REI.com
  • Online: www.REI.com
  • URL for this product:
  • From the U.S. and CanadaCall 1-800-426-4840
  • Mon. through Sun., 4 a.m. through 11 p.m. PT.
  • InternationalCall 1-253-891-2500
  • Mon. through Sun., 4 a.m. through 11 p.m. PT. English language only.
Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.
zoomZoom image

Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.

Item # 768970

$15.50

Item qualifies for annual
REI Member Refund (typically 10%)

1.

2. Qty

3.

Product Rating
Share It
Bookmark and share Bookmark and share

This insect-killing repellent for your clothing is effective against ticks, chiggers, mites and mosquitoes for up to six weeks.

  • Nonaerosol pump bottle contains 24 fl. oz. of repellent, or enough to coat four full outfits; a full outfit consists of shirt, trousers and socks
  • One treatment will last up to six washings or six weeks before clothing has to be treated again
  • Effective against ticks that carry Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
  • Repellent should be applied outdoors and before clothing is worn; hang clothing, spray and let dry two hours (four hours in humid conditions)
  • Avoid contact with skin and eyes

Active Ingredient: Permethrin (0.5%)

Made in USA.

Item 768970

Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz. Specs

Specification

Description

Weight24 fluid ounces

Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz. Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews
Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.
 
4.3

(based on 6 reviews)

100%

of respondents would recommend this to a friend.

Pros

  • Effective (5)
  • Durable (4)

Cons

    Best Uses

    • Backcountry (5)
    • Reviewer Profile:
    • Avid adventurer (3), Casual adventurer (3)

    Reviewed by 6 customers

    Sort by

    Displaying reviews 1-6

    Back to top

    (8 of 8 customers found this review helpful)

     
    4.0

    Plain ol' permethrin

    By Dynamite!

    from Durham, NC

    About Me Casual Adventurer

    Pros

    • Effective

    Cons

    • Bad Smell
    • Messy
    • Poisonous to cats

    Best Uses

    • Tropics

    Comments about Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.:

    Enough to cover
    4 men's t-shirts (L)
    2 women's cotton tops (S)
    1 men's shorts (M)
    2 women's shorts (S)
    5 pair women's socks
    2 pair men's socks

    Definitely wear gloves during application. The bottle can drip. The spray is wide and fine. If you lay the clothes flat, use plastic sheeting underneath to keep the clothes clean, and to avoid spraying permethrin all over the ground.
    However, if you intend to use the last of the bottle, the clothes must be hanging upright, becuase it won't spray with the nozzle pointing down once the level is too low.
    I did not have a clothesline, so I hung plastic sheeting over a railing, and hung the clothes over that. I read that in the military, the clothes are placed flat on the ground, sprayed, left to dry, then flipped over and sprayed again. I didn't wait for one side to dry before doing the other, but it probably would have dried better if I did one at a time.
    Check the weather report before you leave your clothes out to dry. It rained a bit when I left the clothes out overnight.
    The permethrin might not smell once dry, but it does smell when applying. If your clothes get darker when they're damp, it's easier to tell where you've already sprayed.
    Note that permethrin is very toxic to cats.

    • Gift:
    • No

    (8 of 8 customers found this review helpful)

     
    4.0

    Clothing Insect Repellent: USEFUL !

    By DayHiker2008

    from SF Bay Area, CA

    About Me Casual/ Recreational

    Pros

    • Easy To Apply
    • Long Lasting

    Cons

      Best Uses

      • Backcountry
      • Day Trips
      • Travel

      Comments about Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.:

      This product is for external clothing ONLY and not for use directly on skin. Can be purchased in spray-on or soak applications. Either way, application should be done the day before clothing scheduled to be used. Once dry, no odor at all but application odor is strong. Their claim its good for "six weeks and six washings" sounds great, but I re-apply every 4 weeks and wash the treated clothes in delicate mode to avoid diluting the anti-tick and anti-mosquito effectiveness. I also use a skin cream called Ultrathon from the knees down to my ankles which is effective for 12 hours. I haven't found any ticks on my body nor bites on my legs since I began using this on my weekly back trail outings. Ticks & mosquitos carry disease so the expense of these two products makes them worth the dollars.

      (6 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

       
      5.0

      I'm a believer

      By seacoast

      from Southport,NC

      About Me Avid Adventurer

      Site Member

      Pros

      • Durable
      • Effective

      Cons

        Best Uses

        • Backcountry

        Comments about Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.:

        After a bug infested backpacking trip to Banff I got serious prior to a trip to Yosemite and treated my clothes and my tent with Sawyers. This is great stuff. The mosquitoes just stayed away. During the Banff trip the mosquitoes would come into the tent in clouds every time we zipped down a flap. At Yosemite, they stayed away. The other tent in our group wasn't treated and it stayed covered with mosquitoes. If you are going to be in serious mosquito country you need to get serious with Sawyers permithrin clothing treatment.

        (6 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

         
        5.0

        No ticks!

        By Dave_K

        from Central North Carolina

        About Me Casual/ Recreational

        Pros

        • Durable
        • Effective

        Cons

        • Application

        Best Uses

        • Backcountry

        Comments about Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.:

        I am an avid birder and nature photographer and so I am in the woods quite a bit. This has been a bad season for all varieties of ticks and I have been bitten several times. That is until I treated my clothing with this product. Since that time, no tick bites. I watched as one tick crawled onto the leg of my treated trousers, wandered around a bit, and then just fell off. The only negative is that the directions seem to indicate that contact with the liquid is very dangerous so use gloves when applying and avoid overspray.

        (6 of 6 customers found this review helpful)

         
        4.0

        Great stuff!

        By all adventure

        from Denver, CO

        About Me Avid Adventurer

        Site Member

        Pros

        • Durable
        • Effective

        Cons

          Best Uses

          • Backcountry
          • Beaches

          Comments about Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.:

          I used Sawyer Permethrin on my tops and bottoms before spending a week in a swamp in Florida during the 3rd week of March. Mosquitos fairly thick at dusk, but I didn't get a single bite through my clothes, even wearing my tops for 2 days and bottoms for 3 days, heavily sweating each day. This stuff really works. I am told that if you iron your clothes after applying Permethrin, it lasts longer. I didn't know about that until later. Not sure if the manufacturer agrees or condones this. Apply with latex gloves because the sprayer does leak onto your hands when you apply it. Would give it 5 stars if the sprayer didn't drip so much when applying it.

          (3 of 3 customers found this review helpful)

           
          4.0

          very effective, lots of chemicals

          By PB

          from Colorado

          About Me Avid Adventurer

          Pros

          • Durable
          • Easy To Apply
          • Effective
          • Long Lasting

          Cons

            Best Uses

            • Backcountry

            Comments about Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz.:

            I just hung my stuff up on some hangers, sprayed them down, and let them dry in the sun hanging off my gutters for a couple of hours. Pretty easy. The smell is bad. I did not use gloves but did wash my hands shortly thereafter.

            Sprayed: 2 long pants, 3 long sleeved shirts, 1 lightweight hoodie, 2 sleeveless tops, 4 pairs of socks, 2 sports bras - still had some left over.

            Don't kid yourself. The chemicals that make this work so well are horrible for you. The EPA says that permethrin is weakly carcinogenic. That said - I still spray all of my gear for my treks into the Amazon and the Darien. And I get no bites from all of the creepy crawlies (some of whom carry malaria, dengue, yellow fever, etc.) So to me, I'd rather cover myself in a mild carcinogen for a few weeks every year than dramatically increase my odds of getting dengue via mosquito bites. If I'm just hiking here in Colorado for the weekend - I will not spray my stuff so as to avoid the chemicals.

            If you spary your clothes, you will not get bitten by mosquitos, ticks, chiggers, etc. And that's great. But you should be aware of downside, too.

            One more thing - I originally found out about permethrin spray from my doctor who actually advised me to use it on my trip into the Amazon, even though it is so toxic. Just weigh your risks!

            • Gift:
            • No

            Displaying reviews 1-6

            Back to top

            Sawyer Permethrin Pump Spray - 24 oz. Related Items

            Things that work well with this item:

            Other items like this:

            You might also like:

            Join REI and Enjoy the Benefits

            Members are eligible for an annual refund on qualifying purchases. Plus, they enjoy many more benefits. Get a lifetime membership for $20.

            Add an REI membership to my order.

            How are we doing? Give us feedback on this page.

            • Shopping Cart 
            • |
            •  
            • Buy REI Gift Cards
            • REI Gift Cards
            • Fast, easy and one size fits all.
            • Buy now!
            • Join REI today!
            • REI Membership
            • REI member benefits include an annual refund (typically 10% on eligible purchases).
            • Join REI today!
            • Sign up for REI Gearmail®
            • and get 15% off selected items!
            • Store Locator
            • Locate an REI store near you.