RE: Physical barrier from bugs

Alina,
	Yeah, I have tried to use them, especially the cheaper Coglhans ones (that's all the shop in Inlet, NY, carries.) As others have said, they are hot. And annoying, almost impossible, to eat under without letting in a few black flies, mosquitoes, midges or no-seeums. It gets worse. While they are fairly air permeable, they cause your face to sweat a little...to me, it feels like a bug that slipped through somehow and is getting ready to bite. You can have a hard time scratching, or wiping off sweat. Because they are warmer and have more CO2 from exhaled air, they can attract more bugs than simply keeping moving at a good pace...about 2.5-3 MPH. If you are suddenly swarmed by a cloud of bugs (you start losing a bit of vision anyway, the Coglhans are not real good for this) and it is warm, the sweat will sometimes add to vision blocking. This will naturally slow you down a bit on a rough trail. Difficult to use generally. Of course, a wide brimmed hat is needed. My best was with a piece of higher quality black mesh from Equinox (I think.) I heated the end of some fishing line (I think it was 20# or 25# leader material) and pulled a "needle" in the end. Then threaded it through the bottom of the "head net." Just pulling it tight was usually enough to close off the bottom. That said, this was a long time ago. I used them for two or three trips into the ADK's, and never again. At night, they do not seem to work that well for me. I toss and turn too much, soo, even hanging it above me means getting tangled in my arms or I wake up with my head on it. The "Mantis" was a total failure...I threw it off about midnight... Anyway, try one, they are really light and do avoid chemicals, pesticides, etc.

In some cases, I have wished for one. But learning to use DEET, Picardin, and other chemicals on my face and hands means they only land on me, usually taking a minute or more to bite during the day. As a general rule, bug repellants seem to work better. Picardin works as well, but does NOT last. 2-4 hours as opposed to nearly permanent with DEET. 3 applications usually stays for a full day with only light applications, usually at night, thereafter, for up to a week. Nearly 100% effective, I often get one or two bites, the whole trip (week, usually) even in spring black fly season. At night, under a tarp for example, they buzz around, but don't bother me, otherwise. Usually slower, and colder, at night.

Yeah, jeans do not make good mosquito barriers. Generally, nylon pants work pretty well. I have watched mosquitoes walk around trying to probe through. A lot depends on the weave. 2 layers works well, but in any kind of heat, 70-80F is not good with heat, simply too hot to hike with two layers on. A long sleeved shirt works better...again, tight weave, like loose, slippery nylon base layers, works fairly well. I use Ibex merino wool UL, but these are sprayed with DEET. It does not wear off, but can wash off. Sometimes, say twice in a week, I need to spray it, and, after I dip them in water preparatory to rinsing them out. I also treat them with permethrin. Long socks under loose pants seems to be about the best for ticks and mosquitoes. But my pants are also treated with Permethrin. If you don't treat clothing, the other way around is better...socks over pants. A lighter stretch nylon and most items with spandex are almost always prone to pores in the fabric, and me being bitten...avoid them. Light colored cloths DO help. Light blue, white works or bright yellow works better than dark blue or dark brown. TechWick from EMS seems to be surprisingly resistant to bugs. Again, spray them with DEET. But, permethrin does not bond real well with them. REI makes similar. Poly shirts are usually woven in UL models...not very bug resistant, and, permethrin does not stick that well. About the same as wool, an effective coating wears off after about 7-10 launderings. Nylon will last about 20. Cotton is best for that, about 30-40 launderings, but I only bring a cotton shirt in high summer, of limited use. Loose clothing works better to deter bugs than tight clothing. Black flys, fleas, chiggers, spiders can crawl in loose sleeves, use a hair tie. Spray DEET, a good heavy coating, on your hat, in your hat and on the brim. A layered approach seems to work as well as a head net, without the troubles associated with it. 
     
Anyway, fabrics change from year to year, manufacturer to manufacturer, and model to model. Hard to say what will work now because they might change it next week. Even my pants have changed three times in the past couple years. Your best bet is to find a good bug resistant fabric(mosquitoes) and become familiar with what a tight weave means. Then buy similar weaves to resist bugs. Often cheap $5 shirts from Wally World are better than hi-tech clothing from Patagonia for bug resistance at $40. A wind shirt works well because it is usually loose and tightly woven.   
	My thoughts only . . .
		jdm
  

James D. Marco
302 Mary Lane
Ithaca, NY  14850
607-273-9132 (land), 607-220-9969(cell)