I originally posted this in the spring of 2012, however, after some negative comments and emails, I decided to take the post down. However, I have decided to make it live again. I used this method for treating my clothes last year, and it worked just as well as any of the other treatments I have used, and I am happy with mixing my own mixture for treating my clothes.

So, this post is about how I choose to treat my clothes. I am not telling anyone else to go out and do the same thing. As well, if you do decide to do this, I accept no responsibility for what may come of it. As well, if you don’t like my method presented here, please do not tell me about it, just go on with what you were doing before you came across this post. I will moderate all comments, and if I don’t feel like your comment adds to this post then I will happily delete it.

So, on with it…

I hate ticks! And now is the time of year that it has become impossible for me to go for a hike without attracting clusters of these little arachnids! And as most of us already know, these little guys are no joke! They can spread around diseases such as Lyme Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (to name a couple) as well as a number of other illnesses. To make matters worse, a single tick can also carry more than 1 disease, so it is possible for them to transfer more than 1 disease from a single bite…

Ticks can usually be found hanging out on the tips of grass or shrubs in grassy, or overgrown areas (such as a trail that is grown over, or that nice grassy spot that the tent was set up on the night before…) They will wait for a host (animal or human) to brush through these areas, at which time the tick will let go of the growth and then cling to them. Since ticks do not jump or fly, they simply crawl around the host until they find a nice feeding area…

The problem is that a tick bite typically is not felt, which makes it hard to know that a tick is even on you. I have read that it usually takes between 24 – 48 hours for the tick to attach itself, feed and then to potentially transfer any diseases into the host. For this reason, a daily tick check should be a very important routine while in the backcountry. To do this thoroughly though, either a mirror or a partner is necessary to visualize those hard-to-reach areas…

If a tick is found crawling around on either you or your clothing, then simply picking it off and disposing of it is all that is required. However, if the tick has already attached itself to its host (you), then proper removal is necessary so that all of the tick is removed. One can do this by using tweezers and grasping the tick as close to the skin as possible and then firmly pulling straight back without jerking or twisting. (The tick needs to removed whole.) Alternately, there are tick removal devices available too. Also, be sure to wash hands well after removing ticks.

So, prevention and/or quick removal is key to preventing tick-borne illnesses. There are a number of things that one can do to help reduce the chances of coming across a tick encounter, but as mentioned above, a daily body check should be done each day while on the trail. Here are some other tips for limiting tick encounters:

Wear long sleeves/pants. This reduces the amount of exposed skin.

Tuck pants cuffs into socks. This creates a barrier between the tick and your skin.

Walk in the center of the trail. This way overgrowth is less likely to brush against you.

Apply a chemical treatment to your clothing before hiking. This will kill or deter ticks.

Which is where this post comes in at…

Deet is a typical “bug spray” that comes in different strengths. However, even though Deet can do fairly well at repelling mosquitoes and other annoying insects, it only does a little to actually deter ticks. On the other hand, Permethrin is a bit more toxic to ticks…actually, it is fatal to ticks! Permethrin is applied to clothing via a spray or a soak. After saturating the article of clothing with Permethrin it must be allowed to dry completely, at which time, the chemical is then semi-permanently bonded to the clothing. Once dry after the initial treatment, the Permethrin treated clothing is not harmful to humans to handle or wear. However, once a tick comes into contact with this chemically treated garment the chemical will attach itself to the tick and soon after will kill the tick!

After spending my share of money on the premixed Permethrin solutions that are readily available, I decided that I wanted to order some Permethrin in a concentrated bulk, dilute it myself and save some money! So, after talking with one of my friends that has been diluting his own himself, I placed an order for my very own 36.8% Permethrin…

The quart size bottle of 36.8% Permethrin cost me $31.95 total. This means that each oz cost me almost $1. I am diluting 2 oz of this Permethrin in 1 gallon of water which should still give me a higher concentration than what is typically sold in the premixed solutions. So, at just under $2/gallon, this ready-to-use, high concentrated Permethrin has easily saved me some money here!

I mixed the solution in a 5 gallon bucket to give me plenty of room to keep from splashing the mixture out. Once this was done, I followed the same rules that I used when using the Sawyer Permethrin Soak Treatment Kit. I rolled my clothing and secured each piece with a rubber band. Then I simply shoved them into the bucket and let them soak in the solution for 1 hour. After the hour was up, I removed each piece one at a time, wrung as much of the solution out and then hung them up on a clothes line to let them air dry for the remainder of the day.

Today I treated 9 pairs of socks, 3 pairs of pants, 3 shirts, 1 visor and 1 hat…and still had plenty left over…

As I said, I mixed 1 gallon of this diluted solution which easily treated all of the above articles of clothing. (I actually could have easily done the same amount again.) Once I was done soaking the clothes though I did not just pour the rest down the sink…

My friend recommended me to pour the remaining amount of solution into a spray bottle which I could then use to “freshen” up key areas on the clothing (such as hems and collars) before I head out on each trip. Of course though, considering the strength of the solution, I do not need to completely saturate the clothing again each time, but rather just a spray or two to liven it up a little. (There is no reason I want to take it easy on these little guys…I want them all dead!)

So, now me, my son and my nephew are all set-to-go with some killer hiking clothing! We look forward to taking these lethal garments out this summer for lots of fun and hot summer time hiking!

Here is a video that my son helped me make today when I was mixing the Permethrin:

Thanks for reading!

~Stick~

Disclaimer: I do not claim to be an expert when it comes to using or diluting the chemical Permethrin. The dilution ratios above are something that my buddy has used and I have decided to use as well. I do not hold my buddy responsible for anything that may or may not go wrong when I use this solution, nor do I accept any responsibility should anyone else decide to do the same. If anyone has any questions or plan to use this chemical I suggest them to consult with a specialist, as well as to read any information that comes with the chemical.