Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer.

[patrickg]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

Dan, I sure am glad the permethrin is helping. About the math? I thought the recommended mix was greater than 1/2 of a percent. How do you start with 1/2 percent solution and mix it stronger? I suspect your mix is on the weak side. If it is working, think how effective it would be at the correct dose.

I think there is an alternative explanation about the yellowjacket attack. Given that you were zapped in the orange, it seems to be nature's way of protesting your "green machine" and emphatically pointing out the prefered orange!

Patrick (Assume the appropriate liberal sprinkling of emoticons)

 

[dmccarty]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

StoneHeartFarm,

I have heard of the meat tenderizer trick. I think I have used it when I was a kid and got stung. I was wearing white for the most part. A white T shirt and somewhat white pants. Kinda hard to describe the color of the pants with the sawdust, dirt, oil and grease. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Shall we say a Molted White. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Is white supposed to fend off the bees? If so I guess they really could have torn me up much worse. /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

We have had a couple of bad bee attacks around here as well. But at least one dog was killed in by a swarm of bees and the owner was bitten prettty bad as well.

Later...
Dan

 

[dmccarty]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

PatrickG,

My math may be incorrect but what I did was increase the use of the .5% solution in the overall mix. The final mix described in the web page was 15 oz of water to 1 oz of the 13.3% solution. I use about 2 oz of of the .5% Permethrin with 14 oz of water. I think my final solution was a bit stronger than than the described mix if my memory and math works! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I only had a single Chemistry class in school so I might be really off the mix.

You have a very good theory about the bees attacking me because of my Green Tractor. But there is a flaw in your hyponthesis. I had the tractor hidden behind some trees and bushes well away from the Gutless, Cowardly YellowJackets. Obviously they were attacking Orange. I'm sure if they knew I had a Green Tractor they never would have attacked me! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Related to the bees and tractors. Lets talk Wasps/Hornets. The afternoon of the YellowJacket attack I was playing bulldozer with the 4700 and noticed a few Wasp/Hornets buzzing around. Not moving fast just moving around. I think I hit their nest in the wood I was cleaning up. I have done this before. After, shall we say, moving the nest the Wasps/Hornets fly around the general area looking for their moved nest. They don't seem to be angry just puzzled. I have seen this before. I left the area and worked somewhere else. Not need to take chances! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I add this as more proof to my theory that The Stinging Flying Bugs don't like Orange. Green they at least tolarate! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Later...
Dan McCarty

 

[StoneHeartFarm]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

Dan,

I'm not sure what the white is supposed to do. I just notice that bee keepers are always wearing white outfits. The hives are also white. Perhaps the honey bees think the bee keepers are hives so they don't attack? Perhaps they can't tell the difference between the white suit and the white hive so they can't find the bee keeper? If you were wearing white, I guess it doesn't work for yellow jackets.

If you can find the hive (have it marked for easy location), go soak it down with something like Sevin. It's a night time job though. We always got rid of nests at night. Dad said the bees couldn't find him in the dark. But, this solution may be like Patrickg's answer "42".

SHF

 

[patrickg]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

OK, OK, I'm suing for peace in the color wars. I'm ready to cease hostilities without either side losing or winning. Color is perceived differently by different observers and it is truly impossible to be sure your perception is congruent with someone elses even when you are both sure it is, subjectively. Wors yet with interspecies differences.

Now to MATH a "HARDER" science (not difficult kinda harder but more rigorous and more surity in agreement).

13.5% permethrin contains 0.135 oz of permethrin in an oz of solution.
one oz of 13.5% in 15 oz of water still contains 0.135 oz of permethrin.
So divide 0.135/16 = 0.008437

This is about 0.8437% or 0.008437 oz of permethrin per oz of solution diluted 1:15 (16 oz of solution)

I don't think there is a simple means of starting with 0.5% and diluting it U P to 0.8%

Your trial solution: 2oz of 0.5% in 14oz Is the equivalent of 1 oz of 1% in 15oz of water or 0.0625%

You diluted the 0.5% by a factor of 8 getting 0.5/8 = 0.0625%

There are many potential explanations for your bug reduction results. Here are 4:
1. Placebo effect (Faith healing parallel): you believed so strongly it worked (somehow).
2. The bugs were trying to lull you into a false sense of security to lure you deep into blood sucker territory.
3. There were a lot fewer ticks out and about or they weren't active or hungry or...
4. Even at the whimpy concentration of only .06% (less than one tenth of a percent)
PERMETHRIN THE TICK FIGHTER still helped.

I think more is better till yo get to the full DoD dose. Exceeding that bya lot is like going beyond about 30% deet you get beyond point of diminishing returns A N D it is a waste of $$$$$.


I am still really pleased that it seemed to help (even if you do drive one of them little green and yellow foreign import tractors).

Patrick

 

[kerr]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

Get a sting? Slap your "in use"Chew-dip or moist cig. tobacco on the bite.5 seconds later no pain-small stain.HA HA Trust me,ol kerr tells ya its gonna rain ya better build a boat!

 

[looch]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

About wearing white...

I read in an old dirt bike magazine that white attracts ticks. I also heard that wearing black attracts mosquitoes. Mother Nature has a twisted sense of humour./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[JOR_EL]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

<font color=blue>white attracts ticks. I also heard that wearing black attracts mosquitoes.</font color=blue>

Seems like bee-keepers traditionally wear white, ...where does that fit into all this? /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Larry

 

[dmccarty]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

PatrickG,

Your numbers look like what I remember from my numbers. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif BUT, I dropped an all important % sign on the 13.3 Permithrin/H20 solution. I thought I was a bit weak with the solution I had, for more than I thought it turns out, but I wanted to be on the weaker side to start. I also "published" my numbers since I knew someone would correct me if I messed up the numbers! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I had a wifey trying to talk to me about something and a kid yanking at my leg for something else when I was trying to cipher. And I ciphered wrong. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I need help from Jethro! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

I think Option 4 is the correct answer. I did my usual work while wearing the treated pants and only found three ticks all day. And one was dead. Lately I have been finding at least three or four in my pant legs when I would get home and take off my boots. During the day I would constantly see ticks moving up my legs. At least two or three an hour. Often on the drive home I would feel one climbing on my neck. So to only have three ticks in 13.5 hours is very unusual. VERY nice but unusual! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

The last time I tried the Permithrin I applied it according to the bottle. The bottle is a sprayer and you spray the clothes. Very time consuming and difficult to get a uniform application. Using water as a carrier of the Permithrin and putting the clothes in a ziplock bag to wick the solution is a pretty smart idea which worked real well.

So I think Option 4 is the best answer and I'm sticking with it! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I'll find out more over the next couple of weeks. I have to treat some other work pants.... Hmmm....

I have a Permithrin source that is .05 of the chemical and .95 water. The web site solution is .135 Permithrin. The water is just a carrier which evaporates leaving the Permithrin. So, when I added two ounces of MY solution did I not end up with .1 Permithrin? Did I make this harder than it needs to be?

I guess time will tell. If the TickLessNess continues then its working. If the TickLessNess last for close to a year its working. In theory. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

About ticks being attracted by white I don't think I believe it or at least I'm skeptical. I have seen them climb orange and red cans. Does that mean they are attracted to orange and red? I think they were just trying to climb so they could latch on to lunch. I think with white clothes you can see the little buggers much easer than say with blue jeans. Thus one would see more on white than blue therefore ticks are more attracted to white. I don't by it... /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

I was taking a break one afternoon on my road while sitting in the shade. I saw a tick making its way to lunch, i.e., me. I watched him for about 15 minutes as he tried to get near me. I would let it get close and them move almost 90 degrees away from the tick. It would rear up on its back legs and its front "legs" would start waving in the air. It looked like it was scenting for me. Eventually he would turn in the right direction and start moving towards lunch. Many times I'll work off the back of the truck and leave it in the road. The ticks have to be fairly evenly distributed in the road. The first part of the day you won't see any ticks. But as I continue to use the back of the truck, working on the chainsaw for 15 minutes or so and then walking back into the woods to work, the ticks get more numerous during the day. By the end of the day you will have lots of ticks hanging around the truck. They have to be sensing Lunch from a distance and then moving in for a feed. I've noticed this numerous times. They are amazing critters.....

Later...
Dan

 

[StoneHeartFarm]

Re: Tick, chigger, mosquito... Ahh summer. REVENGE

Paul and Jor El

You're probably right about white attracting ticks. The advantage though is that the ticks are easier to see.

SHF