Does anyone have any mosquito repellant recipes or ideas?
Thanks
Koren
Make a mixture of 1/2 Avon Skin-so-Soft oil and 1/2 rubbing alcohol and apply to exposed areas of skin.
By truerblue (04/20/2005)
By ThriftyFun
Rub Vicks Vaporub on exposed skin to repel mosquitoes.
By truerblue (04/21/2005)
Splashing plain rubbing alcohol on yourself and allowing it to dry will deter mosquitoes from biting you. (05/10/2005)
By Diana
Buy a small bottle of blended citronella oil to dab on yourself. If you can only buy pure oil (not diluted with a carrier oil) then blend your own. Please do not use pure essential oil directly on yourself. (05/18/2005)
By Cathy
In 1 cup water mix 1 tsp Soybean oil (any vegetable oil) and 1/4 tsp Palmolive liquid soap
Mix well, spray or wipe on skin, lasts at least 90 minutes as well as DEET. Some claim 5-6 hrs. Apply hourly to be sure! It doesn't smell!
Stores 2 yrs in frige.
NOTE: There is just enough soap to disperse the oil. To be sure of allergies, wipe a dot of oil, and one of the soap on your skin and wait 30 min to be sure no reaction occurs. (07/01/2005)
By Laura Wilson, WNV survivor (Found recipe too late!)
Yes, I heard of the recipe 1/3 epsom salt, 1/3 stale beer, 1/3 listerine and he put it in the hose sprayer. That is all that was said on the news. I would like to try it. (07/12/2005)
By Cindy
Please what Truth or Fiction says about Lemon Joy and mosquitos.
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/j/joy-bugs.htm
I tried that 2 years ago and it didn't work. They ate me alive! lol
Jennifer
Northern Virginia (07/13/2005)
I found a great one for my kids. My girls seem to attract every kind of crawly, flying biteing bug. we have mosquitos, horseflys, and deerflies which all bite and bite bad. I hate using the chemicals on them because my youngest suffers from asthma. I found a recipe that calls for 1 part vinegar, 1 part oil, i used mineral oil but you can also use baby oil to make the smell better.
By melissa
I own a vanilla company here in the USA and have tested many different formulas using pure vanilla extract for repelling mosquito's (using my kids as guinea pigs which I thought appropriate since our vanilla is organically grown in Papua New Guinea!). It works great for about 45 minutes, then we need to respray. This is too short of a time to be effective and am working on a method to increase effectiveness.
Single fold vanilla extract, which is generally what one would purchase in the grocery, will have 35% alcohol which is mandated by the FDA. if the bottle says "vanilla flavor" it is not pure vanilla and will not work. Most vanillas on the market have up to 40% sugar which will make you sticky. The best blend I have found so far is to dilute the single fold pure, sugarless vanilla with 50% water so that you will have a blend of 17% alcohol and then spray on exposed skin.
I am curious as to the claims of Mexican vanilla being highly effective as an insect repellent. Within the vanilla industry we are well aware of the fact that Mexican vanilla extracts often carry high levels of residual chemicals and pesticides due to poor farming practices. Perhaps this actually contributes to its effectiveness as a repellent? (07/13/2005)
By Marty
Hi
I have heard that catnip essential oil is way more effective than even DEET on mosquitos. However, I am not sure what the dilution rate should be. Does any one know? (07/18/2005)
By Nicole
If you take a garlic pill every day during summer months, bugs will not bite you, especially mosquitos.
By Saundra McKenzie (07/22/2005)
By ThriftyFun
Placing a fabric sheet in your pocket with keep mosquitoes away, they hate the scent and your clothes will smell good too.
By imaqt1962 (07/28/2005)
I know that certain Herbs and plants ward off mosquitos. I have never mixed them together and if you try you should be careful.
Marigold
Basil
Lavender
Geraniums
Lemon Thyme
Citronella Grass
Chamomile
(12/14/2005)
By Shi
I have tried using vinegar with baby oil combination but to no effect,is there any other home remedy to drive to mosquito's away. (03/03/2006)
By Peter
Glycerine by itself seems to work reasonably well for mosquitoes. To make it much more effective, let some aromatic herbs "stew" in the glycerine before you rub it on. I use wild thyme--which has a wonderful scent--but surely marigold, basil, lavender, geraniums, lemon thyme, citronella grass, or chamomile will work also. And probably most any wild aromatic herb.
By Haclil
Don't laugh at me! Pure vanilla extract, on your pulse points like perfume. I have B+ blood, which they love, and I get large welts. My husband and I went camping, and he didn't put any on...and got chewed up! This was in Alaska, where Mosquito is the state bird! (04/22/2006)
By Kelly
Carol, rubbing alcohol will not kill anyone by absorbing through the skin. People have and still do get massages with "rubbing" alcohol. (05/11/2006)
By D
Mosquitos hate me. I always thought it was something about me they hated - one friend joked that I have "nutra-sweet" blood from drinking diet soda and they like the real thing. Then I tried a new soap despite a lifetime of loyalty to Caress and I have super sensitive skin. It didn't take me long to realize that I was suddenly a delicious target for the pesty bugs. I switched back and - poof! - no more mosquitos. The moral is: Caress before you dress and you'll not only soften your skin, you'll spare yourself itchy mosquito bites (and possibly viral encephilitis - how do you spell that anyway?)!
I'm curious to know if this works for anyone else. (05/17/2006)
By Tracy
Tracy, I too use Caress and have been using it for years now and come to think of it, Mosquitos rarely bit me! Wow! (06/08/2006)
By Lidia
The recipe for mosquito repellent that has the 3 ingredients used in equal parts of 1/3 epsom salt, beer and listerine works really well. We used it last year in our yard, we mixed it up as instructed and put it in a water hose - attached dispenser that you would use when you fertilize your lawn and garden and sprayed it in the yard and around the shrubs and even sprayed closely around the house and it really worked. We were amazed, we were so desperate to try anything. Compared to everything else, it's relatively inexpensive and from what I understand, the ingredients also benefit your lawn and plants by feeding them. (06/11/2006)
By Toni
the best thing I tried was B-6. A surgeon I worked with said to take one daily starting in April (1000mg), but NOT if you are pregnant. They used that in Vietnam. (06/16/2006)
By Judy M.
I can vouch for Geranium oil. I love to work in my garden in the evening time even though it is prime feeding time for mosquitos. But I just dab a drop of Geranium essential oil on my neck, ankles, toes (if exposed) knees, wrists and I don't get bit. Plus geranium oil is safe to use directly on your skin-and you don't need much. Many health food stores carry it. (06/17/2006)
By CAT
Catnip is toxic to mosquitos. (06/19/2006)
By violinchic
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