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Mosquitoes - oil on water to kill them

Hey all,

I had a small water garden that I've been in the process of replacing with a newer one. During the whole switch over, some mosquitoes got in the garden and lacking fish, I figured I'd just pour some Vegetable Oil on the water cause I knew that would kill them off. Well, it did the trick sure enough.

But now I have another problem...how do I get rid of the oil on the surface of the water?

I need to remove it somehow so I can empty the water garden, but I'm not really sure how to go about doing it. Its a fair amount of oil, enough to cover the surface of a half-whiskey barrel container.

Any ideas?
 
Well, a really tedious way would be a little water dropper or turkey baster. However, if you are very careful, you can try tilting the container to pour the thin layer of oil out into some kind of resevoir before emptying the rest.

-D. Lybrand
 
I don't suppose its possible for Vegetable Oil to burn somehow..?

That was my first idea, but I've sorta ruled it out. But I do have some flameable goodies laying around that I could add to the surface of the water to kick start it...

If anything, I've got floating candles that I could leave in the water to maybe wick up the oil, but I still dont think vegetable oil would do the trick.
 
Burning is actually a pretty good idea. I'm not sure how vegetable oil will burn, though... it probably requires something hotter than a match.

-D. Lybrand
 
Next time, use PAM, the non-stick spray. Does the same job with a lot less viscosity, and is much thinner than vegetable oil. You can skim it off with an unused coffee filter.
 
Maybe use a bunch of ice cubes in a cheesecloth bag and skim it off? Or, maybe a dump a few big bags into the water so the oil will solidify on the surface?

I use Mosquito Dunks in my CP trays.

WildBill
 
If you have enough water you could just slowly overflow the barrel.. Oil should stay on top and run over first.
 
but doing that would make a mess, and if it's on top of grass/plants then it would probably kill them. it's also bad to dump oil down the drain. a while ago they had to cut down some trees and dig up something at the back of my apartment because people did that.
 
That is motor oil, vegtable oil is a very different thing.

Ever rinse a salad bowl in the sink?
 
  • #10
no, I've even seen commercials saying you shouldn't pour cooking oil down the drain. They showed someone dumping the oil remmaining in a pan and crossed it out
smile_n_32.gif

and the fact that people do it (rinse a salad bowl) doesn't make it right.
 
  • #11
You can also buy "Mosquito Dunks" from Home depot...which contain a kind of bacterium or something which I hear kills only mosquitoes and blackflies.
 
  • #12
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]no, I've even seen commercials saying you shouldn't pour cooking oil down the drain. They showed someone dumping the oil remmaining in a pan and crossed it out
smile_n_32.gif

and the fact that people do it (rinse a salad bowl) doesn't make it right.

Ok, ok. you got me it is bad... But it still will solve his problem...
 
  • #13
Well, on an unrelated note, I've learned that the Mosquito dunks don't seem to kill CPs. Thats great! I've never bothered asking or trying them before, I've just changed the container water...but this is good to know.

But as for the Vegetable Oil, the container itself is a half-oak barrel thats lined with heavy rubber lining, and the entire thing is sitting in the grass. Some of the ideas I've read were pretty good and I think they would work, but for my particular setup, it wouldn't be the most feasible application.

Personally, I'm all for the fire route myself, but as near as I can tell vegetable oil will not burn by itself. I can add some accelerant to the surface of the water, another oil based product(paint thinner for example), which could get things kick started...but I've also got people telling me not to do it cause they don't want me to blow myself up or seriously catch something on fire.

So, I'll probably go the boring route and try to skim the oil off the surface of the water. Its going to be tricky, since there is still a water lilly in the pond though. Its overgrown and going to be trashed ultimately, so I guess I'll just chop it up until its out of the way.
 
  • #14
you are worried about overflowing vegetable oil onto the grass, but yet you are willing to pour paint thinner in your pond??! ;)

vegetable oil is organic..just overflow the barrel, let the oil run out onto the grass, then wash the oil down with a bunch of water from the hose.
it wont harm a thing..
much safer than paint thinner or anything flammable.

Scot
 
  • #15
Here's something from a cooking website that may be helpful:

Q: What is the best way to skim fat from sauces or stews? -- Jenny Sommerness, Minneapolis, Minn.

A: If you've got the time, the easiest way defat liquids, whether sauces, stews, soups or stocks, is to cool them to the point that the fat rises and congeals into a solid mass that can simply be lifted off.

This is best accomplished by dividing liquids into small, shallow containers and giving them enough time to cool to about 140 degrees, before moving them to the refrigerator. If you are cooking chicken stock, the beauty of this technique is that it allows you to preserve the fat for later use. Simply wrap the "schmaltz" tightly and refrigerate or freeze. Great for sauteing!

If time is not on your side or if you are working with a small amount of liquid -- drippings from a roast, say -- then there are several options.

A paper towel, folded in half, will soak up fat when drawn across the surface of a stew, stock or sauce. Simply repeat with new paper towels, as needed, until you have soaked up all the fat.

Another quick trick is to take a couple of ice cubes, wrap them in cheesecloth, and draw them across the surface of the liquid. The ice attracts fat like a magnet.

Of course, for a mere 10 dollars, you can scrap the do-it-yourself ingenuity and buy yourself a fat separator (looks like a small watering can) that does the job better than any ice cube or paper towel.
 
  • #16
I learn something new every day...
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Mosquitoes - oil on water to kill them, How do you remove the oil later?
To bad I forget something old too everyday.
 
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