OFF Candles Do They Work?

Updated on July 11, 2013
M.P. asks from Chicago, IL
7 answers

Hello, wondering if you've used those OFF candles for outdoors? Do they work?

Thanks!

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L.A.

answers from Austin on

Maybe where you live. But not down here.

Those candles need to be used low, not up on top of a table. mosquito's are down close to the ground.. So make sure your children cannot get close to the flames.

Our mosquito's are hearty and too many..
Down here, we have to use the big guns and spray the yards.
We start low on the edges of the yards and then around the bottom of the house, under decks, steps.. etc..

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D.N.

answers from Chicago on

Not much success with them. However, Off also makes these rings that you light. They are awesome. They also keep the wasps away. That is a big bonus since they can spoil a bbq. Menards also sells generic brand that works just as well. The OFF brand comes with a clay pot to put it in. The generic one (or off brand if you prefer) coomes with a metal clip to stand it on. I place one about 5 feet away on each side of our table and no mosques bother us.

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A.P.

answers from Washington DC on

No. Move up to a bug zapper.

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B..

answers from Dallas on

They do NOT work on mosquitoes here. You might not have mutant mosquitoes that are plentiful, like we do. Might as well try, and see if it works for you!

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M.C.

answers from Chattanooga on

Nope.

I like to use tiki torches with citronella when we want a bug free zone. You have to use a lot though... One every 2-3 feet. And put them at different levels. (If you have kids, do NOT leave them unsupervised... Citronella is toxic.)

D.B.

answers from Boston on

No. You need much more coverage. Tiki torches are fun and citronella is not exorbitant - I think they give off a ton of smoke/odor and that's what works. I think the key is to create a good barrier, which means a lot of buckets or torches surrounding the area, and then you have protection no matter which way the wind is blowing. As someone else said, they all require supervision. I'm not sure any of it is all that great to breathe, frankly, but mosquitoes are a huge problem around here for EEE and West Nile virus. If you're trying to eliminate other types of bugs, you may need to change it up. Bug zappers work for some things, but not for mosquitoes which are not attracted to light. We use the torches and some stakes we bought at a discount store that stick into the ground - add the torches and get some height. We also use citronella buckets on the railing of our deck - different heights are important. I've used those smoky spirals and I don't think they stay lit too well, and they break easily. If you only use part of them and leave them in the rain, you can't use the rest though. A torch relights pretty easily, and a citronella bucket can either be covered with a lid or the rainwater dumped out. I do like the idea of something you can refill though, whether it's torches or those coil things, if you can make them work.

If it's only mosquitoes you're dealing with and if it's a small area, a good oscillating fan works great and it's non-toxic! Mosquitoes are weak fliers - that's why they don't bother you on a breezy day, but on a still day (especially moist and muggy) you really get assaulted.

I also don't think there's a big difference between the name brands and the discount stuff though, so I usually go by price.

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