Tick Repellant

[Appalachian]

I am terrified of alpha gal and know of too many friends and family who have contracted recently from ticks. Anything that anyone would recommend or has found to be better than permethrin?

 

[Bubblehide]

Nope.

 

[Forestryguy]

Sulpher powder on bottom of pant legs.

 

[Yoder]

I haven't found anything that actually keeps ticks away.

 

[Glendine]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tickless-Human-ultrasonic-Repeller-Orange/dp/B07CNR89G9

Please see attached device it works really well. Mine is attached to my binocular harness
Regards,
Glendine.

 

[Hnthrdr]

permethrin

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Permethrin on clothes + picaridin on skin has worked well for me

 

[Ozarkansas]

Nothing works better than permethrin for clothes. Spray Picaridin on skin, boots, and gear. Don’t get it on your face (edit: specifically your eyes. I haven’t done it but supposedly it hurts pretty bad) though.

I hunt in the Ozarks where an untreated person might get literally hundreds of seed ticks in a day, and have gone on 4-6 day early season spike camp hunts without getting a single tick using this combo.

 

[Appalachian]

Thanks for the replies. I have seen the Picardin as well at the stores and picked up a bottle. The combination of the two is likely what I’ll use going forward

 

[mtfallon]

Sawyers permetherin! Apply and let dry, don't apply while you're wearing the clothes, last over a month.

 

[Long Cut]

I will use Sawyer’s or really any Permethrin base.

I’ve used a Horse Spray from Tractor Supply that had a higher concentration of Pemethrin, with some Picardin mixed in. That stuff WORKS.

I will also take a shot of Apple Cider Vinegar every morning during Turkey & September/October deer season now. An old timer taught me that trick, and it actually works on it’s own.

I contracted RMS fever from a tick in 2018 that wiped me out.
Between RMS, Alpha Gal & Lime Disease I do not take ticks lightly.

 

[pirogue]

Products like Sawyer only contain .5% Permethrin and cost anywhere from .50 to a dollar/ounce. Go online and get a 32 oz bottle of Martin’s Permethrin SFR for about $1.25/ounce. SFR basically means it is 36.8% Permethrin. Where I went to school, the mix of 1 oz Permethrin to 24 oz water, would yield a content of 1.47% Permethrin( almost 3 times content of Sawyer). At this same ratio, the 32 oz bottle will make 6 gallons of mix. Or, put 6 2/3 oz of Permethrin SFR in a gallon jug, top off with water, and you have a 2% content. I soak my pants in this, and they claim it’s good for a few washes. 3 1/3 oz per gallon of water yields 1% and will take care of a lot of fire ant beds.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Products like Sawyer only contain .5% Permethrin and cost anywhere from .50 to a dollar/ounce. Go online and get a 32 oz bottle of Martin’s Permethrin SFR for about $1.25/ounce. SFR basically means it is 36.8% Permethrin. Where I went to school, the mix of 1 oz Permethrin to 24 oz water, would yield a content of 1.47% Permethrin( almost 3 times content of Sawyer). At this same ratio, the 32 oz bottle will make 6 gallons of mix. Or, put 6 2/3 oz of Permethrin SFR in a gallon jug, top off with water, and you have a 2% content. I soak my pants in this, and they claim it’s good for a few washes. 3 1/3 oz per gallon of water yields 1% and will take care of a lot of fire ant beds.

Does your homebrew permethrin leave an oil/diesel-like odor on your clothing? I've diluted the 10% livestock pour-on version sold at farm supply stores down to 0.5% and soaked clothes in it. It worked well for repelling ticks, but left a pretty strong (and persistent) odor behind. The smell isn't a deal breaker for me, but if I could find an odorless DIY solution, I would use it.

 

[pirogue]

Does your homebrew permethrin leave an oil/diesel-like odor on your clothing? I've diluted the 10% livestock pour-on version sold at farm supply stores down to 0.5% and soaked clothes in it. It worked well for repelling ticks, but left a pretty strong (and persistent) odor behind. The smell isn't a deal breaker for me, but if I could find an odorless DIY solution, I would use it.

No, it has an odor. But like you said, it’s worth not worrying about ticks

 

[Appalachian]

Any downside to the higher concentration Permethrin other than the odor?

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Any downside to the higher concentration Permethrin other than the odor?

None that I can tell. My homemade version (10% diluted down to 0.5% to match the concentration of the ready-to-use Sawyer spray) seems to work just as well as Sawyer. I've watched ticks crawl part way up my pants then drop off or turn around.

 

[Swamp Fox]

Does your homebrew permethrin leave an oil/diesel-like odor on your clothing? I've diluted the 10% livestock pour-on version sold at farm supply stores down to 0.5% and soaked clothes in it. It worked well for repelling ticks, but left a pretty strong (and persistent) odor behind. The smell isn't a deal breaker for me, but if I could find an odorless DIY solution, I would use it.

I wonder why that diluted livestock concentration would leave an odor from a home-brew when what I use off the shelf (same concentration) does not? An extra ingedient? A shot of diesel in every jug? Diesel fuel cures a lot of ills outdoors. just sayin'...

I was a very early adopter of permethrin and picaridin but have only used pre-packaged and it has always been super-effective. Generic labels, no name-brand in the begining. Now you can find it branded, of course. (Sawyers, etc.) The thought never crossed my mind to up the concentration, and I never saw the need to mix in bulk. (I am in the woods a LOT but each treatment seems to last a good whlle. For perspective, I do feel the need to mass-produce my own scent-killer.)

Not saying that the early stuff I used and made me a believer is the same as what you get today. I didn't memorize the labels. But this post makes me think...

 

[Yoder]

I've sprayed my pants with permethrin to the point where they were wet. Ticks could care less. I still end up picking them off my pants and myself. I think it's like hot sauce to them. It's a little spicy but they will still bite you.

 

[Cady Creek]

Use the Sawyer's regularly, seems to have little affect on those little bastards. In my area, it used to be wood ticks out numbering the deer ticks, that has changed in recent years and now deer ticks seem to be the majority. Not cool.

 

[Ozarkansas]

Any downside to the higher concentration Permethrin other than the odor?

I’ve found the lower concentrations are super effective already, there’s not really a need to up it. That being said buying the livestock stuff and diluting it down is probably way cheaper than buying the low-proof stuff directly