Poor design / No mosquitoes trapped!
Written: Jun 09 '03 (Updated Jun 10 '03)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Easy to assemble. Does not require power cord as it completely runs on propane. Quiet.
Cons: Is not functional at trapping mosquitoes. Poorly Engineered.
The Bottom Line: If you are going to spend over $350 on a unit you better make sure you spend it on one that works.
|
|
|
| activehost's Full Review: SkeeterVac |
To simply state it this unit does not work! Not only does it not work but if you take a look at the engineering/design of the unit one would have to seriously question how it would ever work other than by mosquitoes flying into the trap by pure chance. The principles of the functionality of this particular model closely resemble one of the Mosquito Magnet Pro. This unit also uses propane gas to generate CO2, moisture, heat as well as using Octanol. All these “attractants” have been proven to attract mosquitoes. The unit then has a trapping chamber with a net to which mosquitoes are vacuumed in from the outside. The unit is self-powered by the propane gas without any additional electrical connection.
One of the major flaws of the unit is that the vacuum (part that suctions the mosquitoes into the trap/net is nowhere near the part that expels the CO2, heat, moisture and Octanol. If you closely examine the unit or a photo of it at http://www.mosquito-control-superstore.com/Images/800x600/SkeeterVac_Mosquito_Exterminator_Mosquito_Control_Product.jpg you will see that there is a large chamber at the top which has holes in it. The top of this chamber is where the attractants are released to the surrounding environment. One would think that this would also be where the vacuum and trap are located as well. In fact this is the case with most other proven leading models such as the Mosquito Magnet. The vacuum and trap are right near where the attractants are being releases so when the mosquitoes look for the source they get sucked up and trapped. Such is not the case with the SkeeterVac.
On the SkeeterVac the vacuum portion is "hidden" underneath the unit with only a small crack open to the outside where mosquitoes could fly in. Most important is that there is absolutely no reason other than by chance the mosquitoes would ever fly into this small opening of the unit. No attractants are being release in or near this area. I do not understand why someone would purposely “hide” the most important part of the device.
And yes the unit does “attract” mosquitoes. They are flying all around the unit and even land on top of it. The one thing they do not do however is go under the unit and intentionally fly into the vacuum chamber. All one needs to do is look at this poor design and understand that it can not work to it’s full extent.
I did call Blue Rhino and spoke with someone in their support. The person whom I spoke with was fully qualified on the unit and did agree with me that not having the vacuum near where the attractants are being released did not make sense but she insisted that this is how the unit was designed and that they have lots of satisfied customers. She also told me that even though there are no “formal” or scientific test results released to the public that the unit is 98% effective in eliminating mosquitoes. I beg to differ based on my trials with this unit. During the time of my testing it had previously rained most of the week and so the mosquitoes were out en masse. We were being eaten alive and this unit over the course of a week only trapped two (2) mosquitoes and a couple dozen tiny no-see-ums. Just as an aside; several doors down a neighbor uses another competitor’s model. Just in one day’s use, the other unit trapped well over 50 mosquitoes.
The engineer(s) who designed this should be fired. It is like putting the cheese for a mouse trap 10 feet away from the trap. Sure the mouse could get caught by accident in an empty trap but why not place it right in the middle the trap? Same here. If you are going to emit attractants for mosquitoes why not design a trap/vacuum around that source. If you do decide to purchase this unit go and physically see the unit and ask yourself if it makes sense as to how it is designed.
Recommended:
No
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
activehost
|
|
Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 0 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.