Bug Spray

whtlion

Jr. Member
Mar 31, 2015
32
18
new Danville,Pa
Detector(s) used
Fisher F5
Minelab's Sovereign XS-2
Garrett Pro Pointer
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Im not sure if this has ever been discussed here but I had seen it on a facebook page and wanted to share it just may save someone some heartache
I did not realize the DEET in insect repellent will dissolve plastic, that being said I have to be careful using it while metal detecting so as to not get any on the plastic on my detector.
they recommend the dry spray instead of the wet spray which is the one that dissolves plastic.
again this was something i never knew and if one person reads this and it save them from damaging their detector then amen to that.
they recommend you use a dry spray like deep woods off DRY, i also found a product called Sawyer Premium Permethrin Clothing Insect Repellent and Sawyer Products Premium Insect Repellent, 20% Picaridin, which they actually state Will not harm gear and equipment.

i know that had i not found this i might have caused damage to my detector

good luck, HH
whtlion
 

KELLYCO*SCUBA*CHRIS

Supporting Vendor
Supporting Vendor
Apr 21, 2015
62
47
Orlando FL
Detector(s) used
Minelab Safari, Garrett Sea Hunter Mark II, Garrett AT Pro, Nokta FORS CoRe/Relic/Gold.
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
One of the best products we sell for outdoor insect repellent is the ThermaCELL Olive Mosquito Repellent Appliance
 

digging440yrs

Gold Member
Dec 5, 2012
5,946
4,410
UPSTATE NEW YORK
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1970 COMPASS-
WHITES SILVER EAGLE-
WHITES DFX, 4X6DD COIL, 6X8DD COIL, 950 COIL, 10X12SEF COIL-
GARRETT PRO POINTER AT, GARRETT AT PRO , MINELAB EXPLORER SE with 8.5x12.5 Cors coil
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Old trick i use are dryer sheets, 1 in my shirt pocket and 1 in my pants pocket. :thumbsup:
 

Charlie P. (NY)

Gold Member
Feb 3, 2006
13,006
17,115
South Central Upstate NY in the foothills of the h
Detector(s) used
Minelab Musketeer Advantage Pro w/8" & 10" DD coils/Fisher F75se(Upgraded to LTD2) w/11" DD, 6.5" concentric & 9.5" NEL Sharpshooter DD coils/Sunray FX-1 Probe & F-Point/Black Widows/Rattler headphone
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
One of the best products I have found is one called Badger Anti-Bug Balm. It's a wax/grease but not overly messy.

I fly R/C and THE WORST thing is trying to focus on a model in flight with a bug in your eyeball - and the damn gnats and no-see-ums always seem to go for the eyes. And that is also the LAST place you want to have 100% DEET near (at least it burns my eyes). The Bug Balm I wipe over my forehead and cheeks and all over exposed skin. Very happy with the results.
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Higgy

Bronze Member
Jul 21, 2014
1,415
1,264
NH
Detector(s) used
Xp Deus, Tesoro Tiger Shark, Garrett AT Pro, Garrett Pro-Pointer
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Avon...Skin So Soft....really!

Really. Really gross. Oily, and the smell is disgusting. When I was a kid, my Mom used to slather us kids up with that sh-stuff, and we all got bit anyway. Ugh. My bile rises even thinking about the smell of that gross concoction. No offense, 1320.

I wear long sleeves and pants during bug season. I am very fond of Sawyer products to spray my clothes with, and to wash in. Most recently, I have been buying really sweet pants and shirts with that stuff built right in. Orvis and Simms have some nice gear like that. Pricey, but hey man, its all about the hobby, right? Clothes ARE gear.
 

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vkrivak

Newbie
Aug 3, 2012
1
0
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Make sure you wear some kind of insect repellent out there. I went out metal detecting this past Sunday for the first time this year and this is what I got. I didn't find it until 3 days later. 20150422_235841 (3) (1024x576).jpg
 

Joe hunter

Bronze Member
Mar 2, 2013
2,159
1,896
Up state NY
Detector(s) used
Xp Deus ,
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I wear long sleeves I do use deet I put it on then wash my hands it truly works and tick are bad
 

Dirtslinger

Jr. Member
Apr 6, 2013
92
94
Western Illinois
Detector(s) used
Teknetics Delta 4000, Gamma 6000 w/NEL SS, Nokta Impact, Garrett Treasure Ace 300, Minelab Equinox 800, White's Coinmaster 4/DB
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Permethrin and the yellow (vanilla) air fresheners. That was a trick I picked up from one of the utility locator guys. It works pretty darned good at fighting off bugs without deet, which will destroy a wide array of polymers. Spray an old rain coat with it and watch it melt. Luckily, that was how I found out deet+plastic=BAD.
 

OP
OP
W

whtlion

Jr. Member
Mar 31, 2015
32
18
new Danville,Pa
Detector(s) used
Fisher F5
Minelab's Sovereign XS-2
Garrett Pro Pointer
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
um no Red James i will not be using deet after seeing what it can do, i just never knew it did that to plastic glad i didnt learn the hard way
 

CA Gold Hunter

Sr. Member
Nov 14, 2014
321
468
Northern California
Detector(s) used
White's TDI SL, Fors Gold+, Gold Monster 1000, 36" Bazooka Prospector, 30" Bazooka Sniper.
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
Dang I didn't know deet did that. I've always used the 100% deet. A little goes a long way.

I was backpacking in Yosemite a long time ago and we hiked to voglesang(not sure on the spelling). When we got there the mosquitos were so bad there were at least 50 just in our face, I used a whole can of the spray on low deet stuff within an hour. Luckily a friend brought his little thing of 100 deet and it saved the day but we were up early the next day to get out of there and on to Merced campground. I've used that 100 deet ever since.
 

pepperj

Gold Member
Feb 3, 2009
37,869
140,745
🥇 Banner finds
1
Detector(s) used
Deus, Deus 2, Minelab 3030, E-Trac,
Primary Interest:
Relic Hunting
Really. Really gross. Oily, and the smell is disgusting. When I was a kid, my Mom used to slather us kids up with that sh-stuff, and we all got bit anyway. Ugh. My bile rises even thinking about the smell of that gross concoction.

:laughing7: That's why it worked. I have no idea on your age but it happened the same way to me!

My father's quote " I could of bought a new car on what the Avon women took"
 

Dagger Woods

Jr. Member
Apr 29, 2014
98
61
Nova Scotia
Detector(s) used
Garret AT Pro Int'l
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Years ago (back in the 90's) I learned the hard way about the bad qualities of DEET. I was using a product called "Muskol" which was very high DEET and had the little squeeze bottle in my tackle box. Unknown to me, the bottle had tipped over and leaked onto the hard plastic bottom of the tackle box and melted a nice little bottle-sized divot for itself in one corner. I had also noticed my fly-line getting tacky after I had a fresh re-application of the Muskol on my hands and forgot to wipe them off. Nasty stuff, although it sure did work well.

Nowadays, I use something a lot different, and a bit cheaper too. I had to be convinced that it worked and was really skeptical until I tried it myself, but to my great surprise it really does work.... suntanning oil. Yep, keep the blood-suckers from biting and get a nice dose of sun protection at the same time. Slather the stuff on and watch the nasty little ***tards land and drown before they have a chance to bite. I used it while out in the backwoods cutting trees and clearing brush and it's amazing... sure, you come back to camp looking like you're covered in pepper but you're virtually sting-free. Another bonus - it smells great! One bad thing is it's messy - you need to wear the old clothes for sure, or at least not mind getting your clothes full of tanning oil splotches.
 

RGINN

Gold Member
Oct 16, 2007
8,634
10,832
Summit County, CO
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
White's DFX, White's Classic 1 Coinmaster, Nokta Pointer
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Your diet has a lot to do with how you attract insects I suspect. The best remedy I have found for annoying insects: Move to an area around 10.000 feet in altitude. No ticks, no buffalo gnats, a few mosquitos but they are very slow, so slow you can swat them out of the air, and best of all, NO CHIGGERS!
 

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