Mosquito repelling generator?

[BioHazard]

I was playing with my little 2 stroke generator today and tried a little bit of 32:1 mix, the thing smoked like a chimney for as long as I ran it, but on 50:1 mix there is almost no smoke at all. While I was burning up the 32:1 I was pleasantly surprised that all the mosquitoes were gone! (and I was about to pass out from CO poisoning)

So I got to wondering...is there something you could mix into 2 stroke gas, to help repel mosquitoes besides more oil? Seeing as this is mostly a "camping" generator it would be a nice feature. I'm thinking about the citronella oil used in torches, maybe some kind of concentrated version of that? (without the kerosene) Would something like that hurt the engine? I remember Bernzomatic sold "citropane", propane with citronella in it for torches a while ago, but they quit selling that. There must be some kind of concentrated citronella oil I could get? Would something like that gum up the engine?

Edit: something like this maybe?
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/NWF188/ItemDetail?SourceCode=INTL405&CAWELAID=327687888&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CL2ml-LY86kCFQZCgwod0FFjZQ

[Henry W]

Install Bat houses. In our bat houses we have roughly 30 bats and we don't have a problem with mosquitoes.

Henry

[Apogee]

At one time, the Blitz-Fog unit was the ticket.

The pesticide cocktail (Thermaline) contained DDT

Here's a bit of history - http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/museum/artifacts/archives/001296.asp

I bet it worked pretty good! (at least for the first few applications)

Damn EPA - always taking away the good stuff!

;-)

[vdubnut62]

Personally, (and I dont have anything to back this up, just a gut feeling,) a very moderate amount of citronella laced kero wouldn't
hurt when mixed into the fuel. Just don't lean out the oil mix. I have an OLD briggs & stratton that will run very well on straight diesel, or citronella oil.
Just watch out for detonation!!
My opinion only and everyone has one, just like an arthole.
Ron

[BioHazard]

Install Bat houses. In our bat houses we have roughly 30 bats and we don't have a problem with mosquitoes.

Henry

Actually I was thinking more about 'portable' mosquito repellant....since this little thing is basically a "camping" generator. Bat houses would be a great idea for the shop though....

At one time, the Blitz-Fog unit was the ticket.

Now THAT is funny!  I wonder what the HOA would do if they saw me using that?

[Ronmar]

One thing you have to remember, is that the jets in the carb only pass a certain ammount of fluid.  If you add oil to the mix, or anything else for that matter, you are displacing gasoline.  This leans the air/fuel ratio, and a engine under load will cook itself or hole a piston.  On 2strokes, if you alter the oil ratio, you must rejet the carb to keep from damaging the engine and to maintain peak HP.

If you want to use the generator to fog for mosquitos, you might be better served by dripping the tiki torch oil with citronella into a port added to the exhaust manifold/muffler.  The exhaust heat will vaporize the oil and not do any harm to the engine internals...

When I was a kid we used to fog for mosquitos with the lawnmower.  Had a tank with valve mounted up on the push handle that fed oil with pesticides down to a hose barb fitted into the muffler.

[WStayton]

Hi All!

  I second Ronmar's reccomendation for putting the citronella into the exhaust manifold.

  I THINK that it is also more effective that way, since you are just basically vaporizing it in the exhaust manifold, but if you run it through the engine, I would suspect that it is less effective since some of it is bound to get burned up in the much hotter combustion process.

  My opinion, which is worth exactly what you paid for it - nothing!

Regardz,

Wayne Stayton

[vdubnut62]

Well, that's a lot better than what I had
And that Blitz-fog....Wow, no wonder I remember several kids with birth defects.
Ron

[cognos]

Citronella doesn't work. The only thing shown to actually repel mosquitoes with any sort of efficacy is DEET. And there are issues with it... 

Plenty of pesticides kill mosquitoes. No Provincal Park in Ontario allows for insecticide fogging of any sort. Nor do they allow generators. Ever. For any reason. I consider these to be good and prudent rules.

Some parks in other places may.

If you're camping, and using a 2-stroke generator to fog the area with mystery oils and/or chemicals, please camp at the far end of the camping area - away from me... and anyone else concerned about any sort of health and safety issue about doing this, like people with kids... and be prepared for a visit from whomever runs the place...

At one time, that Blitz-Fog unit was "a good idea." Sometimes, stuff just isn't a very good idea. Buy some Off!™

[bschwartz]

I just found 3/4 gallon of the Blitz-fog in a pile of stuff..... anyone need it?

[BioHazard]

No Provincal Park in Ontario allows for insecticide fogging of any sort. Nor do they allow generators. Ever. For any reason. I consider these to be good and prudent rules.

Some parks in other places may.

If you're in a park you're not camping. 

[BioHazard]

Citronella doesn't work.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citronella_oil

Citronella oil is also a renowned plant-based insect repellent, and has been registered for this use in the United States since 1948. The United States Environmental Protection Agency‎ considers oil of citronella as a biopesticide with a non-toxic mode of action.

[cognos]

Wikipedia is living proof that you shouldn't believe everything you read. Apparently, if enough people believe something to be true, it ends up as WikiTruth. Not my kind of truth.

Remember a few years ago, people were saying Avon Skin-So-Soft worked, too. It doesn't.

I refer  to an industry standard test, conducted partially in our research lab at the behest of a supplier, that may or may not be in the public domain. I also read something about it in Scientific American, a few years ago. DEET works, well enough to be commercialized, and good enough for the Canadian and US Armed Forces to use. I guess they'd use Citronella Tiki Torches, if they worked. But they don't.

Many people "believe" in citronella. Just because they believe it works, doesn't mean it actually does. At least not very well. But hey, go for it.

I agree with you about the parks. But where I live, not camping in a park is called "Trespassing." Even when I was young, canoeing the wild rivers of Canada, sleeping on the ground under the canoe, surviving on GORP (I put crumbled bacon in mine. And cranberries.) - I was always in some park or other, or on Crown Land. Nowadays, it's in a popup - with a stove, fridge, king sized bed, sink, etc...

[BioHazard]

The wikipedia information comes from the EPA...
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/biopesticides/ingredients/factsheets/factsheet_021901.htm

Aren't mosquitoes attracted to CO2? I wonder if they would be naturally attracted to the exhaust of a generator, away from where the people are at? A low wattage bug light next to a generator at night might work to attract them somewhere else...

[vdubnut62]

I just found 3/4 gallon of the Blitz-fog in a pile of stuff..... anyone need it?

But of course!  It'll make sure fire termite getter.
Ron