Sawyer Bug Spray Review: Better than DEET?

What a year to test out a new bug spray and do a Sawyer Bug Spray review. This year has been buggy. I live in northern Minnesota where the state bird is the mosquito and where black flies like to rip into your flesh to drink of your blood — like vampires. Seriously. We have no-see-ums as well as biting flies of all varieties. In a normal year, it’s hard to mow the lawn for about a week or so, because you’ll have 1,000 bugs swarming around you. This year, it was a full month of hard lawn mowing. At points, you didn’t want to be outside. We have a saying about going outside in June: DON’T GO INTO THE WOODS IN JUNE! Did I mention we have lots of bugs?

Earlier this year (when the snow was still on the ground), a package full of Sawyer Picaridin Bug Spray arrived at my door. I greeted it with slight apprehension, because I know DEET, despite its plastic-eating-Gore-Tex-killing properties, works. And, I hadn’t heard of picaridin before. I knew I was going to have to spend the month of June testing it out. Would it work or would June be a sufferfest?

What is Picaridin Bug Spray?

Picaridin is a synthetic version of piperine which comes from pepper plants. Sawyer’s Bug Spray comes with 20% of picaridin in the juice. This synthetic replica of a natural solution, as Sawyer calls it, is claimed effective for up to 12 hours against mosquitoes and ticks and up to 8 hours against biting flies, gnats, chiggers and sand flies. It’s safe to use during pregnancy and okay for kids 6 months and older. Sawyer claims that it’s more effective than DEET.

And this is important —> It won’t damage plastics or synthetic coatings. Considering I have an expensive camera almost always strapped around my neck and all my paddling gear and clothing is synthetic, I was excited to hear that.

Picaridin is also endorsed by the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization. It’s approved by the U.S. EPA. You can read the EPA report here.

The Sawyer Bug Spray Test

Then June hit. It was go time for the Sawyer Bug Spray Review.

On first use, I was a bit repelled by the smell. Sawyer calls it a “pleasant low citrus odor.” I wouldn’t describe it that way. To me, it was bad. Other people I let use it said that they didn’t care for the smell either. BUT. And this is a huge “but,” you either get used to it or the smell goes away. About a minute or so after applying it, you don’t notice the smell anymore.

In use, it felt like it worked. To me it seemed like although the bugs got closer than they do with DEET, they didn’t land and didn’t bite. The 12 hour estimate of effectiveness also seemed right. During the testing, I’d apply it before sunrise (in northern Minnesota in June that means 4:59am for sunrise), and I wouldn’t have to reapply it until around 3 or 4 in the afternoon. It seemed effective against mosquitoes, biting flies and I didn’t get a tick when I had sprayed it on my feet and sandals. Black flies weren’t deterred from dive bombing my head, but DEET doesn’t really deter them either. During black fly season, I combined the Saywer spray with an Outdoor Research Deluxe Spring Head Net. That’s the best head net on the market.

Sawyer claims that the picaridin spray and lotion is non-greasy and I’d agree it doesn’t feel greasy. I could tell that I had bug spray on, but it felt lighter than putting on sunscreen and less sticky than some DEET-based bug sprays. The lotion that I tried seemed to eventually feel about the same. It was an improvement from bug sprays that I had in the past, it wasn’t greasy and I could hardly tell it was on.

Many Varieties

Sawyer offers picaridin as a spray, lotion, in a pump bottle or as an aerosol. It also comes in different sizes including a travel friendly 3-ounce size.

Summary of the Sawyer Bug Spray Review

Overall, thumbs up. It seemed to work well. It doesn’t wreck your synthetic outdoor gear, and it lasts a long time. I’m switching to Sawyer Bug Spray for all my bug spray needs. I can’t imagine buying DEET again.

Get it: Sawyer Bug Spray [REI|Amazon]

Sawyer Permethrin Bug Spray

In addition to the picaridin, Sawyer sent permethrin in the care package. Permethrin is a repellent that you spray onto your clothing and outdoor gear. It repels mosquitos and ticks. It kills ticks. I had one tick this year and I got it before I treated my typical outdoor clothing with permethrin. After I treated, I didn’t get a tick.

An application lasts six weeks or six washings.

Permethrin is non-toxic and made from a synthetic version of pyrethrum, which comes from the chrysanthemum flower.

It’s easy to use. You hold the bottle 6 to 8 inches away from the fabric and spray in a slow sweeping motion. Treat each side for about 30 seconds. Then allow it to dry and you are done. You should do the treatment outside in a well-ventilated area.

It didn’t stain or seem to damage any of my clothing. You can even use it on your tent and such. And dogs. You can treat your dog.

Just do yourself a favor and get some of this to treat your pants and boots. Lyme disease is scary stuff and anything that can help reduce your risk of getting it is worth the few bucks you’ll spend on it.

Get it: Sawyer Permethrin Clothing and Fabric Insect Repellent: [REI|Amazon]

Disclosure of Material Connection: Sawyer sent me a care package full of bug spray in exchange for an honest review.