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August 14, 2006

Solving The Mosquito Problem

mosquitoIt's peak mosquito season in Brooklyn right now and many people are avoiding their backyards as a result. After hearing all the complaints, we've actually been surprised at how tolerable the situation is in our own garden. Nevertheless, an alternative to slathering on insect repellent would be welcome. The Times last week wrote about one potential solution--the Mosquito Magnet. Here's how it works: The machine uses a propane tank that dispenses carbon dioxide mixed with an attractant; a vacuum nozzle then sucks in an kills the pests. Prices range from $199 to about $850, depending on the model. Sounds good to us. Anyone ever used one?
How It Works [Mosquito Magnet]
Help! Mosquitoes [NY Times]




Posted by Brownstoner at 10:29 AM | Comments (25)
Categories: Gardening

Comments

how 'bout some pixs of your garden...how's that grass doing?

Posted by: Anonymous at August 14, 2006 11:10 AM

I have one but it has been a mixed result - I have the smallest one. It certainly catches mosquitoes, but does not appear to catch enough to be helpful.

Perhaps it is placement.

Worse - about 4 weeks ago an animal appeared to chew on it and now the defender appears to be dead. Frustrating and expensive in result.

Sigh.

Posted by: anon at August 14, 2006 11:40 AM

I have the smallest unit also, it is called the Defender. I was not sure I wanted to spend $300.00 on this thing, but let me tell ya, I am glad I did. It works great and has killed thousands of mosquitoes. We can enjoy our backyard again!

Posted by: Anonymous at August 14, 2006 1:19 PM

I have a similar devise, though a different brand (Skeeter Vac). It does seem to catch a lot of bugs but not all of them. This is in use upstate in a very swampy area, however, so I imagine in a small city garden it would do the trick.

Posted by: the supersleuth at August 14, 2006 1:22 PM

Personally, I prefer catching them with chopsticks. If I'm feeling particularly compassionate, I'll let them go.

Posted by: Miagi San at August 14, 2006 2:09 PM

I also have a defender and couldn't live without the thing in the summer! requires some maintainance, etc, but it's very worth the investment to not get eaten alive all summer long!

Posted by: Brian at August 14, 2006 3:13 PM

So, let me get this straight. It's 2006, we're all urbanist, at least slightly left-of-center, young people — and what we're supposed to do is buy a machine to put into our back yards, the entire purpose of which is to pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere?

How is this thing even legal?

Posted by: Jason at August 14, 2006 3:32 PM

I agree with Jason - you guys gotta be kidding me about these machines. And I seriously can't imagine that the mosquitoes are so bad in New York city that you have to spend so much money on such an evil device.

How about a screened-in porch? Anyone have one?

Posted by: Whitbo at August 14, 2006 4:35 PM

My folks got a Mosquito Magnet for their house in Maine, and after a couple of weeks you could sit on the porch at dusk, which used to be a death wish. Impressive, and considering their house is in a pine forest, I doubt it was the placebo effect.

Posted by: BklynJace at August 14, 2006 4:47 PM

For the cheap skates:

http://tinyurl.com/lnhy5

Posted by: Quig at August 14, 2006 4:51 PM

Jason, the mosquitoes are SO BAD in my Brooklyn yard that I literally run into the house. Even so, I typically get a bite or two while I fumble with my keys, etc. I got dozens of bites while gardening at dusk a few weeks ago -- and I was wearing three kinds of bug repellant.

Posted by: Anonymous at August 14, 2006 4:58 PM

Great idea. Pump more CO2 into the atmosphere to simply kill mosquitos. Meanwhile, the extra CO2 is adding to the greenhouse effect which is very likely adding to global warming which eventually leads to more breeding ground for more mosquitos. Great idea.

Posted by: Anonymous at August 14, 2006 5:07 PM

Anyone want to buy one? It didn't do much for us.

Posted by: DC at August 14, 2006 5:39 PM

The amount of CO2 from this thing is so miniscule that it is not even worth discussing. The machine is attempting to mimic the amount of Co2 that a person would breath, thus attracting the mosquito. It take about a month to burn thru a tank of propane, running 24-7. I, for one, am not about to feel guilty about it. I don't use any air conditioning in the summer. Instead I sit in my back yard in the evenings.

That said, I ran it last year and mosquitos were still bad. I did not run it this year because we are renovating in the back and haven't got the electric finished right now. The Mosquito level is much worse - nearly sub-tropical in the evening. Last weekend I attemped to build some stone steps. After 2 hours I had nearly 200 bites. I then tried "Natralpel" a DEET free repellent and that seemed much better - limited the bites to about a dozen in a similar period. It is hard to say if the difference this year is the lack of the machine, or just too much rain. We work to reduce any opportunities for breeding, always clearing out any standing water, but still the mosquitos buzz.

Posted by: ameraleed at August 14, 2006 6:26 PM

When did the City last spray for West Nile? If it's been two years, perhaps the mosquitos are catching up to previous levels.

Posted by: red at August 15, 2006 9:50 AM

We have one in our back yard and it works great. Without it, it would be impossible to sit there for even a few moments. Placement is key, I think. Re: Anon 11.40: ours was also chewed on by a squirrel, and we had to send it back for repair. They replaced the chewed up line with one that was steel braided.

Posted by: AMZona at August 15, 2006 10:43 AM

Any additional amount of CO2 is bad, miniscule or not, especially for such a ridiculous purpose. Part of the problem or part of the solution?

Posted by: Anonymous at August 15, 2006 11:31 AM

Quibbling over the co2 of these things is ridiculous. I don't have one, but I don't see much wrong with it. I think the person who said they don't use AC in the summer but sit outside instead makes a great point. Come on, people. Do any of you finger pointers have cars? Take taxis? Use AC? These seem like much bigger impacts on the environment than this silly little machine.

Posted by: Anonymous at August 15, 2006 12:37 PM

clearly some of you don't spend alot of time outside in the city--at least not in backyards or gardens. our community garden next door was so full of mosquitos that you couldn't spend more than a few minutes there without getting some serious chomp. no kidding, and no exaggeration.

here's what we started using, which seems to work great, and it's made almost entirely of garlic:
http://www.mosquitobarrier.com/

so far it has worked phenomenally. so much better than expected...no bites so far!

Posted by: kbb at August 16, 2006 8:33 AM

Much of brownstone Brooklyn, having formerly been swamps or sitting rather near to swampy area (such as the Gowanus Canal) is prime mosquito territory. When I lived in Park Slope my yard was a no-go zone for much of the summer, and even more so if it had rained heavily like it did this year. I don't begrudge anyone the venting of small amounts of CO2 in order to regain the use of their yard. After all, people vent small amounts of CO2 as well.

Strangely enough, I have found little or no mosquito problem since moving to Queens. I wonder if that's a permanent condition, or, as suggested above, an artifact of West Nile spraying?

Posted by: Woodside Al at August 16, 2006 1:18 PM

I like the mosquito coils. They're spiral-shaped punks or incense quite common in Asia. People have told me they were made of chrysanthemums and/or seashells. Sometimes you need more than one, but they are much more effective than citronella. Then again, since they smolder, I guess they release co2.

Posted by: Despiste at August 16, 2006 5:23 PM

I wish I could say that Queens doesn't have a mosquito problem, but I live in Forest Hills, and this has been by far the worst mosquito season
(maybe because we are close to Forest Park?). I've certainly noticed new insect types over the past few years as well-global warming??

This summer I can't step outside for more than a minute without being bitten, whereas only last year I worked for hours in our small garden without a bite!

my brother, who lives in suburban Mass., bought one of those Mosquito Magnets and says it's the only thing that works.

Since the price is a bit high, and we don't have a big yard, I just bought the Stinger bug killer (around $40), which uses some of the same attracting ingredients. Hope it'll work!

Posted by: ouch at August 22, 2006 1:32 PM

For the people that are worried about the amount of co2 that is given off by a mosquito magnet, why don't you quit breathing, you give off more co2 than a moquito magnet

Posted by: Anonymous at July 11, 2007 2:47 PM

For the people that are worried about the amount of co2 that is given off by a mosquito magnet, why don't you quit breathing, you give off more co2 than a moquito magnet

Posted by: Anonymous at July 11, 2007 2:47 PM

For the people that are worried about the amount of co2 that is given off by a mosquito magnet, why don't you quit breathing, you give off more co2 than a moquito magnet

Posted by: Anonymous at July 11, 2007 2:47 PM

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