DEET, Cameras, Africa, and Mosquitoes

We're heading out in a couple of weeks for Uganda, East Africa. Naturally we need some bug repellent. I picked up a couple of small bottles of Sawyer Max Deet (98%) but now I'm finding that DEET eats up plastics, as in camera equipment!! I've read people report that they simply wash their hands or wipe them with a hand sanitizer to remove the Deet before handling there equipment. I've read instances of fingerprints being left on grips and shutter buttons, letters being dissolved off of lenses and cameras, rubber coatings turned into sticky messes, etc., etc.,. Yeah, I've started having nightmares!! I really don't won't to damage my equipment so is this hand cleaning "good enough"? We will be in the neighborhood of Yellow Fever, malaria, and several other mosquito-borne diseases.

An alternative, it appears, is "20% Picaridin". It appears to compare to Deet as being as effective against ticks and mosquitoes and possibly better than Deet against flies. Picaridin also *doesn't* damage plastics.

Has anyone got some experience using Picaridin that they can share? I'm thinking about going ahead and getting some and trying it...I could still bring the Deet for backup.

Feedback is most welcome!!!
Thanks!
Ed

Yes it does so I'd be careful there. I remember my arms getting stuck to the lawn chair arm supports. In our province the mosquitoes are so big they have bones. At the cottage were they weren't controlled have been around me in mass and I have been bitten a lot. I find they typically go after the back of the hand so I applied it there but with the diseases there you don't want take chances and you will probably sweat.

I don't know anything Picaridin. I did a random search for plastic safe repellents and this says it Picaridin won't eat it. If you use both you will have to be careful not to wipe you hand on a part of your body covered in DEET because that is not easy to control. The moment you stop thinking about it you do it.

https://www.rei.com …ce/insect-repellents.html

Are you going on any tours? The tour companies must have some info. Many photographers go there.

I’ve been using picaridin-based repellents for a couple of years now. Most of my fishing pals agree that it is as effective as DEET and it does not damage plastics. DEET was a problem with lines, guides, spools, etc. but it is no longer an issue with picaridin. One thing that some people find troubling about picaridin is that it is relatively new so there is no long-term health/exposure data. Probably still a more acceptable risk than malaria.

That is good to know. We sold our cottage last year so I'm not surrounded by mosquitoes as much these days but I'll look into that.

I use picaridin-based repellant because Deet gives me an awful itchy rash. I find it smells nicer, doesn't make me itch but doesn't last as long as Deet, so must be applied more frequently.

I've not used the new stuff, but have had my flash fun get melted by DEET.
Since, I have used DEET successfully without more damage, but it is a tricky balance to be sure. Washing hands works,. I am not sure about hand sanitizer, but I wouldn't imagine that work. It's not washing anything, just killing germs.

I have found lemon eucalyptus formulas perfectly equal to DEET...at least for southern US varieties of mosquitoes. And Consumer Reports agrees.

It's what I use for outdoor maternity photography--pregnant women are grateful to be offered natural repellent.

I used 20% picaridin from Sawyer last month in Costa Rica and it worked great. I kinda thought that maybe the mosquitoes were not that bad until I heard several people complaining about how bad they were.

I can definitely recommend picaridin over DEET.

Tim

Thanks for all the feedback. I'll be getting some 20% Picaridin before we leave. Just in case I'll throw a small bottle of Deet in the bag, too. We will plan to use the Picaridin. If we start getting bitten by mosquitoes we'll then try the Deet.

It seems when you start reading online reviews there's always the negative reviews that get you wondering. The positive reviews definitely outnumber the negatives, though.

Spencerphoto wrote in post #18872995
I use picaridin-based repellant because Deet gives me an awful itchy rash. I find it smells nicer, doesn't make me itch but doesn't last as long as Deet, so must be applied more frequently.

That is one reason I'm really interested in the Picaridin. My wife had a severe case of contact dermatitis many years on a trip to Australia. The reported gentleness(?) of the Picaridin is a big attraction for me. I'm also loading up on Benadryl/Hydrocortison​e cream, etc. We may never need it but if we do...

CyberDyneSystems wrote in post #18873028
I've not used the new stuff, but have had my flash fun get melted by DEET.
Since, I have used DEET successfully without more damage, but it is a tricky balance to be sure. Washing hands works,. I am not sure about hand sanitizer, but I wouldn't imagine that work. It's not washing anything, just killing germs.

I'm wondering if the post that I read meant wipes rather than a regular liquid hand sanitizer. Could've been. It seems simply putting hand sanitizer on would simply thin the Deet down and spread it around.

RDKirk wrote in post #18873047
I have found lemon eucalyptus formulas perfectly equal to DEET...at least for southern US varieties of mosquitoes. And Consumer Reports agrees.
It's what I use for outdoor maternity photography--pregnant women are grateful to be offered natural repellent.

Several years ago I bought some "Skeeter Ban" repellent. I was spending a lot time at that point down in the swamp here in south Alabama. The mosquitoes down here are often confused with wild turkey's but the males don't have beards! Anyhow, the active ingredient in Skeeter Ban was citronella. It must have been a good blend as it worked GREAT!! It didn't take much and it got old (turned milky-looking) before I used it all. I haven't seen it since then. The lemon eucalyptus formula sounds interesting.

Thanks again everybody!
Ed

digital paradise wrote in post #18872969
Are you going on any tours? The tour companies must have some info. Many photographers go there.

No tours, we're going as a missionary group from a small church. The generally recommended repellent among the folks that have been before is Deet. I (thankfully) happened upon the issues of Deet and plastics. Our pastor goes to Uganda a couple of times a year and just from habit uses Deet. I may get a bottle of Picaridin for him to try.

Interesting timing. One of the local TV news webpages has an article on staying safe from mosquitoes and ticks. It states the exact three main repellents that we've discussed. This is a partial quote:

The Alabama Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offer the following recommendations for preventing tick and mosquito bites:

Use insect repellents with ingredients registered by the Environmental Protection Agency such as DEET, Picaridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus.

https://www.wsfa.com …-mosquito-borne-diseases/

Hmm, now I'm hung up on how much we need. The small/travel-size bottles of Sawyers Picaradin are 3 ounces (small enough to go in the carry-on's). They come in a 2-pack. But, for roughly 7-8 days will 3 ounces be enough for one person?

Intheswamp wrote in post #18873096
Hmm, now I'm hung up on how much we need. The small/travel-size bottles of Sawyers Picaradin are 3 ounces (small enough to go in the carry-on's). They come in a 2-pack. But, for roughly 7-8 days will 3 ounces be enough for one person?

Doesn't seem like a lot. You're not checking any bags?

Intheswamp wrote in post #18873096
Hmm, now I'm hung up on how much we need. The small/travel-size bottles of Sawyers Picaradin are 3 ounces (small enough to go in the carry-on's). They come in a 2-pack. But, for roughly 7-8 days will 3 ounces be enough for one person?

You will need to solidly cover every single square millimeter of exposed skin, as well as skin under a thin garment. With all three of the formulas we've discussed, including DEET, mosquitoes will still light on the skin and crawl around until they find an area that is not protected.