Let me know how you get on!

Try apply citronella oil diluted with water ( 1 : 10 ). Definitely more eco-friendly.

You could also spray / swab dilute lemon grass oil ( 2 drops in a litre) on the floor.

Both work well with mosquitoes and certainly smell better than ammonia !

If it is avoiding only mosquitoes in a room or house, best would be close all the doors and windows in the evening when it starts getting dark, that is when most mosquitoes enter attracted to inside light. You can open windows a few hours later ( after they enter your neighbour's house ). You may still find a few, that I guess you can easily hunt and kill . Remember you will burn a few cals by this exercise

Of course, I am also keen to know if ammonia or lemon grass oil works

If you ever stripped floor wax using ammonia--what else is there?--you would have realized that if a person can't breath ammonia, then neither would any air-breathing creature. So the real question would pertain to the concentration and total amount of ammonia needed to be an effective "repellant" in a particular area; and the effect of same on persons breathing the same, air-ammonia, mixture...and how long. It could be, that since the bad kind of mosquitoes (females) home on exhaled CO₂ to get a meal, then less than noxious amounts or concentrations (applied topically) might serve the purpose of deterrence without noticeable effect on a person's breathing.

I repeat, mosquitoes detect warm-blooded air breathing animals by detecting exhaled breath, specifically, carbon dioxide. After leaving water after hatching, the insects are thereafter averse to water. As one of the best, if not the very best, of nature's flyers, a mosquito can actually fly through a rain shower, avoiding all drops!

Since piercing with proboscis takes considerable time during which mosquito would have to maintain undetected contact and pierce, both, through water and skin, there would be no advantage to seeking moisture laden prey upon which to alight.

A large portion of mosquito populations inhabit sub-polar regions...in which region a mosquito seeking sweat could go a very long time between feedings.

Mosquitoes "prey" on non-sweating animals...birds for example.

The explanation why it might be perceived that mosquitoes home in on sweat, would be that a person who is sweating is, in all likelihood, also breathing heavily...exhaling more CO₂ for the mosquito to home in on. Studies reveal mosquitoes able to detect concentrations of CO₂ at considerable distances relative to the mosquito's size.

Firstly, remember that Mosquitoes are not attracted by light, they are attracted by human sweat, so the cleaner you are the better generally, but even freshly bathed a Female Mosquito can still smell you!

In Europe (I have not tested this in the USA, only Europe and Scandinavia) I have found that quality Lavender oil is very good at keeping those little pests at bay if you smear a drop or two everywhere that they can get at you, eg. all exposed skin. Use it sparingly as a) it is expensive b) a small amount still works well. Then a small bottle lasts a year or more. It also smells good.

For sleeping, if you do not have nets for all of your windows (recommended and can be done very cheaply here, black looks best), use a large net that encompasses your bed completely as seen in old films about Africa.......

These fly lights/lamps with a small fluorescent tube behind a wall of high voltage wiring (cost €10 or less here, are excellent and seem to kill most flying insects that invade a house, not just Mosquitoes. They make a very satisfying "SNAP" as the fly is humanely killed by the voltage! Flies seem to fly into a room, unseen by me and make a Beeline (pun intended) to this unit!!! (Though I have never seen a dead Bee in one!!!)

It is also a well known fact that all the "nasty flies" at least, do not like the smell of Lavender and old English cottages used to have a large lavender bush at each corner of the house to keep away unfriendly insects (Bees love Lavender!), no matter from which direction the wind blew, the house was inundated with Lavender scent......

If you do not like the smell, you have a problem, though I suspect that some other plants may have the same effect, I just do not know which ones, sorry!!

For people troubled by Fleas, Lavender oil is well known to keep them at bay too......

Click on this for further infos.....

Hi Andy.

When I lived in Norway I used to rub "Bog Myrtle" leaves over all the exposed skin areas, this keeps all sorts of biting insects away including mosquito's!

Spencer.

Many thanks.

It looks to also be a good tip if you have it growing nearby according to the following website.

Andy's comments:

"Firstly, remember that Mosquitoes are not attracted by light, they are attracted by human sweat, so the cleaner you are the better generally, but even freshly bathed a Female Mosquito can still smell you!"

"These fly lights/lamps with a small fluorescent tube behind a wall of high voltage wiring (cost €10 or less here, are excellent and seem to kill most flying insects that invade a house, not just Mosquitoes."

I find these two statements are contradictory. If mosquitoes are not attracted to light, why will they go towards the lamp, certainly not on a suicide mission I think in addition to CO2, mosquitoes like other flies, also get attaracted to light.

Recommedations of `Bog Myrtle' from Scapolie and `100% Deet' (but, what is 10 hour spray?) from Unconventional Solutions are interesting. But I wonder are there really any permanent and reliable silutions for mosquito menace. I have read they have the ability to adapt themselves for new insecticides and drugs. Smart aren't they?

GA

Many thanks, I have a) leant a lot here and b) proved that only the Biology Mistress was interesting for me at school!!! Not the subject itself..... Though I would hazard a guess that in th early 60s, most of this was not known anyway!!!

One measure would be the first advent of zappers—as I recall they first appeared in late '70s and "took off" in the '80s—which must have followed after such knowledge. At the other end... my first exposure as an undergraduate was in the late '60's to early '70s. Typically, a decade or more passes between basic research findings and their incorporation in university undergraduate curricula. So—and your time conjecture seems to be on the mark—it would appear that by the fifties to the mid-to-late '60s the subject was fairly well understood; your time enamoured of the Bio Mistress must have come before or during the aforementioned gap period.

57 to 63.

They certainly were contradictory!! I stuck my head out on that one......!!!

It appears that CO2 lures them in and in some way, the UV light lures them also as plenty end up in the lamp.....as do many other flying pests in the home thank God!!

I sit in the lounge and the "Snap" as another one "bites the dust" can be heard over the TV when both doors are open!!!

I have heard of a good one just this spring. In Ontario now alot of my friends and family are using Listerine (you know, minty mouthwash). I am unsure of the dilution required if any, but you can spray it around your deck, windows and doors and the mosquites will not come anywhere near it. I have not tried this myself as I am in the UK for this summer. But apparently it's great, and cheap too.

Listerine? Cheap?

I wonder...after the alcohol dissipates, would bees and hummingbirds pay a visit? Better be careful what you wear after a minty Listering sponge bath. Bright colors and Hawaiian shirts are definitely out.

Heck no. No alcohol then why bother with you?

I'm sure ammonia does help keep more then just mosquitoes away.

I haven't tried it but I did read about it, tying a sheet of Bounce to your belt loop or just have on you when you are out doors repels insects and that includes mosquitoes.

It was Bounce that was specifically mentioned, none of the other brands were brought up.

I am not sure about ammonia to repel mosquitos or other bugs, but ammonia on a mosquito bite will help relieve the itch. Drinking two teaspoons of wine vinegar in an 8 oz glass of water is SUPPOSED to repel mosquitoes, but I have not tried it. I do not know if it would be the vinegar on your breath or from the pores that would repel them. (Mosquitos home in on the CO2 that animals exhale.)

I don't know about the ability of ammonia to ward off the attack of mossys, but we have used sudsy ammonia for years to eliminate to irritation of mosquito bites.

Waooouuhh! You guys have real good advicement here I will try those as you mentioned I do believe they follow lites and CO2 as well then, Hhmmnn ???

Oh Brotherrrss.. Now here I come with another from back off my head idea. But don't laugh at me now.-- "A Co2 detector meter that use mosquito sensorial technology, Wooaahuuhh.. Something new state of the art tool".--You heared here first. Just dont bring it to the bank yet. Holy wacamoolee...Heeheeaauuh..

Just kidding guys brainstorming here a little to share something cool we you all.

You good definetly I will be trying the lemon solution stuff which sounds good for me and thanks all for your nice feedbacks about it.

Barbecue Time,

MC

... another from back off my head idea. But don't laugh at me now.-- "A Co2 detector meter that use mosquito sensorial technology, Wooaahuuhh.. Something new state of the art tool".--You heared here first.

Probably not first, but not laughable either; just years, if not decades or more, ahead of its time, or feasibility. Even if the chemistry could be figured out, harder still would be...how to do it without the mosquito (and its metabolic processes) "in the loop"—and, given already existing technologies, finding research funding for such a project, in the light of so many, more pressing priorities. Our too-friendly mosquito would not be the only insect process which people have imagined replicating. For example, it has long been known that bees' eyes detect UV dispersion patterns in the sky; and that, without sufficient brain cells, bees can photochemically use those patterns for navigation and location "recall" purposes...even chemically translating food location "sky maps" into waggle dances for the purpose of communicating food foraging locations to sisters in the hive. It is also know or strongly suspected that rodopsin molecules (think, retinal rods) in their compound eyes plays a role. How wondrous it would be if such a process (requiring no computing capability) could be scaled up to, say, airplane size, piloted or unpiloted...or even to the size of a miniature (as in spy) drone! But, so far, and for the foreseeable future (and to the extent that other technology development efforts are more promising), doing this without the bees' genetic blue prints playing a part is far beyond realization in terms of actual hardware. With eventual maturing of nanotechnology, though, who knows...?

Lord Is Great..! That's applied hi tech technology for real awesone good feedback. Unbelieavable how such insects survive out there using that technology though very impress with it. WaAouuuh..Thanks for the update by the way to all pal's here on CR-4 definetly, you have the technology my friends..! I know I did read somewhere before about those 'Alaskan Mosquitos' which form like a huge inmense cloud to attack without mercy when that season kick-on, Deeannmmnn... That's will spooky it me out no doubth about it, better not to find out. Alrigth Buddy's pretty interesting theme. I' am using some lemmon juice spray it and Citronella a little bit around and seing so far that it does helping out. Also I' am trying keep those doors close specially at dawn just in case.

Also that Garlic suggestion will be great specially the --Garlic with Bread Spread-- will be nice stuff in the same time as a back-up to reinforce repellants effects.

All Set Buddy's I'll let ya' go for the moment and enjoy very nice the rest of the weekend now. It's getting little way too hot around here so keep it cool now...

Where's That Beer,

MC

Simple Onion also works, not only on mosquito bite but also a honey bee bite.

As a runner, and mountain biker I find nothing works better than our 10 hour spray with 100% deet.

An apple a day may keep the Dr. away but a clove garlic a day keeps all else at bay.

Garlic being a very "Healthy" if smelly thing to eat, my wife and I decided years ago if one was eating something loaded with garlic and the other was not, the one who had the garlicky menu would offer the other a fork full or so. This meant that neither could smell the other as they both smelt the same!!!

I remember once being in a deep sleep and being woken up by my wife's "Dragon" breath after she had been out with the girls to an Italian restaurant!!! Phew!!!

We have also found out that a glass of Racki or Ouzo, washes away 95% of the smell if drunk after the meal (after driving a car too!!)......

People of 50 or older, should eat garlic regularly as it helps keep the blood flowing to all parts of the body!!!!

People of 50 or older, should eat garlic regularly as it helps keep the blood flowing to all parts of the body!!!!

Yeper go with the flow

An apple a day.... Do wives of doctors do not eat apples?

Everyone has talked about Mosquitoes here, but nobody has mentioned "Midges" as the Scots call them.

I believe I am also correct in saying that the Norwegians and the Swedes (Swedish "mygg" is actually a Mosquito) call them "knott".

N.Americans & Canadians call them "No-see-ums" or "Punkies" I am led to believe by this Midge web site.

Germany/Austria has several names, among which are the Gnitze, the kleine Mücke, the Gelse (Österr.)and the Stechmücke.

What the Finns, Russians & Chinese call them I haven't a clue....perhaps you Guys can clear up this point for me!!!

I find these to be worse than Mosquitoes as Midges always bite in their millions!

An old Scottish is saying is that "you should not kill one as then Billions come to the Funeral!!!"

They are very tiny, difficult to see in any light, are still active in the day and the red marks they leave take at least 10 days to stop itching!!!

I personally have not found anything that stops them 100% of the time, but until that special agent comes along, Lavender Oil is pretty good......any tips in that area will also be gratefully received.

In Scotland they start to be active by the end of July and stay active through to the end of September, depending upon weather and temperatures.

They are responsible for some serious animal diseases in Bovines (Blue Tongue) and several other complaints/allergies in various other species including humans!!!

I personally have not found anything that stops them 100% of the time, but until that special agent comes along, Lavender Oil is pretty good......any tips in that area will also be gratefully received.

Hello Andy, I use coconut oil all the time and now that you mention it I don't have trouble from bloodsuckers of any kind. I suppose they aren't attracted to coconuts.

Marigold flowers ground seem to deter most insects. Some folks have grown them about their homes and acreages for generations and those folks aren't bothered by a host of pests.

Albeit chiggers and midges are different here is a list of substances known to be effective repellents:

DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide)

Essential oil of the lemon eucalyptus and its active ingredient p-menthane-3,8-diol (PMD)

• Icaridin, also known as picaridin, Bayrepel, and KBR 3023
• Nepetalactone, also known as "catnip oil"
• Citronella oil
• Permethrin
• Products containing permethrin Products containing 0.5% permethrin:
• Repel Permanone
• Permethrin Tick Repellent
• Bonide Ant Dust (0.25%)
• Nix 1% shampoo for head lice.
• Rentokil woodworm Killer 1.8% w/w
• Elimite 5% skin cream or generic equivalent for scabies, lice, head lice, bird mites, tropical rat mites, bed bugs, and other mites.
• Lyclear 5% skin cream or generic equivalent for scabies and crab lice.
• Most flea and tick repellant for dogs (Adams, Bio-Spot, K9-Advantix, Cutter)
• Dragnet, a pesticide for home use, also contains permethrin.
• Raid Ant and Roach killer, another home insecticide contains 0.2% permethrin.
• Cutter Bug Free Backyard contains 2.5% permethrin
• Flit
• Carbaryl (1-naphthyl methylcarbamate) commonly sold under the brand name Sevin, a trademark of the Bayer Company
• Neem oil Formulations made of Neem oil also find wide usage as a bio-pesticide for organic farming, as it repels a wide variety of pests including the mealy bug, beet armyworm, aphids, the cabbage worm, nematodes and the Japanese beetle. Neem Oil is not known to be harmful to mammals and birds as well as many beneficial insects such as honeybees and ladybugs. It can be used as a household pesticide for ant, bedbug, cockroach, housefly, sand fly, snail, termite and mosquitoes both as repellent and larvicide (Puri 1999). I have used DEET, PMD, Icardin, Carbaryl (sevin) and coconut oil with good results

Thanks for the huge amount of data on this subject, I will definitely try the Coconut oil as it is far cheaper here than lavender oil and sounds as though it may work even better!

What temperature do we set to the oven and does it need to be preheated and for how long?

It is personal preference I suppose...

Try this and let us know if that works....

Ammonia is poison. Do not play with it!

http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/mhmi/mmg126.html

hello everyone;

i just ran across this link. great stuff. this is one of my favorite subjects. most of the replies are very correct. the biggest suggestion is for the comments about midges. what i would try is what is used in the south for "biting flies". that would be a small amount of "real Vanilla" in olive oil. the local kids use it to play in the creeks.

as for the mosquito's: most are correct. the only thing that people seem to be missing is what i consider fact: that mosquito's are hardwired for the smell of CO2. therefore anything you can use that masks the smell of CO2 makes you invisible to them. this is why so many things work. my personal favorite is a small amount of imitation vanilla in water. sprayed heavily on all exposed skin and clothings. works good if enough is sprayed on, plus you smell good. another plus, most people are not allergic to vanilla.

i make my own mosquito repellents and sell them at festivals and such. the list of ingredients that i use matches with ALL of the recommendations here. i have found that essential oils of these things diluted in Grape seed oil is the cheapest and most effective. in 2 ounces of grape seed oil i will put up to 10 or 12 drops of various essential oils. gives different scents that appeal to different people. they all work. the most effective essential oil and the most expensive is catnip oil.

for after being bitten i use: boiled pennyroyal. extremely effective. takes away the sting of most bites. i even used it personally,on a wasp sting and the pain went away immediately.