SAWER PICARIDIN SPRAY and LOTION, PERMITHRIN SPRAY, and STAYPUT SUNSCREEN
Editor: Cory McLaughlin
Just the Facts:
Sawer insect repellent lotion and sunscreen for outdoors
Features:
• Picaridin is more effective at repelling biting flies than DEET
• Our 20% Picaridin is virtually odorless; it even has a mild citrus scent added to it which evaporates when dry
• Sawyer Picaridin Repellent will not harm gear or equipment
• Effective for up to 14 hours (lotion) or 12 hours (Spray)
• Use with confidence on the whole family
Available Sizes:
[SP564] – 4 oz. lotion
[SP544] – 4 oz. spray
[SP543] – 3 oz. spray
[SP541] – 0.5 oz. spray tube
Features:
• This insect-killing repellent for your clothing is effective against ticks, chiggers, mites and mosquitoes for up to six weeks.
• This nonaerosol pump bottle contains enough spray to coat full outfits
• Although we consider a full outfit to be one shirt, trousers and socks; we recommend you still pack underwear.
• One treatment will last up to six washings or six weeks before clothing has to be treated again
• If you treat your tent, you can expect full potency for up to 40 days of direct sunlight. This is a great way to give your entire campsite a barrier of protection
• Use it while hunting for an odorless way to protect yourself from common bugs
• Effective against ticks that carry Lyme disease and other fairly common diseases like Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
• Repellent should be applied outdoors and before clothing is worn; after it’s treated, hang clothing and let dry two hours (four hours in humid conditions)
• Avoid contact with skin and eyes during application phase
• Active Ingredient: Permethrin (0.5%)
Features:
• One application penetrates deeper into skin lasting all day
• Will not rub off
• Sweat proof
• Engineered to be effective when combined with the application of Sawyer Insect Repellents
• Enriched with Aloe Vera and Vitamins
• Airline Friendly Sizes
• Active Ingredients: Octinoxate, Octisalate, Homosalate, Oxybenzone.
Available Sizes:
[SP1181] – 1 ounce
[SP1302] – 2 ounces
[SP1188] – 8 ounces
My Story:
Few things in this world are than the nagging itch of bug bites. We as outdoor enthusiasts know all too well the pain of forgetting your insect repellent and the consequences of such foolishness. Well, I can’t help you remember to bring it with you but I can help steer you in the direction of what I feel is the best thing going. Sawyer has hit a home run with their line of insect repellents, heck it might even be a grand slam. We are talking about coverage from 12 hours to 42 days depending on the product and that is protection that you will not find with any other product on the market.
My wife and daughters are made of whatever mosquitoes equate to ice cream, cake, or any other delectable dessert. Mosquitoes love my family in a way that is almost unexplainable. Fortunately, the same cannot be said for myself. Sure, I get the occasional bite but by in large the little buggers just don’t seem to like me. The torture they dish out is not lost on me though as I have spent many nights listening to my daughter cry as she itches her legs uncontrollably. I’ve used them all is what I always tell friends when they inquire about repellents. All of them accept the Sawyer Picaridin products. Luckily my mom had a trip to the lake planned and after last year’s disastrous results I was ready to try anything to protect my little angels. I sent a bottle of the lotion and the spray with the girls with hopes for great results. I am happy to report that for the first time ever my daughters retuned from a 10 day lake adventure without one single mosquito bite. That is a huge accomplishment in our world.
Our first trial with these Sawyer products was a great success but the real test was still to come. A backpacking trip into the Enchantments area in the Cascade Mountains was on the docket and from what I had been hearing from the trail, the bugs were more than abundant. My first step was to treat our clothing with the Sawyer Permethrin spray. I have experience with this product from a past review which can be viewed here: http://staging2.ireviewgear.com/cool-gear/sawyer-gravity-filter-and-other-product-review/ and as you can see I had nothing but good things to say about it then. I can happily say that my attitude has not changed and after yet another successful application I would again recommend this to anybody. I won’t say that I watched it kill any bugs but they didn’t seem to want to stay on my clothing very long and so that is a win for sure.
Now the Picaridin lotion and spray are out of this world cool. I already knew that this stuff was going to would work as my daughters had such great luck with it while on vacation at the lake with their Nana. What I did not know was how well it would work for my wife. She is like filet mignon to mosquitoes and they come at her with bayonets fixed. I was so very happy to see that this stuff not only worked but it did not leave us with the filthy oily residue that many of the sprays do. The lotion rubs in quickly and leaves the skin feeling great. The added bonus of not having to worry about staining any of our clothing and gear was a breath of fresh air. In the end what really matters is that it actually works and keeps the little buzzing demon bugs at bay. So, does it? I can tell you that for me and my crew the answer was yes.
I was a huge fan of the lotion and so was my wife. I love that it is compact and for application on the face and neck the lotion is about as good as it can get. Here you can see me with a he smile on my face as I know that this will be one of only a handful of trips into the outdoors that I won’t have to listen to my wife complain about bug bites, not that I blame her for that.
The last product of this review is the Stay Put Sunscreen. This stuff is great and its ability to be used in conjunction with the insect repellent is simply fantastic. Though I am not prone to sunburn, I used this on the back of my neck and face while hiking for several trips this year. You may have also noticed that I reviewed this in the review referenced above. I gave it high marks. Again, my attitude remains positive and I have made this my family’s go to sunscreen. We have tubes in all the cars, swim bags, and backpacks.
The science behind the Sawyer products is absolutely impressive. It is well worth the read to head to their main site and read up on the research that they have put into all of their great products. It will not take long to notice that they really do care about what they are producing. Sawyer clearly wants to put out the best products available at an affordable price. I believe Sawyer to be amongst the best in every class of product they provide. We were some very happy hikers!
Find it Here:
https://sawyer.com/products/
What can be done better?
I can find nothing that I would change with any of the products that I tested for this review. Keep up the great work Sawyer!
I give these Sawyer Products 5 STARS.
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Functionality
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Value
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Ergonomics
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Durability