Best way to combat mosquitos

[chefdc1]

While we are solidly snowed in here in Rhode Island, we cant stop thinking about summer and RVing! We are already thinking about getting ready.
What have you found to be the best way to combat mosquito and pesky bugs around the campsite? Sprays, zappers, lanterns? Are there any reasonably priced screen rooms that attach to an awning, and if so, are they worth getting?
Thanks for all of your experienced opinions.

[2012Coleman]

Build a big smokey camp fire. Drives away pesky neighbors too.

[djsamuel]

rockhillmanor wrote:

rwbradley wrote:
If you are on an electric site, get a regular desktop house fan that rotates. Plug it into the outside plug on your rig. Run it on high rotating. Set it up so chairs and fire pit are in front of it. It will blow the mosquitos away and will also help keep the fire from blowing in your face or in your trailer.

X2

I bought a box fan placed at one end of the MH so it blows along the side of the MH where you sit. No mosquitoes.

Ants and bugs, I take care of by sprinkling Sevin around all the tires, hoses, cords to prevent them from getting inside the RV. And if I am staying a while in a CG I will sprinkle the perimeter of the site with it to keep them away from where we sit.


Screen rooms are a real pain to put up, expensive and they do not keep out the bugs.

And for me why I won't use one is more importantly if a storm comes up you won't have the time to get that screen room down to get to the awning to prevent wind damage to your awning. Just saying something to think about.

How about sprinkling the Sevin into the back of the running fan? That will coat everything and drive ALL of the bugs away. :B

[kvangil]

We use a combination of 2 Thermacells, a fan, and bug spray. Some bugs will always get through, but at least it's minimal.

[manualman]

Thermacell works great. But it does take 10 minutes to warm up and GET effective. Much misery can accumulate in those 10 minutes...

And please dispose of the pads properly in the trash. If it washes into a lake it's highly toxic to fish.

[leeper]

Hang a dead skunk in your campsite. That always works!

[run100]

Best way . . . only camp during the winter.

[coolbreeze01]

Why endure mosquito's?

[Executive45]

In MICHIGAN, you can use a BB gun.....:B....Dennis

[wintersun]

Treat you clothes with permethrin and any bug screening and this will minimize the skin area to which you should apply picaridin in a 15% or greater solution.

Chose a campsite in the driest section of the campground as this will make a big difference in how much is around your RV.

[campn4walleye]

We used the Off lanterns last year and they worked pretty well. Last year the bugs were the worst ever. We also have the Thermacells and they are effective as well.

[rockhillmanor]

wing_zealot wrote:
Move to Florida where it's to hot to even go outside where the no see ems and midges are.

I found out of being held hostage by mosquitoes in Florida is all you have to do is change your location!

I was going to Central Florida. All I had to do was go just a little bit farther North and NO bugs.

Central Florida and South was all swamp before urbanization, And the swamps are still in and around it, tons of small lakes and bugs are in abundance.

Move up north just a little and the whole ground composition changes from sand to real dirt. No swampy lakes no moldy smelling sand and most importantly a constant breeze and no bugs.

What I learned is West of I-75 is where you will start to encounter a breeze all the time during the hot summer months. There is no such thing as a breeze if you go more inland which is were the bugs are so bad.

Been here 2 years now and "I" can go out and sit at night with no mosquitoes.

[Pangaea_Ron]

With the cold cold weather in the East, you may never have mosquitoes again?

We recently got back from a trip to Africa and we used repellent with 30-50% DEET that was recommended by our guides and our County Health Department. They also recommended spraying our clothing with Permethrin. We had no issues with insect bites, except for that one tsetse fly.

When we were in the Cook Islands and Mexico, they burned cardboard egg cartons and coconut husks.

[myredracer]

Well, it's kinda like with aggressive dogs - if you show fear, they will attack you... I know this to be fact because when we go camping, I simply ignore the mosquitoes while DW panics and ends up with big welts on exposed skin. They just never bother me 'cuz I don't let them. :W

On a serious note, we bought a natural homeopathic insect repellant that you take orally called Mozi-Q. Haven't had an opportunity to try it out yet though. Maybe you have to believe in it for it to actually work.... It is also supposed to work with ticks, lice, black flies and even bedbugs.

We camped at Newport, Wa. last summer next to the Pend Orielle river. OMG, we have never seen so many mosquitoes and flying insects of every description as that CG. :E Nobody was outside during the daytime unless they had to be. We were booked for 7 days but packed up and left after 2 and went down near Spokane.

[CavemanCharlie]

I use a combination of everything that's been listed so far.