# Mosquitoes: to spray or not to spray



## Gilliangirl (Feb 26, 2006)

I don't know about the rest of you across the country, but last night we took the dog for a walk (here in Calgary) and the mosquitoes were worse than I have ever seen them. They were swarming around us in droves and today I am covered from head to toe with bites, despite wearing suitable protective clothing. I was thinking if they are going to remain this thick throughout summer, I'll be forced to stay inside. That's hard news to accept when you only get about two months of summer per year (and the rest is snow  ).

So, what do you think? Should they spray? Should we just suck it up? Should we douse ourselves down with DEET before leaving our homes?


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2007)

Do everything you can to rid your neighbourhood of ANY and ALL pools of standing water... 


Put up a "Bat House" (Like a bird house, but more leathery) and encourage your neighbours to do the same


I think there are times of day when mosquitoes are more active than others... Wiki might help there... 
Start here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosquito#Mosquitoes_and_humans
and do further research from there... avoid the "Woo" ish... 

More good info here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_repellent
(Check the sources)


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## Gilliangirl (Feb 26, 2006)

Thanks Clinton. I tend to agree.... preventive is a better solution than reactive.


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2007)

There's a pithy old piece of Aunt May-esque advice that says

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"

If you're into tired old cliches like that


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## Jeff Flowerday (Jan 23, 2006)

Gilliangirl said:


> I don't know about the rest of you across the country, but last night we took the dog for a walk (here in Calgary) and the mosquitoes were worse than I have ever seen them. They were swarming around us in droves and today I am covered from head to toe with bites, despite wearing suitable protective clothing. I was thinking if they are going to remain this thick throughout summer, I'll be forced to stay inside. That's hard news to accept when you only get about two months of summer per year (and the rest is snow  ).
> 
> So, what do you think? Should they spray? Should we just suck it up? Should we douse ourselves down with DEET before leaving our homes?


I don't think I've ever been bitten by a mosquito in Calgary.

Back in northen Saskatchewan is a different story. You don't need to walk they carry you away.


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

My brother lives in a property surrounded by cedar trees so you can imagine the mosquitoes over at his place. This thing has worked for the last couple of years. You might want to look into them. They got it at CT. It consumes a tank of propane a month, from what I remember him telling me.


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## Lester B. Flat (Feb 21, 2006)

I've hardly seen a mosquito since moving to Toronto five years ago. In New Brunswick, some of the guys who work in the woods swear by an Avon product called Skin So Soft. It doesn't have that nasty DEET stuff and who cares if you smell "pretty" if you're working in the woods?

The time of day mosquitos are the worst are between dusk and dusk the next day. Personally, I wear light colors, smoke alot, and keep moving. Oh, and don't breathe, they are attracted by carbon dioxide.


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

The last few years the mosquitos have gotten worse in Calgary. I used to go fishing every day. I would be on the river at dawn and dusk every single day and never get bit. Now I can't open my front door without a mosquito flying in. I don't think spraying is the answer. I've heard really good things about the bat houses though. I also noticed a mesh bug jacket at a store for $5 yesterday so I think I'll pick up one of them.


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## Renvas (May 20, 2007)

god.. i hate bug repellent... they have this strong cheap purfume like smell...
so id rather real protective clothing


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## SCREEM (Feb 2, 2006)

you could try these http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.2162 also check out the other stuff on that site, it has amazing deals and worldwide free shipping on everything:bow: I will be sending a few to my sister in Riverview(Moncton), big skitoes there.


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## Guest (Jun 30, 2007)

"Digital Mosquito Repeller with Armband"
SCAM!


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

After reading this thread last night I googled bat houses and I can't believe how ridiculously simple they appear to be. I'm going to build a few this week and put one up for me and give a couple to neighbours to put up. Can't hurt, right? I should be able to build three or four for about $20.


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## lolligagger (Feb 4, 2006)

The problem I have with spraying is that once a chemical has been released to the environment you don't know where it will wind up.  Substances designed to kill pests can also adversely affect human health and the environment. 

I'm lucky in that I inherited the mother of all electric bug zappers (its huge) when I bought my current house. It has become something of a sport around our house to listen to the zapper work its magic in the evening...especially when a big bugger hits. Its kind of like going to a fireworks display every night. oooohh! aaawww! yeahhhh!


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## PaulS (Feb 27, 2006)

One odd thing about the digital mosquito thing it has setting to repell dragonflies ?? Dragonflies eat mosquitos so why would you want to scare them off. Bat houses sound good as long as they don't move into yours.. I think Lester has the key.... just don't breathe..


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## Ripper (Jul 1, 2006)

From having spent alot of time in the bush and up in the territories, I've come across somethings that work good. The Avon skin-so-soft is good. Amway D-15 is a great bug repellent (works great on tick and no-seeums). Garlic pills (I know it sounds goofy but the garlic smell does seem to keep them away). Keep the perfumes and smelly goodies to a minimum. Get a good bug jacket, put it in a big freezer baggie and spray liberally with your repellent of choice, seal the bag and the jacket is ready anytime you are and you haven't put the spray directly on your skin.

If you're out camping, fogging yourself with woodsmoke also helps. 

I hear bear grease works really well, but not really a viable option these days 

The skeeters here are okay this year (I've seen them worse) but they are half the size of sparrows.


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## gtone (Nov 1, 2009)

Purple Martins are a great alternative to bats. They have voracious appetites and feed virtually all day, moreso during the pre-dusk evening hours obviously. Bats are pretty rare on the 
prairies, except the Northern areas, so Purple Martin houses are a viable natural solution that many folks take advantage of in mosquito-prone areas.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

I hate wearing bug repellent. I hate mosquitoes even more so I always have Muskol on hand. I wash it off when I go back in the house. I used to do lots of fishing back in NB and I've found it's the best of the bunch.


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## keeperofthegood (Apr 30, 2008)

let me express a caviat to the Skin So Soft stories. I was at a BBQ and the skeeters were buggin me. The marm at the BBQ pulls the bottle out and I deffer. Politely. She say blah blah and I blah back at her. Then I acquiesced on condition I have the chance to prove my blah. I put out one hand, and let her put the skin so soft on it. We two waited and in 5 mins I got 6 bites on the hand with the skin so soft and none on the hand untouched.  Needless to say, it is a product I do not use.


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## jimihendrix (Jun 27, 2009)

PETA's views on mosquitoes...pests...and other "ugly" animals...

http://www.peta.org/about/faq/What-about-insects-and-other-pests.aspx

check out "skeetergone"...

http://www.specialtyhomesolutions.com/skeet-r-gone/skeet-r-gone-index.html

[video]http://www.specialtyhomesolutions.com/skeet-r-gone/images/skeetrgone-video.wmv[/video]


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## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

Deet on the skin works. I'd rather not have the city spray to kill en masse though, that cure is worse than the disease IMHO. Birds, bats and other insects depend on mosquitoes for their food source this time of year. I'd hate to see us kill a nusence pest and ruin other species in the process.


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## Powdered Toast Man (Apr 6, 2006)

Come to Winnipeg! We spray Malathion into the air to kill adult mosquitoes only to have to do it again two weeks later because it doesn't deal with the eggs or larvae that are in standing water.


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## torndownunit (May 14, 2006)

Ripper said:


> From having spent alot of time in the bush and up in the territories, I've come across somethings that work good. The Avon skin-so-soft is good. Amway D-15 is a great bug repellent (works great on tick and no-seeums). Garlic pills (I know it sounds goofy but the garlic smell does seem to keep them away). Keep the perfumes and smelly goodies to a minimum. *Get a good bug jacket, put it in a big freezer baggie and spray liberally with your repellent of choice, seal the bag and the jacket is ready anytime you are and you haven't put the spray directly on your skin*.
> 
> If you're out camping, fogging yourself with woodsmoke also helps.
> 
> ...


That's a good suggestion. I wear thin coveralls a lot at work, and I could do that with those.

I have worked outdoors for years, and I have to agree with the stories of Skin-so-soft being ineffective. I have tried it and several other natural products over the years an none of them have worked. We had one home brew natural product someone made at work one year that did work a bit, but was only effective for about 1/2 hour.

I don't know what has been up the last few years here (I am a bit north of Toronto), but the mosquitoes and blackflies haven't been that bad. I work on a golf course in the summers and it has a lot of swampy areas where you would expect to get eaten alive as well. Last year I only had to use repellent a few times. In previous years I had to use it all the time though.


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## 335Bob (Feb 26, 2006)

Just a FYI. Spray repellents should be washed off before picking up your guitar. The oils and whatever they put in that stuff softens the lacquer on guitars. I've seen this ruin a glossy finish on an expensive axe, at a summer evening gig. Playing live outdoors can equal being eaten alive...geeze.


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