Thermacell Mosquito Repellent Lantern

It’s summer and there are few predators as pervasive as the mosquito. My son already bears the battle wounds on his arms and neck of these nasty creatures. I don’t like putting chemicals on their clothes so an alternative is in order for the troop. As a camp combo item, I was sent the Thermacell Outdoor Lantern / Mosquito Repellent combo item to test.

We first used it at a party in the back yard. We had a group of mums out with their 0-2 year olds and it was prime hunting grounds for the mosquitos. I pulled out the lantern, installed the butane cartridge and batteries, installed a cartridge and fired it up.

In a minute or so I could see (but not smell) a small bead of smoke coming from the top. Within a few minutes the mums were able to stop their swatting and carry on their chat uninterrupted. The addition of the light meant that even as it got darker they were able to continue their mom-chat into the darkness.

The mat uses allethrin, a chemical copy of pyrethin. The natural insect repellent pyrethin comes from the pyrethin flower, a member of the chrysanthemum family.

It was a great test of the product that has proven itself a great tool for backyards and car camping.

One of the restrictions on the box is that it supposedly covers a 15 diameter circle. This isn’t a lot of space. It makes it more keyed to a picnic table, but on a still night (and that’s when the mozzies are out) it worked on a larger area (20-25) with only the people on the outside of that range swatting every now and then.

The light on this device is powered by the 4-AA batteries and puts out a moderate amount of light via the LEDs inside the shroud.

Here’s the stats:

• Repels mosquitoes, black flies and other flying insects
• Shields a 15 x 15-foot area
• Easy to use – no candle or open flame
• EPA Registered
• MRSP: $31

Uses:

• 4 AA batteries (for light)
• 1 Butane cartridge (lasts 12 hours)
• Thermacell Mosquito Mats (last 4 hours)
• MRSP: $7.50 (for 1 cartridge and 3 mats)

The Thermacell Mosquito Repellent Lantern is a nice alternative to spraying your kids with chemical repellents and burning the stinky mosquito coils. I found it to be an effective little piece of kit that I would happily include in my kit for family campouts.