Home Made Fly Repellants....im getting in early

cosmic_angel_12

cosmic_angel_12

*~*Jess*~*
Apr 7, 2005
524
0
0
Sunny Nunny
I never had the time to make fly repellant last year....so what are the ingredients and method again? How long does it last for, if I made it around now? How effective is it? Last year I was buying a bottle a week :eek: , cost a small fortune, and I was using friends spray too. So does anyone use there recipies and are they any good?
Thanks Jess
 
Ooh yes, I always make my own the ready made stuff is so expensive (a total rip off I think). I can remember the ingredients but can't remember the exact quantities at the moment, but I'll check for you when I get home and mail them again. The ingredients are:

Citronella oil
Washing up liquid
Cold strong tea
Methylated spirit (don't light any matches near it!)
and last but not least, vinegar.

When you've mixed it all up you top it up with water and it makes about 1.5 litres which lasts quite a long time. The only expensive ingredient is the citronella oil which costs about £3.50 for a small bottle, and I use two bottles a time.

Someone else at my yard just uses the citronella and washing up liquid - I'm not sure who's if the more effective! Mine's more smelly though.
 
You can Citronella from chemists too, in the aromatherapy department or sometimes behind the counter.

I used to make one with Citronella, washing-up liquid and water - what is the benefit of adding the meths and vinegar?
 
Hi cosmic angel, sorry I forgot to look up the amounts, promise to do it when I get home tonight and post them up.

Sarah B - haven't got a clue what the point of the meths and vinegar is! (I got the recipe from one of the Horse magazines a few years ago)
 
I THINK that the meths are added so that when it's sprayed onto the body, it almost evaporates the mixture off of their bodies creating a sort of smelly shield all around them, like an invisible mist, trying to describe it as best I can! (kinda like an aura!)
 
In answer to your question about how long it lasts, I make up 6 litres at a time which pretty much lasts the season.

I store it in 1 litre bottles (full to the brim) though and do them up tight, this way they stay effective until opened.

I had a look at the stuff I made last spring, and the unopened bottle I have left still retains a good strong smell! If it looses that then you can always add more citronella to strengthen it up again.

I use the fairy liquid as othersw have said to mix everything, but you can buy a special thingy for a few quid which is supposed to be more effective at mixing. I just make sure I give the home made stuff a good shake before I use it :)
 
cosmic_angel_12 said:
cheers....where would i get citronella from?
Click to expand...
Should be able to get it at a chemist's shop (pharmacy to non-brits). Be careful when handling it as some people can have skin reaction to it . Having said that I use it on me as it works very well on its own as a fly repellant although it would be very expensive to use on its own on the horse. I think the mix on our yard is citronella + malt vinegar + cold tea - the first two are (nicely) smelly and the third soothing to the skin. Everyone swears by it but by the time I get round to it the world's total supply of citronella is usually sold out!
 
emmagardner said:
Hi cosmic angel, sorry I forgot to look up the amounts, promise to do it when I get home tonight and post them up.

Sarah B - haven't got a clue what the point of the meths and vinegar is! (I got the recipe from one of the Horse magazines a few years ago)
Click to expand...

Vinegar was used in the old days to repel bed bugs and other insect-type pests and was used in time of plague to soak masks for the face. It also has a mildly antiseptic effect, dabbed on it is a traditional remedy for wasp stings and the smell is a repellent. Not sure about the meths but I wouldn't keep large quantities in the tack room unless it is in a fireproof container as it is dangerously inflammable. Also keep any similar products locked away out of the reach of any children who frequent the yard.
 
:eek: :eek: Don't use turps!!!!! It's not the same as meths at all.

Personally I'll make the recipe without the meths, I just don't feel comfortable putting that on my horses....
 
Turps (Turpentine) is a fluid obtained by the complex distillation of resin obtained from trees, mainly various species of pine (Pinus). Turpentine is an organic solvent, and thus poses many of the same hazards as do other such substances. It can burn the skin and eyes, damage the lungs and respiratory system, as well as the central nervous system when inhaled, and cause renal failure when ingested, among other things. It is highly flammable.

Methylated Spirit (or Meths) is ethanol (alcohol) which has been dyed and rendered undrinkable, and is used for purposes such as fuel for spirit burners or as a solvent. It is a type of denatured alcohol. It has agents added to make it poisonous and undrinkable but is not nearly has hazardous as turps!!
 
A lot of people swear by vinegar and water mixed together.
Some swear by Avon Skin So Soft + vinegar + water.
Some by Avon Skin So Soft + water No Vinegar.
Some by Avon Skin So Soft + vinegar No Water.

Be careful when you put anything on your horse. You don't want to find out the hard way that your horse is allergic to something.
 
Hi cosmic angel, sorry to take so long to get back to you. I had the recipe stored on my computer but it won't let me open the file saying its corrupt or invalid (you know how annoying computers are :mad: :mad: )

Basically, from what I can remember it's:

2 small bottles (around 10ml each) of citronella oil
1 mug of strong cold black tea
2 tablespoons of washing up liquid
3 tablespoons of vinegar
2 tablespoons of meths (optional but the horses I've used it on have never had a reaction to it)
Top up 1.5 litre bottle with cold water and then transfer into a plant spray bottle.

Remember to give it a good shake before using to give it a good mix up.

Happy spraying :) :) :)
 
thanks emmagardner, that is the recipies ive heard of just didnt know the quantities!!
sarah-b, thanks for warning me :p , i best go buy some METHS, thats the stuff tramps use instead of realy alcohol isnt it.
 
meths disperses the citronella oil through out the mixture-its an emulsifier.
(i think)
i use white wine vinegar instead of ordinary vinegar in my mixture (same as emmegardners recipe) because i read somewhere its a good fly repellent
 
newrider.com
Top Bottom
Back