Mosquito repelling generator?

[Ronmar]

Well since you have power, what you really need is a mosquito frog.  You see mosquitos don't fly really well, and a lite breeze is more tham a match for them.  Box fan + bag mosquito net in vicinity of bait(human/animal breath) = bag full o mosquitos:). Played around a little with smaller 12V computer box fan hooked to a gel-cell last summer, and it works pretty good.  The small case fan spins fast enough that it usually killed the mosquitos it sucked in.  As the little swarms moved in around me, I would turn on the fan and just move it toward them and in they went...  Was a lot more fun than swatting at them:). Something like this would probably be a whole lot better received around the campground than a cloud of chemical
Laden oil smoke...

You can see the full sized concept and results here:

Modquitofrog.com

[BioHazard]

Hmmm....I like the sound of that. Seems almost too easy to vacuum up a swarm of mosquitoes. Could add small propane flame so the humans don't have to be bait. Those little bastards are thick this year...

[cgwymp]

Hmmm....I like the sound of that. Seems almost too easy to vacuum up a swarm of mosquitoes. Could add small propane flame so the humans don't have to be bait. Those little bastards are thick this year...

Then you end up with something like this:
http://www.mosquitomagnet.com/

Hope it works for you! Didn't do squat for me. :-(

[BioHazard]

Hope it works for you! Didn't do squat for me. :-(

Did it not catch mosquitoes? Or just not enough to make a difference?

[Ronmar]

They say CO from propane or any other combustion source is not so nearly as effective as CO from humans/animals.  A whole lot of evolution has tuned the little buggers detectors to their intended quarry...

[DanG]

If one could duplicate the resonance and tempo notes of the Dragonfly's wing beats in the exhaust it'd be chemical free repellent : )

[cognos]

Even the EPA info is lightweight. No specs on concentrations, time duration, effectiveness...

I figure that DEET is waaaay more effective than anything else at repelling mosquitoes. Repelling, not destroying. If you use Citronella Oil in the concentrations typically found in candles, lotions, magic wands, whatever - DEET will outperform it every time, and citronella will be virtually ineffective in comparison. I know this from real-life experience, too -  the lab studies only confirmed for me what I - and anyone else that has ever worked or played in mosquito-infested areas - already knew. DEET works. Everything else functions primarily as a wallet drain.

Citronella Oil in High Concentrations - can be used as a pesticide. If your wallet's too fat. IE., if you spray enough high-concentration citronella at your particular pest, it will kill it. And it's mostly non-toxic. Unlike many. many, other just-as-effective, and quite likely less expensive products. Unlike DEET. But no one uses DEET as an insecticide - they use it as a repellent.

There is a big difference between it's use as an insecticide, vs. the concentrations typically used as a "repellent."

I've seen the comparative results. Citronella makes you and/or your campsite smell Citronella-y. DEET keeps the mosquitoes off you.

(When I canoed a lot, we used to put ammonia on areas that were most susceptible to black fly bites, around the ears and hairline. Seemed to work great, but it bleached the hair if you used it long enough... then again, maybe it just killed the nerves on your skin, and the black fly bites didn't bother you any more... plus, when you used to be able to get the good 95% DEET Off!™, we'd mix it with some "waterproof" sunscreen, and put this on. That worked well, too. I like that better than spraying it on, as I don't like the smell of DEET, and I sure don't like breathing it. Now that it's only 25%, it doesn't mix as well. I'm down to my last 2 litres of 95% DEET... )

[cgwymp]

Hope it works for you! Didn't do squat for me. :-(

Did it not catch mosquitoes? Or just not enough to make a difference?

Caught so few as to be useless. It would go through a tank of propane every three weeks, and in that time I typically caught a few tens of mosquitoes. I called the company helpline and they always said it was a placement problem. Funny, though -- I could go stand by the machine and in just a few minutes be swarmed with mosquitoes. They seemed to be able to find me just fine. How is that a placement problem?

Bought some mosquito netting at the sporting goods store on the way home. I'm going to tape it to a box fan an see how that works! :-)

[Tom Reed]

I gave up on the citronella candles after watching a swarm of mosquito's form above one. On the other hand, had a gallon bottle of citronella tiki torch oil start leaking once. Dropped it in the tank of the listeroid which made real nice smelling exhaust.

Dad used to have that exact mosquito fogger on his Gravely. We used to have fun running through the smoke. 

[cgwymp]

Bought some mosquito netting at the sporting goods store on the way home. I'm going to tape it to a box fan an see how that works! :-)

Well, in the hour or so it took to look at the Mini's rear brakes, I caught about a half-dozen mosquitoes. The only problem was that I had to turn off the fan when I shut everything down. For lack of something better, I stuck the fan+mosquitoes in a garbage bag and sealed it up. Next time I open it I'll either have dead mosquitoes or pissed-off mosquitoes! ;-)

[LowGear]

Those little bastards are thick this year...

I think you'll find they're bitches.  They need the blood for their egg production.  The males are vegan vegetarian.  Kind of suspected it huh?

Casey

[BioHazard]

I think you'll find they're bitches.  They need the blood for their egg production.

As is the way of life..................