Being eaten alive! (house, shop, oil)

[aveojohn]

Has anyone else noticed how bad the mosquitos are so far this year? I like to sit out in my back yard and am being bit up 10 times worse than last year. I guess it's all the rain.

[Tinare]

Yeah, I think it is the rain. I bought one those OFF fan things that you wear or can put on a table beside you. I haven't been bitten yet, so I think it's working...

[aveojohn]

I usually rub baby oil on my skin, but haven't yet this year. It acually works very well and no stinky chemical smell or taste.

[Honest Bob]

They had something on channel 4 I believe the other day about how the DEP is going around with a 4 wheeler with a tank sprayer and spraying properties for the mosquito's.

They said the swampy areas are not as big of a problem as is - places with small puddles of water and old used tires with water inside of them.

Maybe you could call the DEP and have your property added to the list of places to spray and get rid of any buckets or water, used tires or puddles of standing water on your property.

[alise007]

I am getting ready to try some stuff from Do my own pest control called Suspend. I also found it at my local Lesco/John Deere landscape shop. Have also been using a local company to spray. IT has helped a LOT but not completely. I haven't been bothered but the kids have still been bitten. We never had problems at our house in Robinson Twp with mosquitos but down here in NC it is ridiculous.

Good luck! It makes enjoying your backyard very difficult with the blood suckers!

[aveojohn]

Originally Posted by alise007

I am getting ready to try some stuff from Do my own pest control called Suspend. I also found it at my local Lesco/John Deere landscape shop. Have also been using a local company to spray. IT has helped a LOT but not completely. I haven't been bothered but the kids have still been bitten. We never had problems at our house in Robinson Twp with mosquitos but down here in NC it is ridiculous.

Good luck! It makes enjoying your backyard very difficult with the blood suckers!

Try the baby oil.

[raynist]

My neighbor is getting bit up like crazy, i haven't had a bite yet.

We are both outside at the same time each day while our kids play.

[Tinare]

Originally Posted by raynist

My neighbor is getting bit up like crazy, i haven't had a bite yet.

We are both outside at the same time each day while our kids play.

I remember reading once that blood type could have something to do with it. One study found that Type O folks were bitten more often. I found this article which also talks about some other possiblities for why one person is more likely to be bitten than other.

Why do mosquitoes bite some people more than others? » Scienceline

[CuriouserGeorge]

Originally Posted by aveojohn

Try the baby oil.

I doubt using baby oil will do much. Even repellents don't actually repell, instead they clog up chemical sensors located on the mosquito so that it can't tell what's out there or where it is. It's somewhat analogous to putting a blindfold on, and trying to find a heavily-perfumed woman in a room...not especially difficult to do. If you put a clothespin on your nose, though, and try the same trick, chances are you won't be successful.

I may not be totally accurate, but I believe mosquitoes are initially alerted to prey because of the carbon dioxide we exhale (lesser factors are body heat and moisture). If you can avoid breathing while outside, then I'd say you'll do okay!

Also, it's primarily (if not totally) the anopheles female that does the biting...there's something in blood that she needs for egg maturation/development and that's the reason we get invited to dinner.

[southernfried]

Hey I know this will sound crazy but ,what I use a lot of time is a used "Bounce" sheet out of the drier,just put in your pocket(hanging out),or if like me hanging the top of my sock,(short socks). Just have to try it!! Make sure it still smells!! ( Can use a new one,but wife gets mad at me )