This thread is like deja vu all over again.
The home remedies and their folklore believers pop up like mosquitoes in the Everglades (the most vicious I've found) or black flies in a Canadian Fish camp.
I'm in the woods, cornfields, and swamps all year around, and have tried virtually all of these, and they've come up short; some can't even be dignified by calling them "old wives tales".
Human - insect interaction is a variable one, depending on a lot of factors - temperature, wind, population (seasonal) peaks, species, and the most important one - the life cycle need for blood for females to produce eggs. So - at some life cycle stages they aren't particularly vicious, but at other times they are a lot more than persistent.
Also, most people don't spend enough time in the outdoors to see them at all stages, or they remember the time that dryer sheets worked, and forgot the times (if they ever experienced them) that only a flamethrower could beat them off. Some folks have a different body chemistry too. For some reason, ticks don't accumulate on me, but all other insects do. One of my employees wasn't bothered by mosquitoes, gnats, ticks, or even black flies. It was like he had a "no-fly" zone around him (and he didn't eat garlic).
DEET is an effective repellant most of the time, although I've been out when it had to be reapplied every 10 minutes, 100% no less. It has its drawbacks too; it dissolves plastics, it's readily absorbed through the skin, it stinks and it isn't effective against all insects. It can also affect some folks adversely. I don't get the rashes, skin and mucous membrane irritation, dizziness, headaches, disorientation, and nausea that some report, but a lot of use makes my skin "crawl".
My treatment of choice is Permethrin applied to clothes, including a face net when necessary. It is a proven contact insecticide, so it actually kills all of them, which has an beneficial effect on the immediate population. When I'm in the same place, I notice a gradual absence of bugs as time goes on. It lasts up to two weeks, so reapplying throughout the day isn't an issue. Some mention that the gnats get inside your face net, but if treated with Permethrin, they don't get that far. Farmers up here use it for horses and dogs.
As far as the mentioned gnats go, there's currently a LOT of them here now, and DEET is ineffective against them. They crawl in your ears, up your nose, in your eyes, and
don't swear at them or they'll get in your mouth.
Here's some credible links:
gnats • Inshore Fishing in Louisiana • Louisiana Sportsman, LA
The University of Maine - UMaine Cooperative Extension: Insect Pests, Ticks & Plant Diseases - Insect Repellents
A couple of comments I thought you guys would like:
they didnt bother me all that bad at first but as they day went on i lookied like i had rolled around in a bed of needles with all the little red marks on me. i used a whole can of off in one day and i never got any relief from them im thinkin about buying a flame thrower lol
my wife is gonna flip when she discovers that i have taken all her victoria secret lotion and sprays. its really gonna be bad when i come home from a fishing trip with no fish and smelling like another woman. i cant decide what is better letting the bugs chew on me or my wife eating my butt when i get home.
Went Sunday, didnt have a chance to run to the mall beforehand. Used deep woods off it, wind died down, didn't phase the gnats a bit, unless i sprayed it on top of them while they were feasting.
Just be careful where you put it. My wife stole my last two bottles... LOL!
(Victoria )secret stuff
I don't find the stuff worked for me but the shopping experience is fantastic.
