This is an insect repellent for the skin. I’m not going to misrepresent–for me, it isn’t the holy grail of natural repellents which would last indefinitely and be 100% bugproof. I keep a bottle in my back pocket and reapply frequently and I still get the occasional bite. I do like it, though. In a weird way the fact that it fades after about half an hour can be an advantage because by the time I go back inside the odor fades in time and I don’t end up smelling like bug spray for the rest of the day. If I’m out for longer I just keep spraying if I see the need. With other sprays (or Skin-So-Soft bath oil) I had to wash if off immediately even if I was only outside for a few minutes.
It may perform better or worse depending on your body chemistry, the kind of bug conditions you face, and other factors.
In a competitive market manufacturers of insect repellents aim for maximum efficacy. Understandable. Without being overly alarmist, I sometimes wonder whether the line between safety to humans and repellence to bugs is somewhat thin. The question here for me becomes a matter of weighing the relative risks. Before West Nile, mosquitoes in my part of the world were mostly an irritation–itchy welts and possible allergies were the results of being unprotected. With West Nile, mosquitoes have become more than an inconvenience. The possibility of Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever from ticks is another thing to worry about. Personally, I use this spray, cover my ankles, etc., and try to stay out of the worst parts of the yard during insect feeding time (dusk to dawn).
Homemade Insect Spray
1 cup vodka
2 T. aloe vera juice
2 tsp. favorite conditioning liquid oil (soybean, olive, castor, etc.)
1 1/2 tsp. essential oil blend (I use this preblended one)
Combine in a spray bottle and shake before each use. These oils have less staying power than chemicals such as DEET so they need to be reapplied about every 30 minutes or as needed.
You can buy a blend or create your own blend from these oils found to have insect repellent properties.
- Catnip Oil–mosquitoes
- Cedarwood Oil–lice, moths
- Cinnamon Oil–ants
- Citronella Oil–mosquitoes
- Clove Oil–mosquitoes
- Eucalyptus Oil–mosquitoes
- Geranium Oil–flies, mosquitoes
- Lavender Oil–mosquitoes, ticks, chiggers, fleas, flies
- Lemongrass Oil–mosquitoes, ticks, chiggers, fleas, flies
- Litsea Cubeba–mosquitoes
- Patchouli–gnats
- Peppermint Oil–lice, spiders, ants
- Rosemary Oil–fleas, ticks
- Tea Tree Oil–mosquitoes, lice, ants
Although found in many lists of repellents, I avoid pennyroyal because of its potential toxicity.
All essential oils are best used in dilution. Don’t apply them directly to the skin in full strength.
TL
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TL – once again your timing is impeccable. What is the shelf-life for this? I see it only makes about a cup at a time, but will it last a week in the bottle if we don’t use it up? And I have found that if you do get bit – my dd is the most delicious thing says the mosquito – ice is an excellent anti-itch. We use the little ice pack that goes in her boo-boo bunny. Keep that on the bite for several minutes and it really relieves the itch.
Thanks for this – I’m almost out of the other stuff. Now to buy vodka =)
AWESOME! I made the deo and it’s great! Here’s another use for my tea tree oil! WHOOHOO!! Thanks!
Thank you so much for this information. I try to avoid chemicals as much as possible. This is perfect for it.
We’ve tried lots of different factory make and homemade mosquito repellent and have had the best success with apple cider vinegar and water, mixed @ 1 part each. Cheap, easy, effective. And we only smell like pickles for the first minute or so after spraying.
Hey Nancy–It seems unaffected after at least a couple of weeks, although I usually use it up by then. It is kind of refreshing, too. Not as much as an ice cube, though–have to give that a try, thanks!
What if Vodka is not an option? Would filtered water be ok?
I haven’t seen a recipe yet that uses just water, but many substitute oil for the vodka, or use isopropyl rubbing alcohol. I think these help to carry the properties of the essential oil. But never say never–try it in a small amount if you like and see if it works for you!
Hope you like it, Raquel!
Tea tree to the rescue again!
Ooohh, this looks really nice. It’s funny, because I just read an article on WebMD yesterday debating the chemicals vs. natural bug repellent debate. It said that soy based products and oil of lemon eucalyptus are nearly or just as effective as DEET in repelling insects, with certain soy based products lasting longer than some DEET products.
We just found a product called Mosquito Barrier and it’s main ingredient is garlic oil/juice…. It’s organic and I have to tell you, it works AWESOMELY… We had a REAL problem with skeeters in the moby gardens… it was dreadful. You don’t use much, like 2-3 oz for a gallon of water in a garden sprayer. You just spray it all over, grass, veggies etc. We even put a about 1/4 ounce into a small pint sprayer and use it on us if we’re really going to be out long. But it reduced the skeeters EASILY by 75%. I am SO sold on the stuff. They say after the first time or two, you only need to reapply like once a month. Our old evergreen was a haven for them, and it’s almost fun to spray it and see the swarm take off and scream out of the area!!!
And it’s fun with the garlic and vampire connection…. hahaha!
-s
That sounds great. I didn’t know they hated garlic that bad. Awesome.
Yes, use soybean oil for the oil. And then toss in all the best essential oils. And actually smell good instead of chemically.
I made a similar formula earlier this summer and you know, it works! Mine was heavy on the citronella and neem oil. BTW, this stuff works well as a natural deodorant on really hot days as well.
I have done alot of research for my dogs. All three of them have terrible reactions to fleas and have a horrible experince with dog sprays. I have now come to the conclusion that something drastic needs to take place with these animals exspecialy due to their age. I need help with finding something, a remedy, to spraying my yard and my dogs against mosquitoes, fleas, and ticks that is nontoxic to them. Their skin can not handle the alcohol content any longer. It dries their skin out which causes them to itch even more. I have read that a coconut emulsifier is good to use but can not find out if it’s a coconut alcohol emulsifier. If not an alcohol, where can i find this product to buy. Also, I have read that lemon eucalyputs is the most effective mosquito repellant through the CDC and that juniper oil is good for fleas. Is orange oil better than juniper oil? I would perfer not to use orange oil due to it acidic contents. I need help in determing what is the best oils to mix and how to mix them to get what I need to help my dogs. Can you help me in the conquest?
Pam–According to the resource (http://www.thewholedog.org/EOFleas.html), the best oils for flea repellents are citronella, cedar, peppermint, rosemary, eucalyptus, lemongrass, and lavender.
Essential Wholesale (http://www.essentialwholesale.com/PET_SAFE_p/202.htm) has a blend of cypress, cedar, citronella, lemongrass, lavender, and tea tree oils that might make it easier (and cheaper) than buying separate bottles.
For your yard, you might look at this product: http://www.gardensalive.com/product.asp?pn=2779
I have never used it myself so I can’t give a testimonial.
Have you searched the forums at Dave’s Garden? http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/ They have a discussion on just about every topic.
You might also have some luck with neem oil. It’s a sort of cure-all in some people’s estimations, and generally good for repelling pests while being antibacterial on the skin.
Best of luck with this frustrating problem.
Thanks Tomato Lady. I will look into those web sites. I’ll let you know what I find.
Pam–Please do. I’d love to hear if you find something that works.
Try Nutri Shield, it’s properly formulate, all natural, garlic based but doesn’t smell like garlic and considered to be as effective as the best chemical repellents. It just won an award on bestcovery.com
Thanks for the recipe! I’ll definitely give it a go. I usually rub a bit of olive oil on exposed skin to keep the mozzies away but that only last me about 1-2 hours.
For those who don’t always have the time (or all the ingredients) to make their own insect repellent, there is another option. I did some research and learned that Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (OLE) is the only plant based ingredient approved by the EPA and Center for Disease Control for insect repellent. It is proven to work as well as DEET but with out all the harmful effects. Cutter and Repel both make an OLE product. I have tried the Cutter product (Cutter Lemon Eucalyptus) and think it works great!
I’m going to try this and see how it works.
I liked the reviews of mosquito traps on this blog. http://mosquito-trap-review.blogspot.com/
Sometimes it’s nicer to have something permanent, instead of something on your skin.
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