Spray the clothing and wait for the chemical to soak in and dry out. Clothing treated with insect repellent like this will protect you for about six weeks and will still be active after six washes. However, sunlight breaks permethrin down, so dry the items indoors and store in black plastic bags for greater efficacy.




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