Job Discussion Forums

[MELEE]

Yeah, I don't even let bleach in my house, so Raid, no way, that stuff'll kill ya.

[ls650]

The Raid comes out for mosquitos. I will be happy to put up with any possible side-effects to kill those little air-borne vampires.

[snorklequeen]

oh, LS650, it's not necessary to poison yourself to get rid of mosquitos -- here are some safer remedies i just received from a friend -- we have tons of mosquitos here in Houston, too

1. Bounce fabric softener sheets -- just wipe on and go; even good for babies; a Louisiana remedy

2. take one Vitamin B-1 tablet a day from April thru October [called thiamine hydrochloride] 100 mg. tablets

3. stop eating bananas; mosquitoes seem to like the banana oil as your body processes it

4. put on some Vick's Vaporub [i like the smell of it just a tad better than Deep Woods Off!, but only a tad]

5. plant marigolds around your yard; the flowers give off a smell that bugs don't like; no need to use insecticides in your garden/yard

6. mix Avon Skin-So-Soft 50/50 with alcohol [but don't drink it, rub it on yourself]

7. Mexican pure vanilla; supposed to also repel ticks; guess you rub it on yourself

cheers, and happy non-biting!

Queenie

[delacosta]

Another solution to the mosquito problem, but admittedly not available for everyone: plant a neem tree*. THis incredible tree form India secreets chemicals that mosquitos can't stand. I planted one in my yard two years ago and there are much less mosquitoes. They used to be a real problem and now there are hardly any at all. The tree now stands at 6 meters tall.

I'd like to get some more but the place in Huatulco, a store called Osho, sold out almost immediately. Apparently there are some people in Monterey trying to introduce them across Mexico.

*NEEM TREE [neem tree] or margosa tree, a fast-growing broad-leaved evergreen, Azadirachta indica, native to India and Myanmar. Its extracts have been used for centuries in Asia as pesticides, toothpaste, medicines, and health tonics. The tree itself is used in reforestation projects in hot, dry regions. In this century, knowledge of the neem tree has spread to the West, where it has been hailed as a "wonder plant." Neem-based pesticides have been developed, and the potential health uses of chemicals extracted from the tree are being studied.

[Ben Round de Bloc]

Thanks for the reminder about the neem tree. I need to see if I can get a couple of them started in my back yard again. I planted one several years ago, and it had grown to about 5 meters tall, but the last major hurricane wiped it out.

I've tried lots of those home-remedy insect repellents without much success against Yucatecan mosquitoes: Bounce sheets, Skin-So-Soft, citronella candles, etc. We have mosquitoes here all year long, but they're more numerous during the rainy season.

After living here for a while, I found that my system had pretty much become immune to local mosquito bites. No welts and hardly any itching. Still annoying, however, to have those suckers buzzing in my ears at night when I'm trying to sleep.

[delacosta]

Hey Ben where'd you get the trees from?

[Ben Round de Bloc]

[saraswati]

My mother was raised in India and everyone in the family used to eat a neem leaf every day. It's meant to be a GREAT intestinal de-bugger.

[snorklequeen]

the Skin-So-Soft alone never worked for me either, Tim; i'm hoping that by mixing it 50/50 with alcohol that it will work; i'm going to try B-1, and i quit eating bananas til October

we have fire ants in Houston; i use the bleach to pour on their mounds; it does the job, and i don't have to use pesticides

cheers,

Miss Q

[M@tt]

how safe is it to pour bleach into the ground? seems like a bad idea to me.

[MELEE]

Yeah,

The over use of Bleach for household cleaning is a major cause of Mexico's enviromental damage.
Fire ants are pretty nasty, so I guess you make a choice. The problem is a lot of people don't have all the information needed to make an informed choice. (Like that vinager kills as many surface germs as bleach in the bathroom)
When my Dad lived in Northern Texas, he would pour a cup of charcol lighter fluid into a fire ant mound, then light it!

[lozwich]

Any hints for fleas? I think in mosquito and cockroach free Bogota, I've got a little pulga party happening in my sofa.

[snorklequeen]

what does bleach do to the environment that's harmful? you guys are the first people i've talked with that have heard anything about it, Matt and Melee

i'm mildly allergic to fire ants; don't use bleach around the house, only for pest murder!!!