If bug spray and candles just aren’t cutting it this summer in making your back yard a tolerable place, you may need the assistance of the Mosquito Magnet.
The Mosquito Magnet is a device which emits carbon dioxide via a blower. Carbon dioxide is one of the substances that female mosquitoes home in on, and mosquitoes are attracted to the Mosquito Magnet because they are tricked into thinking it is a human.
Ray’s Refrigeration and Air Conditioning in Lake Orion is selling the Mosquito Magnet and owner Mike Lee said he uses one himself.
“I started researching these three years ago, because I wanted one for my own use,” he said. “What I have been doing is, when I sell the unit, I assemble it, deliver it and set it up. If there’s any service required on it later, I come to the site.”
Mosquito Magnets are available in different sizes and qualities, from pro to basic residential units. They range in price from about $300 to $1,299.
“It was researched for the US government for those tropical areas where the soldiers are,” said Lee. “Originally it was not available for the public. Finally, the company with the patent was able to distributed them.”
Ray’s Refrigeration is an independent distributor of the product, and Lee said about the only maintenance for a Mosquito Magnet owner is to change a 20-pound propane tank, which powers the unit, every 21 days.
Mosquitoes attracted to the Mosquito Magnet are collected in a net, which also much be cleaned or changed periodically. Lee said the nets for the product are relatively inexpensive.
“I’m going to have a tent set up at the flower fair on May 17, and I’ll have the three models there along with literature,” Lee said. “I sold quite a few of them last summer…with West Nile Virus, people can’t be too careful.”
Lee said the best time to start running the Mosquito Magnet, which is about the size of a barbecue grill, is mid-May to early June, then running until September. Its important that the unit be running 24 hours a day, seven days a week to do its job properly.
“They are not like other repellants, ” he said. “You can’t just turn it on for a weekend or a night.”
Lee said the machine basically rids the are of female mosquitoes, but it doesn’t draw insects from surrounding areas.
“A majority live within 100 yards of your own yard,” he said. “You won’t draw from the neighbors.”
Lee said the unit is also available in some commercial stores, but in limited quality and also usually without service.
“A lot of those places don’t know much about them,” he said. “I’ve gone as far as calling the tech reps at the Rhode Island facility to get some inside information.”
Placement of the Mosquito Magnet is also important for its usage. Lee said a lot of chain commercial stores won’t be able to tell you where or why it should be placed in certain areas.
“Placement depends on the wind..it has to be up wind,” he said. “They should be 40 feet from any activity, and just outside of vegetation, in the shade,” said Lee.
Any one with Mosquito Magnet questions can visit mosquitomagnet.com, or contact Ray’s Refrigeration at 693-0490.