If you’re looking for an all-natural, effective way to get rid of mosquitoes in your backyard – there’s no better option than Mosquito Barrier.
The mosquito repellent uses garlic oil – an all-natural derivative of garlic – concentrated and sold by the gallon. While a gallon of garlic oil costs about $80, it will cover several acres of property in multiple applications.
This review covers everything you need to know about mosquito repellents – from the science behind them to the most effective ways to use them.
One-time visitThis one-time treatment includes inspection, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up. It costs from $150 to $350.
What is a mosquito barrier?
Mosquito Barrier is a concentrated solution of garlic oil. Garlic oil contains a substance called diallyl disulfide (and some variants of this molecule) that is effective at killing mosquitoes. In addition to the garlic concentrate, this product contains only a few food-grade preservatives to minimize any spoilage of the oil.
While regular garlic oil is sufficient – researchers at Mosquito Barrier have created their own variety of “Super Garlic” that contains much more oil than regular garlic. This allows the company to create a more effective garlic mosquito yard spray than competitors, and at a cheaper price.
While this might seem like a very simple solution, there is actually a lot of scientific evidence that backs up the mosquito repellent’s claim that it can eliminate mosquitoes in an area with just a few applications.
Does the mosquito repellent work?
The Mosquito Barrier website claims that Mosquito Barrier works with a “3-pronged attack” of killing adults, larvae, and repelling insects from an area. In a review of the scientific literature, all three of these claims could be supported .
In fact, garlic has been used for decades (or maybe even longer) to ward off mosquitoes and other biting insects. Research into using garlic as an insect repellent began primarily because many cultures claimed that eating garlic regularly could help ward off mosquitoes.
In the 1970s, researchers decided to take a look at the components of garlic and they found that garlic oil was a powerful and effective larvicide . However, research on garlic as a natural insecticide and repellent continued until the 2000s.
Recent research has shown that garlic oil is even effective against insecticide-resistant mosquitoes . This means that if you are using DEET or permethrin as a mosquito repellent/insecticide and it is ineffective, you may have success with a mosquito repellent.
Although Mosquito Barrier is not recommended as a skin repellent, tests have shown that applying garlic oil to the skin does repel mosquitoes – although its effectiveness wears off more quickly than DEET.
Most importantly, the mosquito repellent has a much smaller impact on the environment than almost all synthetic insecticides, such as DEET, Octenol or any other synthetic chemical. In particular, researchers found that garlic oil has a very low impact on the environment .
This means that once the mosquito repellent has done its job it can be degraded and recycled by the environment. Some synthetic insecticides can last in the environment for decades after they break down – causing negative impacts on all sorts of organisms.
The scientific literature certainly supports the idea that concentrated garlic oil provides a way to kill adult mosquitoes, larval mosquitoes, and that it repels mosquitoes from the area after it has been applied.
How to use mosquito repellent effectively
Mosquito Repellent comes in a concentrated gallon and must be diluted before use. One gallon of Mosquito Repellent concentrate will make approximately 32 gallons of spray – an amount that can cover 1 acre of property for the entire summer season (approximately 5 times).
Mixing Instructions
Mixing instructions may vary slightly depending on your property.
no standing water
If there is no standing water on your property, using a mosquito repellent is very easy. Mix the mosquito repellent liquid with water and pour it into a hand-held pump sprayer at the rate given below:
- 4 ounces mosquito repellent
- 1 gallon water
Pump your sprayer, and hold the sprayer about 8 inches away from the surfaces you are coating. Make sure you spray over your entire property – including grass, shrubs and tree trunks, up to a height of 5 feet. This will ensure all areas are covered – protecting you from mosquitoes, ticks and many other types of insects.
standing water present
Mosquitoes love to breed in standing water. If you have a small pond on your property, standing water in the ditch or driveway, or a puddle of any size on your property – you can bet mosquitoes are laying eggs in it. If you have any standing water on your property, you should use the following formula in your sprayer:
- 4 ounces mosquito repellent
- 1 gallon water
- 2 औंस कैनोला तेल
- 1 teaspoon liquid soap (such as Dawn dish soap)
This recipe allows the mosquito blocker to form a well-distributed coating over the standing water, effectively suffocating any mosquito larvae that may be present. The oil and soap carry the mosquito blocker throughout the water, blocking the breathing system of larval mosquitoes and causing them to die.
Do not use it before or after heavy rain
Rain will reduce the effectiveness of the mosquito repellent as it will further dilute the garlic oil and wash any spray off surfaces and into the ground. While this is not an environmental concern as garlic oil dissolves easily in the soil, it will render your application ineffective.
Wait a few dry days so you can apply the mosquito repellent and it has time to dry on surfaces. This will make it most effective.
How long does a mosquito repellent work?
Use the spray once a month during mosquito season, and the population will be greatly reduced – if not completely eliminated!
The spray takes effect almost immediately, although it takes about 24 hours to see noticeable results. After this, you should see a significant decrease in the mosquito population. The company recommends that heavily infested areas be treated on a monthly basis to continually reduce the mosquito population and repel any mosquitoes that come in from afar.
For a really persistent mosquito population, the formula can be increased to 8-12 ounces of mosquito repellent per gallon of water. This will definitely kill all the mosquitoes present, and will probably drive out many other pests from your yard as well.
What other insects does Mosquito Repellent work on?
According to the Mosquito Barrier website, this garlic oil concentrate has been effective on many different yard pests, including fire ants, ticks, and grasshoppers. Grasshoppers and ticks can be repelled in the same way as mosquitoes – simply spray the area you want to protect and they will move on to other areas!
Mosquito Barrier also suggests that if the concentrated formula is diluted only 50%, it can be sprayed on clothing and provides a barrier against ticks outside of the treated area. However, only anecdotal evidence supports this claim. The company also suggests that diluted Mosquito Barrier can be poured onto fire ant mounds to ward them off!
Geese can also be a pest in some areas . Mosquito Blocker adds an undesirable flavor of garlic to the geese’s favorite grass, so Mosquito Blocker is also a geese blocker. Garlic oil does not harm geese – they simply prefer the grass without the garlic flavor and leave the treated area.
is it safe?
Garlic oil is a completely natural ingredient derived from whole garlic cloves. While Mosquito Barrier is a particularly potent garlic oil, it does not contain any ingredients that are not approved for human consumption. Essentially, you can drink garlic oil and be fine. This is definitely not recommended though as it will be very spicy and uncomfortable!
Once diluted, Mosquito Blocker becomes even safer. Users often apply it to their clothing as a mosquito and tick repellent . Pets and children will not be affected – unless they are allergic to garlic. In this case, Mosquito Blocker may cause a reaction. But, very few people are allergic to garlic and most people don’t even notice the spray after it dries on sprayed surfaces.
The company claims that beneficial insects such as bees and butterflies will not be harmed in any way by the spray unless they are sprayed directly. Although this claim has not been clearly validated in the literature, garlic oil is unlikely to harm bees and butterflies unless they are sprayed directly.
That being said, garlic can also act as a repellent for these pests. If you notice a decrease in the number of pollinators in your yard, avoid spraying flowering plants. This will keep the flowers’ scent and attractiveness intact and keep pollinators safe.