Odd question, but do those electronic pest repellent things work?

Nevermind.... apparently not. Crap.

I don't have any electronic pests to try one on.

The "Skin-so-edibl.. err.. soft" stuff also does nothing. And the citrisy bug "repellents" aren't.

DEET. Nothing else works. Except perhaps full body armor (insect netting, with some kind of stand-off system so they don't bite through it).

-ml

I don't think I've seen those. Do you have a link?

If your're talking about something around your home, we have a Mosquito Magnet. Sadly, we got a discounted floor model which may have had non-working parts, but we got a replacement just in time for all the bugs to go away! Hurrah! Anyway, I'll see how well it does next year. It's supposed to be very effective. We really need it around our home. We have a wooded lot, we're at a fairly low level, and about a mile away from the Patomac. We get a lot of those little blood suckers.

I must say that it's very satisfying to see those horrid things end up in the mosquito magnet. Even if it's only a few, that's still a few less in the World after my blood (which they consider to be a local delicacy.)

It's too soon to know whether the magnet is really working 'as advertised', ie breaking the breeding cycle, and by the time that I should be able to tell the mosquito season will be all but over anyway. But I didn't get bitten today despite spending a few hours in the garden this afternoon, so maybe...

As a side note, the many ant / spider bites I picked up camping in NJ during the week of the DNC are still itching occasionally. I react badly...

I never saw the benefit in having additional attractants around. Even if there is a zapper at the heart of it.

Yeah, I always screw that up. I don't know why I can't get the incorrect spelling out of my head.

So, all you spandex wearers be careful. According to the article DEET may damage your stylish clothing...

DEET damages all kinds of stuff. I was using some at a buddy's cookout once, and it was some "industrial strength" that they used. (They are telephone linemen in IL and get to meet all the bugs in their line of work) It ate the paint of the Adirondack chair I was sitting in and left my forearms dark green with paint. It also does a number on the screens of my depth finders on my boat... Evil stuff, but good for keeping off evil bugs...

Hmmm... the shirt I always wear biking (which I've been spraying liberally lately) isn't quite spandex, but it's mostly polyester i think. I wonder if that's bad? Hasn't seemed to bother it much yet though.

It said nylon was unaffected. And nylon is polyester.

It is polyamide, not polyester.

Quote:
Polyamide, also known as PA, or Nylon, has been mass-produced since 1935.
- It is a thermoplastic polycondensate.
- Applications: Used to make high-lubricity parts (e.g. bearings, blow moldings, and clothing fabric).
- General properties: It has high lubricity and moderate strength. It is tough, inexpensive, and has poor dimensional stability due to water absorption (hygroscopic nature).
- Trade Name: Ultramid, Zytel.

Quoted from efunda.com. Link.

-Zeke

Sorry. Mylar is polyester. Sorry. I thought it sounded wrong when I posted it.

Quote:
Sorry. Mylar is polyester. Sorry. I thought it sounded wrong when I posted it.

Could be worse. You could have misspelled mylar!

Yeah, I don't even _try_ to know which plastic is which, there are too many of them with similar names. That's why I love efunda.

-Zeke