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Slavia · Moderator

Trust me; it is a necessary shooting accessory.

I just came back from the range, and the mosquitoes were ferocious. Being of Scandinavian descent I am all in favor of smörgåsbord, except when I'm the smörgås. I had on a Coleman product with 25% DEET, and it had no effect on the bloodsucking little abominations. When they flew past my ear instead of a high-pitched "buzz" I could hear them laughing. The few that I killed had on little Samurai outfits even.

O.K., so I'm exaggerating - but not by much. What do you guys use?

oddtodd · Silver Status Member

100% deet baby! It's the only way to go. I forgot mine when I went over to my dad's to shoot today and I actually watched one of the little bastards land on the back of my hand when I was sighting up for my shot. So I took my booger hook off the bang switch and killed that little bloodsucker. THey are almost as bad as my ex wife. one other little problem? Mosquitos are attracted by CO2. So with every shot you were ringing the dinner bell. lol

Slavia · Moderator

Robw · Veteran Member

Deet has been proven to cause brain damage.

toadmyster223 · Senior Member

Yeah- deet is super bad for you, but it does work quite well. In Peru, I used stuff that was really hardcore, 100 percent deet PLUS other stuff (i realize that means its not 100% deet, but yeah, i forget the numbers) that kept anything away. Try smoking some ganja. Beer, not so much- they prefer blood with alcohol in them.

dobiman · Veteran Member

There was one bad camping experience I had where I had to sleep in the hills overnight to be in a good position to find deer the next morning. Not mosquitoes, but some kind of night fly that buzzes around your head all night long. I had a mosquito net on, but that buzzing which is twice as loud as a mosquito never let me sleep. Walked around in a daze the next day.

oddtodd · Silver Status Member

Robw · Veteran Member

I give up. What?

AirGunEric · Site Admin

Slavia · Moderator

I did some more digging. The US and Canada both say DEET is O.K., although Canada banned DEET products with more than 30% in 2002. This is when "used as directed," and it's not recommended for infants or children:
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/chemicals/deet.htm
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/consultations/deet/health-effects.html
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/iyh-vsv/life-vie/insect-eng.php

The "brain damage" connection comes from a Duke University study that linked nerve cell destruction to "frequent and prolonged use." That phrase means daily application to laboratory rats for two months (far less than normal human use). The study suggested caution, but did not go so far as to link it to human use for several reasons:
1.) Rats may absorb the chemical at different rates, and humans have been using it since 1957 (public) and 1946 (military). Currently an estimated 30% of the US population uses it.
2.) The statistical health risks for the population need to be balanced with the risks due to Lyme's Disease, West Nile Virus, and Malaria.
3.) The rats got a mix of DEET and two other chemicals. They still need to study the effects of the chemicals both singly and for interaction with other medications (eg., antihistamines).
http://www.dukehealth.org/health_library/news/5500

That's all I know. I go now to start supper in the slow cooker, which has been shown scientifically to cause involuntary twitching in family members.

Trenier · New Member

I've had good luck with this http://www.repel.com/products-and-solutions/natural-insect-repellent/lemon-eucalyptus.aspx although I'm not sure I'd want to be in the deep woods with it.

bikerdave47 · New Member

Deet can Tear-up your Plastic and also ruin a Watch cyrstal....just sayin

Trenier · New Member

Good point!

Sjdep97 · New Member

Try Ben's repellant. It is 100% Deet and works really well!