Mosquito nets

gqsmoothie

Trying to figure out which net would best suit me. I'm quite tall, 6ft 6 in, so I'll need a big one. I would think that the nets that attach to the ceiling would be the easiest to set up. But I was thinking that they might also be more prone to have the netting touch you which would mean the mosquitoes might be able to bite you.

Here are a few I've looked at:

http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___86661 I'm worried that with that ring this one would take up too much space in my pack.

http://www.rei.com/product/729007 (isn't treated)

http://www.rei.com/product/729005

brishti

the second link - mombasa outback travel - seems the most suitable - 6 ft or not.
the only consideration is - must be long enough to be able to tuck inside the mattress.
you can always keep a pillow against the net - so it dont 'touch' you while you sleep - keeping the bugs at bay.
and then again - you have to find four 'posts' to hang the net from.
the best way is to tie twine/rope/whatever to the four corners of the net - so you can attach/adjust net-height at will to whatever attachments there are available in the room.

havent a clue as to what you mean by 'not treated'...



:brishti
[ gosh! them pictures take me back to my childhood ]

gqsmoothie

Some nets have Permetherin (whatever that is?) on them which is supposed to keep mosquitoes away.

birds

For the past 15 years we have been using the twin Rectangular Mosquito Net (similar to Mombasa Outback) from Klamboe Unlimited (http://klamboe.eu/webstore/index.php...&lang uage=en) and are pretty happy with it.

If you are tall it is useful to have a large square one so your body does not touch it anywhere. The large rectangular ones also feel less hot and claustrophobic.

I am not so keen on the 'treated' ones, after all if it kills mosquitoes is probably not too good for you either to breath the whole night the same fumes. If you use the mosquito net well (keep it closed as all sides, make sure not mossies are already in when you go to sleep) there is no reason for the treatment.

Saying that when traveling for a short period I think nets are too much hassle since you will not find too many rooms where you can connect them. The easiest is just to take one of those small devises which you plug in the electric socket and that emits some nasty fumes that kills the mossies.

gqsmoothie

Is it really necessary to have a mosquito net?

I'll be taking doxycycline, could use mosquito coils and those plugins at night, and using DEET before bed. Would those be enough? Or will they give me cancer, sounds like a lot of nasty chemicals.

wonderwomanusa

I've never carried a net, though I use them if the hotel provides one. I use DEET at bedtime, burn coils while I'm out to dinner, sleep with the fan on "high" and under a sheet. I get very few bites ..

__________________
The map is not the territory. --Alfred Korzybski

edwardseco

I don't like to depend that much on chemicals and especially the coils which you end up breathing away. Besides, I have seen them fail to a percentage rate. I took a light nylon net and discarded the frame. Very simple with no coating, etc. and immensely effective against a wide variety of nuissances including falling rats..

katcalls

Ahh, that brings back memories Edwardseco.

The mosquito net I used in Cambodia didn't stop the rats from chewing through it and going to sleep on my feet (no exageration). It took me a couple of seconds to realise why I was waking in the middle of the night. I think my shriek scared the poor rat to death!

__________________
Bueller? Bueller?

Giulia Nia

How to deal with the problem of the insects?
like, do you bring a mosquito net with you from your country?
l was thinking of the camping ones, which don't need any handhold on the roof..

but, firstly.. is it really a problem for a girl which has met just tinies spiders?

hope you can calm me down

Giulia Nia

Nick-H

There are only two kinds of insects that you really need to worry about: mosquitoes and bed bugs.

Bed bugs are not that common as long as you stay away from guest houses that are really really cheap and dirty. Actually, I hear they are becoming common in London!

Mosquitoes --- well, you must be aware of the risks of malaria etc etc etc, and it is for this reason, not to mention the discomfort of being covered in mossie (mosquito) bites, that people sleep under nets.

Look for the threads on Malaria, and you'll find lots of discussion of nets.

__________________
.


Just one member of the IndiaMike Mod Team

Elana1945

I was just wondering, with all this discussion about the nets...does that mean there are usually ways of fastening those nets above the hotel beds? How does that even work? I am traveling with intrepid to India in October...so just checking things out...

Nick-H

Hello Elana, welcome to the site.

Sometimes there is a means of fixing the net; sometimes not.

Very often there is a ceiling fan above the bed, and in a non-AC room (depending on where you are travelling) you will need to use it.

If I were buying a net outside India I'd try to get one of the free-standing tent-type ones. They have a bottom net as well, that protects you against insects from the mattress.

BushyW12

Hello, I was just wondering about Mosquito Nets..
We will be staying in hotels for a few weeks-reasonably fancy...but I didn't notice any nets in the pictures of the rooms on the websites. I am keen, obviously for none of the five of us (3 children under 10)to be bitten by a mosquito and get malaria or anything else nasty. (!) and I have absorbed the idea that mosquito nets are key...just a few questions if you have a moment:
1) Do we need to take nets with us, or will they be easy to buy in India?
2) Are the Indian ones impregnated with permethrin like the ones you buy here?
3)I am worried that the hotels may not take kindly to us attaching hooks to hang the thing on- is this a silly worry because they will all have the hooks already?
4)Might it be better to buy the ones which pop up with their own frame- though it looks like you need to have a consistent bed size, which we may not- traveling from hotel to hotel.

Rasika

There is an article which has been popping up on the homepage on what not to take to India, and mosquito nets seem to be right there on top of the list. I tend to agree--while the idea is good, in practice it will be difficult to set them up in hotel rooms.

I have just given away my mosquito net to a friend going to Madagascar, as I carried my net to India several times and never used it. I have resigned myself to using coils or electric mosquito zappers in the room, and to use a fan all through the night and covering myself completely.

trustindia

Nets ARE hard to hang, but not impossible, take a few lengths of thin nylon cord with you, say about 4 meters each length, you can then be a little creative.
Anchor the cord across your bed using light fittings, window/door sashes, curtain rails, cupboard doors.... You can then hang the net from the cord.
Of course you will need a net that hangs from a single anchor point.
The ones with four anchor points are really useless, and far too complicated to hang.

Another idea that works well in well sealed rooms and a hotel with a back up generator, is a plug in machine that emits a vapor that knocks the mozzies out of the sky. Many local people use this in their homes, and these days many hotels supply them with the room.

Look in the shops for a brand called Goodknight, plug in vaporisor and fluid for 40 days costs about 60 Rupees.

I've used these on many occasions, where the net wasn't feasible. They work very well.