I have read the discussions of deet vs whatever. Interesting. On several of the posts it seems to be advisable to bring deet with you when you travel. Is it not easily available or much more expensive in Bonaire? Also, is the same true for sunscreen? Counting my ounces when I pack

Chat & Browse has a large selection of both.
I get 100% DEET at Sports Authority

Debbie.

There are arguments regarding the harm that Deet does to the environment but I don't know how conclusive it is.

Unless things have changed (over to you Michael, Ruth et al) there always seemed to be a shortage of mosquito repellent when there were mosquitoes around. There are two main brands, OSI & Off! I always found that Off! was the most effective, I guess that it is around $3.00 to £4.00 now. OSI is a little cheaper.

"Negligible"

Source:

http://greenliving.about.com/od/thegreenyard/a/insect_repellents.htm

I found the electric tennis racket's sold on Bonaire to be very effective at ridding our bedroom of mosquitoes before retiring. Effective and kind of fun to use. ZAP!

In fact, I purchased eight to bring home.

(Message edited by sparty on April 11, 2011)

This is about as strong as you can get.
I started using 75% DEET in 1967 in SE Asia and have used it since with no--to date--ill effects.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000N02M9E/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B002MDOMV6&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1D12SW3WSTZ82TG75F1F

welcome Debbie, Please be aware that DEET not only removes nailpolish but it will also destroy neoprene and the silicon around your mask....Just lettin ya know...

If your watch is not metal, watch out as well. It can take off the paint on some of the less expensive Casio type watches.

We've used Cactus Juice in place of DEET and found it effective.

www.cactusjuicetm.com

Note: I have no financial stake in this company.

MMM...cactus juice. Makes you smell like a creamsicle. That is not so bad! And it works!

i have always used cactus juice with good results. mary uses everything she can find and still gets bit. go figure. but i agree that cactus juice smells better than the others.

It only takes a little research to find the dangers of DEET. It is a bioaccumulative as well.
Several of the all natural (biopesticides) are effective repellents. I have field tested several of them and posted about them on BT before. But with any repellent, natural or DEET-based, it is buyer-beware. Nothing works on everyone. Some work better on this person's chemistry and not at all on someone else. So it makes sense to invest in several and test them on yourself. It is also clear like with Mary, some folks are just way more susceptable to insects stings/bites then others.
Cactus Juice is one of the products I have field tested on Bonaire, Iraq, FL, Jersey Shore, and more. It works really well on some folks and just ok on others. I have a long-time study of CJ going on on Bonaire and the results are very promising. It is hard to buy these days with a 30-day lead time if you are interested bringing to Bonaire.

incognito from the UK also worked. As did the catnip-based (strong stuff) BugMace.

I am field testing EcoSMART's all natural flying insect spray and personal repellent. It is one of the few companies that does thorough and ongoing testing. They are smart scientists and are readily available.

Bottomline, I have found enough all naturals that work well enough on different species in different geographies to never have to use DEET anymore.