Thermacell ?

[4x4bassin]

Sitting here thinking about my annual late spring trip into my favorite lake trout lake and was wondering something,This first trip of the year

is always a great time except for the blackflies . Some years they are not so bad but other years as you all know can be brutal. I was trying

to get some info. on the thermacell but found nothing really on it and how it works with blackflies just mosquitoes.

Does anyone here have any good/bad experiences with the thermacell and blackflies ?

Thanks

[jim]

Works great if there is no wind. Bug jacket is a good idea for backup.

[ccmtcanada]

The active ingredient is d-trans allethrin I believe. That is an insecticide and not a repellent. They say it repels them, which I suppose if you count when you spray a spider with bug spray it tries to run away repelling them, but ultimately any derivative of permethrin kills insects. It does work though....it's pretty much the same thing as a classic mosquito coil, but it's more portable and u won't burn yourself carrying it around.

 

This product uses butane to heat up a pad that is impregnated with the insecticide. The smoke that comes from it is the insecticide.

[tschirk]

I have had several. works great. Igniters can be flaky though.

[woodenboater]

...Igniters can be flaky though.

 

Yup. most annoying when they're bad and you can't fire it up. just endless click. click. click <insert favorite cuss here> click. click

 

liked it when it worked though

 

 

 

[jedimaster]

I have one when I got my last ofah renewal. It does work for both I can tell you that, but dito on the wind. Works best with no wind. Keep in mind the pads once used once are garbage. once you open the pack and light it up your tossing it out, so bring enough with you.

[BillM]

Sounds like a bug jacket would be the easy choice.

[Raf]

has to be dead calm and boat moving slowly or not at all for it to work in the boat. seems to work good by the campfire.

[Sawyer]

4x4bassin,

 

I use thermacell religiously in the summer time when bushing whacking through the bush in the headwaters of tributaries. It works well and I absolutely love it. A few points:

 

 

• I feel that when there are slight gusts to no wind at all, that's when the bugs come out and get you - thermacell works best in this condition. But when there is consistent wind blowing, the majority of the bugs go away therefore not needing thermacell. My rule of thumb is, if you are getting substantially bitten - then it's time to turn the thermacell on.
  
• With respect to turning the thermacell on - let the butane run for about 5-10 seconds before clicking the igniter button. What this does is it creates a small cloud of gas in the unit and typically one click does the trick!
  
• I use 1 pad per outting - if I don't see smoke coming out of the unit, it's time to change it for maximum protection.
  

 

I hope this helps.

 

-Sawyer

Edited January 29, 2012 by Sawyer

[FishTracker]

4x4bassin,

 

I use thermacell religiously in the summer time when bushing whacking through the bush in the headwaters of tributaries. It works well and I absolutely love it. A few points:

 

 

• I feel that when there are slight gusts to no wind at all, that's when the bugs come out and get you - thermacell works best in this condition. But when there is consistent wind blowing, the majority of the bugs go away therefore not needing thermacell. My rule of thumb is, if you are getting substantially bitten - then it's time to turn the thermacell on.
  
• With respect to turning the thermacell on - let the butane run for about 5-10 seconds before clicking the igniter button. What this does is it creates a small cloud of gas in the unit and typically one click does the trick!
  
• I use 1 pad per outting - if I don't see smoke coming out of the unit, it's time to change it for maximum protection.
  

 

I hope this helps.

 

-Sawyer

 

I agree 100%. And to add a little to that: a couple years back I forgot my thermacell and was annihilated by blackflies...bites all over. The next day, I come back with the thermacell (off, to begin with) and the blackflies are ravenous once again. Turned on the thermacell and didn't get one more bite. From then on it's pretty much the first thing I pack for fishing. It works really well! I just wish it kept spiders away as well ;-)

[bigbuck]

I find that if I layer my defences, I don't have too much of a problem, spray myself down with a bit of Muskol and fire up the Thermacell and I don't get 'bugged' too much. If it's a bit breezy, it's not too effective but when it's windy, the bugs aren't out anyways. So, here's for some wind and some walleye chop!!

[Sinker]

The greatest thing for spring turkey hunting when the flies are out!! Its pretty much impossible to sit still when your swarmed with black flies! I wear a bug jacket for fishing in blackflies. Thermacell isn't as effective if your moving around in my experience.

 

 

 

S.

[4x4bassin]

Thanks guys , I'm going to keep my eyes open for any sales and then grab one !

[DOS]

The greatest thing for spring turkey hunting when the flies are out!! Its pretty much impossible to sit still when your swarmed with black flies! I wear a bug jacket for fishing in blackflies. Thermacell isn't as effective if your moving around in my experience.

 

 

 

S.

 

 

 

Absolutely the most essential part of turkey hunting, and fall black bear hunting, I have 3 and cant say enough good things about them. And yes, they work on blackflies...

 

 

 

RED

[rufus]

I set out a couple of thermacells on the deck when eating outside and they work great for mosquitoes but the no-see-ums ignore them and feed as usual.

[rufus]

I set out a couple of thermacells on the deck when eating outside and they work great for mosquitoes but the no-see-ums ignore them and feed as usual.