Mosquito Fogger

Mosquito Fogger CROPS Insect Control 15-4-4 "Anyone can make one. Gets rid of mosquitos, gnats, flies and other flying pests," says Kevin McWilliams, who came up with an easy-to-build design for a mosquito fogger that lets him control the serious insect problems he has on his farm near Hempstead, Texas. "We've got a lot of rice fields around here and a river nearby. We've also had a lot of rain this year so insects have been bad, tormenting both people and livestock," says McWilliams, who simply pulls his home-built fogger around the farmyard every few days to keep insects at bay. He says his idea would work with any small gas engine. He used an 8-hp. Briggs & Stratton engine taken from a junked riding mower. The engine mounts on a small trailer. The only modification to the engine is a 3-ft. length of 1/2 in. steel pipe attached to the exhaust manifold. The pipe is bent in an "S" shape. It heats up as exhaust shoots out of the engine and through the pipe. A 11/2 gal. chemical tank is filled with an equal parts mixture of Malathion, diesel fuel and water. A length of copper tubing runs from a petcock at the bottom of the tank to the modified manifold. It wraps around the manifold to preheat the chemical mix and then drips it into the upper part of the heated-up manifold. The liquid turns into fog that comes shooting out of the tube about 10 ft., fogging the surrounding area. "It's simple and it works. Nearly every-one has an old engine around not being used. Takes very little time to construct at almost no cost. Commercial foggers are cost prohibitive so there's nothing else on the market for farm use that'll do the job like this," says McWilliams. He pulls the fogger around his farm with a garden tractor. One-half quart of Malathion will fog a 5-acre area. (Malathion sells for about $12 a gal.) The water-dieselchemical mix doesn't seem to bother plants and shrubs, although McWilliams says he's careful not to get too close to shrubs or small trees because the heat of the steam can bum leaves. He also stays far away from his bee hives since Malathion kills bees. In addition to mosquitos, the fogger also kills buffalo gnats which are particularly hard on both people and livestock. McWilliams raises cattle and sheep and says that by running the fogger around his farm every few days, he's able to keep the livestock relatively insect free. When McWilliams and his family want to spend the evening on their open deck, they fog the area around it at about 5:00 and can then dine in peace throughout the entire evening without seeing an insect. "It seems to keep them down pretty good for about 3 days, then we have to spray again." Before building his tow-behind fogger, McWilliams first built a smaller version using a gas-powered sidewalk edger. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, J. Kevin McWilliams, P.O.Box 617, Hempstead, Tex. 77445 (ph 409 826-2421).

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