Keep mosquitoes at bay with a Thermacell unit
These warm summer days punctuated by thunderstorms set up the perfect mosquito breeding scenario in Calgary.
To provide some respite from their bites, Thermacell is a solid option to discourage the insects from making lunch out of you, while avoiding spraying repellent directly on skin.
A small portable unit heater, fuelled either by a small butane canister or batteries depending on the model, heats up a Deet-free insect repellent that then disperses in a zone around the unit. The repellent consists of allethrin, a synthetic version of a naturally occurring insecticide found in chrysanthemum flowers.
It is EPA approved, so safe for use around humans. It’s best to keep it away from flower beds where bees might be at work, though, as well as cats and fish, as allethrin is toxic to these creatures along with those mosquitoes.
The units — available in a variety of colours including blue, red and green, as well as neutral white and black — operate very quietly and generate almost no smell.
The Shield units use butane canisters, which provide up to 12 hours of run time, while the replaceable mats soaked in repellent last up to four hours.
The Radius units offer rechargeable batteries with a USB charging cable and wall adapter. These use a liquid repellent that comes in 12and 40-hour sizes.
Thermacell products are available online, and are also sold in Calgary by a variety of retailers including Canadian Tire, Walmart, Cabela’s and Campers Village. The Shield starts at $34.99, and Radius at $69.99. There are also Thermacell lanterns and mobile units.