Picaridin vs. DEET in the war against sand fleas.

[morecowbells]

Thanks for all the feedback! My Picaridin wipes worked great against mosquitoes. The wipes were nice to carry in my purse, dry bag etc. Unfortunately after reading the info on this thread, I checked the ingredients and realized that it was only 5.75% Picaridin. I ordered some 20% lotion on Amazon. I also saw some clothing spray(link below) that I may use in conjunction to the lotion. Anybody have any input? It may be overkill, but I never have dealt with sand fleas.

Amazon.com: DurationTM Permethrin 0.5% 8 Oz. Trigger Spray: Patio, Lawn & Garden

 

[d3v1l6]

Permethrin works great against sand fleas, ticks & mosquitoes. We (Cdn army) use it on our uniforms when heading out to Afghanistan, pretty sure the US army uses it as well. But then again, we are usually wearing pants that are bloused into our boots.

On another note, permethrin in highly toxic to fish. Not sure what toxicity level of a pair of permethrin treated shorts would be like if someone decided they absolutely had to wear them in open water.

 

[CajunDiva]

...yet it apparently works for some people. Met folks in Utila using the vitamin B patch things (which I'd never heard of before) and they were the only ones not eaten alive by sand fleas.

I came across some information about these patches on ScubaBoard and looked them up. They're sold by a company outside of Houston...I decided to give them a try. On our November trip to Fantasy Island I tried them out and didn't have any problems with sand fleas at all. Maybe it was just a slow time for the little buggers, but I kind of think the patches had something to do with it

 

[highdesert]

From Wikipedia ...

"Permethrin is extremely toxic to fish and aquatic life in general, so extreme care must be taken when using products containing permethrin near water sources."

FWIW ....

 

[morecowbells]

Glad I did not order the Permethrin spray. Even though it would only be used on surface clothing, not worth the risk(although minimal)of some getting in contact with my skin thus damaging the marine life.

CajunDiva(love the name!), do you remember the website which you ordered your patches from? I found one on the internet called the 'Don't Bite Me Patch'. The negative I heard about it is the "pee" smell one gets from wearing this. Although that would be a small price to pay(for me at least, not certain about those around me though ) for the added protection.

Sorry to be so needy and high maintenance. DEET does a number on my skin. I look like I have a severe sunburn and break out in a rash on my inner arms and thighs. So far it seems the 20% Picaridin and possibly the Vit B patches are my best options. Thanks again! I will be sure to let you know how everything works when I get back home at the end of Jan.

 

[CajunDiva]

CajunDiva(love the name!)

Why thank you very much :blinking:

do you remember the website which you ordered your patches from? I found one on the internet called the 'Don't Bite Me Patch'. The negative I heard about it is the "pee" smell one gets from wearing this. Although that would be a small price to pay(for me at least, not certain about those around me though ) for the added protection.

That's the one I found..."Don't Bite Me Patch". I don't remember anything about a "pee" smell at all, but you can definitely taste the vitamin taste...at first. It's really not bad and if it works for you it is definitely worth the effort

 

[farsidefan1]

95% of the problem with sand flies is before I wake up. I, however am one of those that just doesn't attract many biting bugs, My wife on the other hand is very tasty. She gets by the same way I do for the most part plus she uses a dash of deet first thing in the morning and after a quick shower in the afternoon. Follow Doc's advice. Avoid those early morning hours and late evening and you have pretty much avoided being the main item on the breakfast/dinner menu. If a breeze is blowing even my wife doesn't bother with the deet. Of course we have only been there four times, January through June so we have missed large parts of the yr. Good luck and don't let the bugs dictate how you enjoy your vacation.

 

[rob@diveinutila.com]

Of course, the other thing about the sand flies is that peoples reactions vary widely. From nothing at all to nasty blisters in a few of the very unlucky. Also peoples reactions can change over time (mine just did and I have seen it in others). Even reacting when not before. This makes figuring out what works as a repellent and what does not trickier.

Vit B may work, although there seem to be several studies that suggest it has no affect.

Mosquitoes seem to be attracted by a complex combination of chemical, heat, color, moisture, and even sound - they can use pretty much anything to find you :/ disturbing one of these signals probably isn't going to have much affect. It wouldn't be surprising to find other blood sucking insects use similar attractors, but I'm obviously guessing.

For Mosquitoes take a look at a real study of repellents published in New England Journal of Medicine. It was an 'arm in box of bugs' study rather than a field test but still has some relevance. MMS: Error

 

[Riversnorkel]

I work in a little town called Deadhorse, Alaska.
Anybody who has spent any amount of time outside in the arctic knows the bugs can be very very bad.
We are issued mosquito patches instead of DEET and they work great.

 

[John_B]

Mosquitoes seem to be attracted by a complex combination of chemical, heat, color, moisture, and even sound - they can use pretty much anything to find you :/ disturbing one of these signals probably isn't going to have much affect. It wouldn't be surprising to find other blood sucking insects use similar attractors, but I'm obviously guessing.

I've read that mosquitoes are attracted to the carbon dioxide we breathe out and the lactic acid in our sweat.

True? False? Partially true?