Mozzie Misery
 

So, I'm being eaten alive by mozzies while my children and husband don't seem to react much to the bites.

I was out in the garden last night (with citronella bands on my ankles) and still got bit by mozzies and fireants on my feet. The problem is when I go to bed and the bites get hot and itchy.

I've tried various creams but havn't found any that provide instant relief. I ended up sleeping with my feet sticking out of the bed after finally taking some Piriton to try and get some relief.

I don't want to be covered in deet all summer, and I hate the smell of citronella, is there any other way to keep these critters at bay? :unsure:

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Marmite or gin. In any order.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Applied internally or externally?

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Either. Eat it, drink it, or dab it behind your ears - the choice is yours.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

mixed together and applied as a paste? Maybe if I'd had a wee G&T I'd have slept all night.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Mozzies either like you or they don't. One of the joys of living in a humid area...makes for very long and miserable seasons.

Make sure you have no standing water in your yard as the mozzies love that. It's a case of trying the many products on the market and seeing if any suit you.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Mozzie:

http://i40.tinypic.com/zu2pf9.jpg

Mozzie:

http://www.wwiiguns.com/store/images...e_0702_396.jpg

Skeeter:

http://fohn.net/pictures-of-flies/tiger-mosquito.jpg

:p

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

If you don't like deet, I've heard there's a lotion by avon that works, can't remember the name though. For treatment of the bites, there's a product called "After Bite" that contains ammonia, it works well.

Here are some other tips I found.

http://tipnut.com/over-40-mosquito-b...h-relief-tips/

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

You can try one of these:

http://altmedicine.about.com/od/azna...a/mosquito.htm


PS My daughter in MS has the front walkway lined with Heather and I can sit out there and never get bothered with mosquitos. Heard lavendar does the same.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Try this:

http://ace.imageg.net/graphics/produ...3877820reg.jpg

The 25% deet ones are good for up to 6 hrs. The ones in the orange bottles are more like a powdery aerosol, as opposed to the green ones which leave an oily residue on your skin.

I live in east Texas, and we've got billions of skeeters. That stuff works.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

I've been thinking about something like these cuz the skeeters like the taste of me too (damn buggers):

http://www.mosquitomagnet.com/

http://www.buyhardwaresupplies.com/?...Number=7199532

that way you don't have to live covered in deet.

do some googling for mosquito magnet or mosquito traps, etc cuz I think there are a few products like these out there.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Why would you put that stuff on your skin? It melts plastic!! :eek:

I've posted info about the product I use before...I've used it for about 6 years and it's the only thing that works for me. If I miss a tiny patch of skin with creams and sprays the mozzies/midges/horseflies/deerflies get me there. I usually clip it onto the waistband or if I'm sunbathing in the pool I clip it to my swimsuit.

http://www.lentek.com/bite-shields.html

Google and see if you can get it cheaper...I think someone on here got one from Amazon a few months ago.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Avon = Skin So Soft
They make a whole line now, but back in the day I used to use the bath oil. It's particularly good against sand flies. However, I had a good result with their spin off line when we were in Bonaire (and a million thanks to the woman who gave me some).

I make a eucalyptus oil spray; 99% DEET Jungle Juice melted the flooring in my house.. I thought I'd better not put it on my skin anymore.

Hummingbirds. You need more hummingbirds in your yard. :)

PS: I've never found an after-bite product that works. Some of us are just too allergic. I even had this device that gives an electric shock that only worked for a while. It was a fun party trick though.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

The Avon lotion is called 'Skin So Soft'. I haven't tried it but have friends who swear by it for chasing away the 'midgies' in Scotland.

It's really strange my hubby and son get bitten badly and react to the bites really badly but the biting critters don't seem to like me :confused:

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Doing my best re the hummingbirds, they are in town, but have not arrived at our house yet!

The problem with the topical anaesthetic creams is that they don't have enough of the anaesthetic in them to work. Back in the day when I was a nurse I used tubes of Lignocane gel to get some relief from sunburn, it worked a treat. I don't think they sell that at Walgreens though!

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

For bites/stings/sunburn/burns I use Solarcaine lotion...not the spray or gel you usually see in stores. I usually bring it back from the UK but it's available on line.

http://well.ca/products/solarcaine-m...5209f5d925ed8d

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

"They" say that more B-12 (ie take a suppliment) is supposed to help, more garlic in your diet.. I've tried it all. The bites get so hot & itchy, like you say, sometimes I wake up scratching in my sleep. In the tropics, this opens a whole host of other problems. :(
I'll look in my magic medicine drawer and see if there's anything that worked last time that I've just forgotten.

The euc oil does best for me; mix with water and suspend with a drop or two of glycerin. I'm not a huge fan of this sort of thing, but can you treat your lawn at all? Eliminate *any* still water (old plant pots, stored items etc). I also keep a couple of those big bucket sized citronella candles going under the table outside when we're out all evening.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

I use an amonia based thing from walgreens, works great, also Off works fine for me, loose clothing also helps :)

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

We used to have lots of mosquitoes around, but since a family of barn swallows moved in under the eve of our house and continued to return year after year, we've had nary a problem with the bugs.
I think on the net there are tips and items to invite barn swallows to nest either near or even on your house.

There's also bats for nighttime, but I'm not sure how you 'attract' them other than live near the woods or old structures and caves where they sleep in the day.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

I found that a dot of baking soda mixed with water does the trick for me. Also white vinegar which is good for sunburn as well.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

I use white vinegar on the bites, not so many mosquitos up here as in Michigan but they still manage to find me.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

B-12 tablets, Marmite sandwich, my husband who wont eat Martmite :lol: uses Olbas oil on the bites - works wonders

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

DEET is the only thing that has ever worked for me. Fortunately I live in New Mexico these days.

BTW, you don't want any of the 90+% ones that are basically undiluted solvent. You want something in the 20-40% range in a creme. That keeps the DEET on the surface of the skin so you don't need as much. FWIW, citrus oils also dissolve plastic when they're used at 90+% concentrations.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

usually if anyone is going to be bitten its me. This year however - they are taking chunks out of my husband and ignoring me totally. I am wondering if its down to the fenugreek tablets I am taking (working like marmite/b12 etc to make you taste nasty to bugs). Im taking for 'nursing' but i would imagine its pretty harmless for most people to take. might be worth a try.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

"Afterbite" is bloody amazing. Stops the itch/pain/scratch instantly.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Hmm, afterbite, I'll need to try that.

MsElui, I know that times when I've eaten a lot of garlic and gone out in the evenings they haven't touched me, maybe I should try some kind of supplement, I don't want to be stinking of it either though!

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

LOL... the 90% stuff is my favorite... strong enough to dissolve the paint from the label on the bottle.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

To my knowledge, they've never shown any detrimental health effects (other than the one guy who immersed himself in a whole bath tub of the stuff), but it's just unpleasant to deal with that concentration. Goes straight through your skin and out in your piss. The creme-based DEET makes it all so unnecessary.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Try Listerene and put it in a spray bottle and spray it on yourself.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

I find that getting drunk is a great way to avoid the unpleasant sensation of mosquitoes biting you if you're sitting outside on a summer's evening.

Edit: Thought I'd add that you actually need to stay drunk for two weeks to avoid discomfort altogether.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

And thus, the British holidaymaker is finally explained. :p

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Up here in the far north, we are having a cold, wet spring (early summer?) and the mosquitoes and black flies are about average .. but the deer ticks are really bad this year. Fortunately I'm getting quite skilled at pulling the little buggers out intact..

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Deet...nothing else works really...as for bites, After Bite, or anything with ammonium hydroxide so you could slag it up and use plain ammonium...

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

I guess I slag it up with my Walgreen brand ammonium. Works well, smells like a ginnel.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Am I the only one that likes to watch birds and bats?
:(

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

No? But it's much nicer when you don't have to slap at mosquitoes all the damn time. There's still plenty of them left to feed the birds and bats.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

We went camping this past weekend and I bought the new "OFF" clip on insect repellent and didn't get bitten once, usually they get only me. It has refill cartridges that last for 12 hours.
As for relief, tea tree oil or gold bond itch relief cream.
Damn mozzies!

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

Saw those advertised on TV last night...I wondered if they were similar to the clip on one I use.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

You knew I've been eyeballing that commercial didn't you....

Good to hear it works. I like that. My own personal fog of keep-the-hell-offa-me.

Re: Mozzie Misery
 

No, I do, living on the farm we had tons of barn swallows and a few bats and I don't remember bugs ever being a problem, well except for bot flies for the horses.

Now I live next to a marsh, and while I do not use chemicals and don't wish to the bird population seems to be songbirds and that's about it, :(