I will be in need of some good bug protection and am woundering if the Thermocell units are worth the money. Wouldn't just a good spray insect repellent be just as good. In a hunting situation is the Thermo sentless ? I find that hard to believe! Anybody got the scoop?
They work. I was skeptical until I tried one but they really work.
They are awesome if you're sitting still. Pretty much useless if moving or there is a strong breeze. I know. I'm in FL where we have skeeters big as condors LoL
Best thing ever
In a stand or blind they are great !
They are worth their weight in gold!
Bisch
Agree they work great for sitting still. Windy days will certainly effect the protective pattern, but usually regular Mosquitos blow away in the wind too.
There is a scent. I don't notice it much after I first light it .
Have had deer pretty close with no noticeable effect.
:thumbsup: worth it!
Thanks folks, but are they scentless, and that much better than good old spray? Pretty expensive if they aren't scentless and only work part of the time.IMO
Worth twice the price.......if the game smells the cell it's smelled you. Spray smells worse.
Thanks Terry and everyone, I'll take your word for it.
Basic Rule: Humans smell like humans. Insect repellant/or Thermacell do not smell like humans.
KSdan, They don.t smell human, and they don.t smell like an animals natural surroundings either!
If there's a steady breeze put it up wind of you. I don't go turkey or early season deer hunting without it! On a pig hunt is SC I knew the minute it ran out of fuel. Worth every penny!!!!
I finally got one year before last. All these guys are right...worth their weight in gold.
They don't smell like natural surrounding but as Terry pointed out, critters smell it and they'll be smelling you. We here use them anywhere there are mosquito's backyard, field, at the lake. First time you use it and forget to take it along the next you'll be cussing
I have mixed feeling about them. Tried to use them twice in the Colorado high country and the burner wouldn't work. After each time I tried them at home and they worked fine. As far as I can tell, they are no good above 9000 feet. But, we took the pad out and set it by the fire and wow- the mosquitos didn't like that. I also bought a high dollar butane lighter- storm proof it was supposed to be. Same story- at high altitude it would not work at all, and worked fine at home.
Short story about Thermocell... I was down in Georgia hunting deer with Terry Green. He gifted me a Thermocell the first day.
I built a blind from palm fronds next to a cypress and put the unit under my stool. I expected to be carried away by the skeeters. Terry said it wasn't a swamp but it looked like a dam swamp to me!
Well, after an hour I'd only seen a few mosquitoes and figured they weren't as bad as Terry had told me.
Then I stepped away from my blind about ten feet to answer nature's call. Holy crap!!! I about got airborne from the bazillions of little beating wings and the weight loss from losing about a half gallon of blood to the little suckers.
I finished as quickly as possible and hurried back over to my blind figuring that now that they'd found me they'd follow and finish me off.
Not so. My little haven around the Thermocell was skeeter free and I learned an important lesson about "gizmos" that day.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/bathtub1.jpg)
They do work :thumbsup: Worth it.....KYArcher
It is what I use, once I tried it I never looked back.
Yes they do work. I have used them in FL and in ME. To different worlds when it comes to biting bugs. The only thing I found needing updating is; the click sound to turn it on seems to heard for miles in a quiet forest and the housing seems to work best laying flat, which can be difficult in a tree stand.
JL :archer2:
ive had it work in a light breeze and while on the move. unbelievable!
They work great! I was skeptical at first but it is one of those products that actually works- no fine print there
This is my 2nd year using Thermocell and I never hunt without it. Great product.
ps. During the off season here in Mich. I buy the refills at a discount.
I use one. It works great.
Just did a quick google. thermacells can be had for less than 20 bucks and refills less than 6. A high quality bug spray can be 6 bucks. doesn't seem too expensive in the whole pig picture. I know Ive paid alot more for things that didn't work as good.
If you are below 5000 feet, they are the best things since sliced bread. They have a hard time lighting at higher elevations. I nearly got carried off by skeeters a couple of years ago at about 9000 feet after learning that my Thermacell wouldn't light in the thin air.
They are great
Best invention ever-- the ONLY things that works 100% of the time. Yes it smells, but not like a human, and no more than deet sprays.
Thank you to all, I have one more question, can the thing be turned off when not needed? :dunno:
QuoteOriginally posted by Knawbone:
Thank you to all, I have one more question, can the thing be turned off when not needed? :dunno:
Yep
Ditto all the above. :thumbsup: It only takes a couple of minutes after firing up to clear the area of skeeters.
I believe in them :)
I had a 6x4 bull Elk 5 yard from me this year for a good 2 min. with no tag. Like Terry said about the wind with a slight change of the breeze the was off to about 30 yards looking my way. Staring at me for 5 or so min. then he just slowly walk away My thermocell was burning they work great!
Yes they have an on /off switch, I used it in east Texas near river and turned it off and the mosquitos swarmed me, soon as I turned it off they cleared
They are awesome!
But....and this may be a problem only i have had.....i bought one years ago when they came out....it was great and worked for three years without any problems but like all things it finally died.
The family and i was going to NM for a week so i bought a new one locally. When we got to NM it wouldnt work. No big deal maybe it was defective, so i went to a store there and got another...plus one of the lantern ones for camp...the lantern only worked one day and the personall one wouldnt light after two days!
Now i wonder if because they are producing so many if their quality has slipped.... :dunno:
I still lbelieve in them and will buy again but will definately buy extras just in case
I've used them in the warm months on the Texas coast hunting pigs. Mosquitos so thick you could cut them. When sitting they work great but they do not protect you when walking to and from the stand.
I use them in my blinds and on stands everywhere I hunt with bugs.
Mike
Huntsmanlance... buy them at WalMart and take the suckers back if they are defective.
Works well in the blind during turkey season.
Gave one to a friend in VA for Christmas. He can't wait to use it when fishing this spring. Hope it is as successful for him as it appears to be for everyone responding to this post. I do know, the Canadian bear hunters I've talked to love the things. :thumbsup:
Well you all have totally sold me on the Thermocell. I sent for one and refills. I absolutely hate skeeters. I swell up a bump the size of a dime when they bite me and itch for 3 or 4 days after a bite.My hunting in NY doesn't call for much use of bug repellents, but I think it just might come in handy at the Hill Gang hog hunt, and outside during summer.Or maybe that Bear hunt I been wanting to do this spring......... :thumbsup:
Go prepared!
Wouldn't hunt without one where bugs were bothersome. It works...period! :thumbsup:
I will never hunt in bug season without one again. I am not a gadget man, and would never have had one if i did not get it for a gift. Man was I missing out. They are incredible!
I'm a HUGE believer in my thermacell they are worth their weight in gold .
They are worth every $$ Try one and then try the spray.No contest
These ain't no gadget down here in Mississippi! It's the best hunting invention since the climbing treestand Imho...
they work great, but I've had one quit working after 3 uses. Quality could be alot better, but the concept is brilliant.
The best testimony I ever heard was from Chris Ward...a member of The Paradise at the time....
He said, and I quote.... "I'd rather leave my bow in camp than my Thermacell".
Then the 2nd best quote was from Matt Schuster...Another member of The Paradise.
Someone asked, since they'd heard, ....I hear they can cause cancer(which is gibberish)....and he said, and I quote....
"Then I'll die with no mosquito bites"!!!
They work great!
Love mine and no issues. Have had it 4-5 years no problems.
I keep a small zip lock bag with mine in my carry case. A bag like one you would get small archer items in. I use it to keep pads in after they are opened. Saves me from using up the refills too fast on shorter hunts.
Get one, one of the best hunting tools i've ever bought
I remember when Charlie Lamb came to hunt with me at The Paradise....and I set one at the base of this big tree he was hunting next to.
When I came to get him I asked if he's seen any bugs and he said "No....but how do you know if its working"....and I replied...."Just cut it off and you'll soon find out"
Here in PA we have the bugs for the first couple of weeks. I have found that they do a great job. However, don't put them away once the frost comes. I get more use out of mine as a scent dispensor. I remove the bug pads and replace with the plain cotton ones and then apply a bit of liquid deer scent/attractant. I then hang it from the stand so it swings in the breeze under me.
They do a great job with a bit of vanilla extract on the pads in place of the deer scents as well.
QuoteOriginally posted by Terry Green:
Worth twice the price.......if the game smells the cell it's smelled you. Spray smells worse.
Exactly! Thermacell odor, which is minimal, goes the same way your scent does.
Nothing is foolproof, but I have killed a truckload of critters while using a Thermacell, and if there is any product out there better than a Thermacell for mosquito, blackfly, no see-ums, etc. protection, please let me know about it.
Hunting groundhogs here in PA used to be miserable until I got my Thermacell. I strap the holster to my belt and turn it on when I walk out of the house. It works just fine at still hunting speeds.
I've packed it each time I went to Ray's Hog Heaven but never really needed it until our last hunt in Oct. It worked great and made sneaking in the swamps even more enjoyable.
I've used them in New England and down here in Texas.IMHO, they're the best thing since sliced bread. They're worth every penny and more. I wouldn't be without it. (nut) :clapper: