"Bounce" those bugs away...

[A Lieberman]

We get a ton of "love bugs" down here in my part of the world. I don't
know the scientific name for these things, but they sure do make a mess of
anything in their flight path.

A co-worker of mine said that Bounce dryer sheets will help you clean the
bugs. I figured, nothing to lose, if it's safe to be used on my clothes
that is next to my skin, then surely it should be safe on paint.

Soooo...., not that trusting, I tried it on my truck and sure enough, after
wetting the grill of my truck, took a bounce fabric sheet, and the bugs
just melted away. Very little elbow grease needed. Waited a week to see
if I could see anything harmful, and nothing short term anyway I could see
wrong.

With that out of the way, I figured to go to the airport today, wash and
wax my plane. Bought a box of bounce dryer sheets, figuring I would need a
lot of sheets to clean the leading edges, and it turned out, I only needed
one for each wing, and one for the elevator. The bugs really just melted
away. It worked much easier then pledge for me.

I ended up saturating the plane with water, used Dawn hand washing soap to
cut the grease and a soft mop head to initially clean the surfaces and then
use the dryer sheets to get any tough spots. It's amazing how much soapy
stuff comes out of those dryer sheets.

7 1/2 hours later, I got a sparkling clean Sundowner just in time for my
annual beginning Monday.

There sure is a lot of sheet metal on a plane!

Allen

[Dale]

In article >,
A Lieberman > wrote:

> We get a ton of "love bugs" down here in my part of the world. I don't
> know the scientific name for these things, but they sure do make a mess of
> anything in their flight path.

The very best thing I've found for removing bugs is water...just plain
water.

I take a dripping wet rag and wet down both leading edges to "pre soak"
the bugs. Then back to the start point with the same wet rag and rub
'em off, very little elbow grease needed.

--
Dale L. Falk

There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing
as simply messing around with airplanes.

http://home.gci.net/~sncdfalk/flying.html

[A Lieberman]

On Sat, 15 Oct 2005 15:48:28 -0800, Dale wrote:

> The very best thing I've found for removing bugs is water...just plain
> water.

Hey Dale,

For "normal" bugs, I agree with you, moisturizing the leading edge and
letting the scud hydrate, plain water will take off the "blood and guts"
once it becomes loosened from hydration.

These love bugs leave a nasty white "powder" that no matter how much you
hydrate, it just ain't coming off.

Driving in the car during the summer time, the bugs are so thick, it sounds
like rain on the windshield. Don't even try to use the wipers or fluid,
just smears this white goop and makes it worse.

These love bugs are attracted to the color white, which naturally is the
main color of my plane.

Allen

[Brad Zeigler]

"A Lieberman" > wrote in message
...
> We get a ton of "love bugs" down here in my part of the world. I don't
> know the scientific name for these things, but they sure do make a mess of
> anything in their flight path.
>
> A co-worker of mine said that Bounce dryer sheets will help you clean the
> bugs. I figured, nothing to lose, if it's safe to be used on my clothes
> that is next to my skin, then surely it should be safe on paint.

add yet another use of bounce dryer sheets to the list..

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/bounce.asp

[Dale]

In article >,
A Lieberman > wrote:


>
> Hey Dale,
>
> For "normal" bugs, I agree with you, moisturizing the leading edge and
> letting the scud hydrate, plain water will take off the "blood and guts"
> once it becomes loosened from hydration.
>
> These love bugs leave a nasty white "powder" that no matter how much you
> hydrate, it just ain't coming off.
>
> Driving in the car during the summer time, the bugs are so thick, it sounds
> like rain on the windshield. Don't even try to use the wipers or fluid,
> just smears this white goop and makes it worse.
>
> These love bugs are attracted to the color white, which naturally is the
> main color of my plane.


Yuk!! We have a little green bug up here usually in June. Same type
thing, sounds like your flying through rain, windshield goes opaque
quickly.

--
Dale L. Falk

There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing
as simply messing around with airplanes.

http://home.gci.net/~sncdfalk/flying.html

[Dan Luke]

"A Lieberman" wrote:

> We get a ton of "love bugs" down here in my part of the world. I
> don't
> know the scientific name for these things, but they sure do make a
> mess of
> anything in their flight path.

Plecia nearctica http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/mcinsec2.html

Sure seems like this has been the worst year ever for these things
around Mobile. I'm grounded, so my airplane hasn't suffered, but
everything else has been covered with them. I've vacuumed up hundreds
of them from *inside* the house.

Thanks for the tip.

--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

[Jay Honeck]

> Sure seems like this has been the worst year ever for these things
> around Mobile. I'm grounded, so my airplane hasn't suffered, but
> everything else has been covered with them. I've vacuumed up hundreds
> of them from *inside* the house.

Here in Iowa, we've also had a bumper crop of bugs this fall. Just
last week we hit four of the biggest bugs we've ever seen. We were at
2000 feet, and they were about an inch in diameter. I don't know what
they were, but it was more like hitting a sparrow than a bug. What a
mess!

We're just now starting to see the asian beetles (those nasty little
lady-bug look-alikes, that congregate in the corners of your ceiling,
and stink like hell when you squish 'em) and box elder bugs. Our
house-keepers are just thrilled (not!) that the beetles are back, and
we naturally have to inspect the suites very carefully before each
guest -- those danged little things can get through ANY sized opening.

Box elder bugs, on the other hand, are slow, dumb, and harmless, but
the uninformed can mistake them for a roach, so we've got to be very
careful about shooing them out, too. What fun!

I don't know how you guys can stand it down south, where you must deal
with this year 'round. The first frost can't be too far off, can it?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Dan Luke]

"Jay Honeck" wrote:

> I don't know how you guys can stand it down south, where you must deal
> with this year 'round. The first frost can't be too far off, can it?

In Mobile the first frost may not happen until December, but the bug
count goes way down in October.

The love bugs are gone now. They're a 3-week, spring and fall
phenomenon; worse in the fall.

--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

[[email protected]]

Jay Honeck > wrote:
: Box elder bugs, on the other hand, are slow, dumb, and harmless, but
: the uninformed can mistake them for a roach, so we've got to be very
: careful about shooing them out, too. What fun!

I remember those from when I used to live in Iowa. Harmless, slow, and
stupid, yes... but also stinky (alive or dead) and tend to congregate in astronomical
numbers.

Don't forget that the asian beetle ladybug look-alikes also bite. Little
*******s....

-Cory

--

************************************************** ***********************
* Cory Papenfuss *
* Electrical Engineering candidate Ph.D. graduate student *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
************************************************** ***********************

[Jay Honeck]

> : Box elder bugs, on the other hand, are slow, dumb, and harmless, but
> : the uninformed can mistake them for a roach, so we've got to be very
> : careful about shooing them out, too. What fun!
>
> I remember those from when I used to live in Iowa. Harmless, slow, and
> stupid, yes... but also stinky (alive or dead) and tend to congregate in astronomical
> numbers.

Hmm. I never noticed that before. In fact, I'm looking at one now,
sunning himself on my window blinds, just a few feet away. Incredibly,
they apparently manage to squeeze through the little opening where the
coax leading to our Jim Weir-donated aviation band radio antenna comes
through the wall...

They are the SLOWEST bugs I've ever seen -- you can literally grab them
between two fingers, without much effort. And you rarely see them
move.

But you're right -- they sure know how to reproduce!
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Don Hammer]

>I don't know how you guys can stand it down south, where you must deal
>with this year 'round. The first frost can't be too far off, can it?

Don't know about the rest of the south, but I don't have 25% of the
bugs in Dallas we had in Ohio. The old saying is you need a hard
winter to get rid of the bugs. I'm not so sure.

e.g.

The north slope of Alaska - 2700 ft of permafrost. Temperatures for
most of the year that will freeze all exposed skin in less than 20
min. For a few weeks in the middle of the year it thaws out about the
top 6" of that. The "National Bird of Alaska" comes out. Mosquitoes
so bad they will kill an unprotected you in less than a day. BTW This
cold hell is what ANWR looks like, not Bambi in the forest.

[Jay Honeck]

> >I don't know how you guys can stand it down south, where you must deal
> >with this year 'round. The first frost can't be too far off, can it?
>
> Don't know about the rest of the south, but I don't have 25% of the
> bugs in Dallas we had in Ohio.

For some reason, I don't ever think of Dallas as "Down South"...

I was thinking Louisiana/Mississippi/Florida...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[[email protected]]

Don Hammer > wrote:
: The north slope of Alaska - 2700 ft of permafrost. Temperatures for
: most of the year that will freeze all exposed skin in less than 20
: min. For a few weeks in the middle of the year it thaws out about the
: top 6" of that. The "National Bird of Alaska" comes out. Mosquitoes
: so bad they will kill an unprotected you in less than a day. BTW This
: cold hell is what ANWR looks like, not Bambi in the forest.

Lived in Alaska, too... yes the mosquitos are vicious and can kill you
if unprotected for long enough.

I don't know that I agree with the term "hell" though.

-Cory

--

************************************************** ***********************
* Cory Papenfuss *
* Electrical Engineering candidate Ph.D. graduate student *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
************************************************** ***********************

[A Lieberman]

On 16 Oct 2005 09:16:32 -0700, Jay Honeck wrote:

>> Don't know about the rest of the south, but I don't have 25% of the
>> bugs in Dallas we had in Ohio.
>
> For some reason, I don't ever think of Dallas as "Down South"...
>
> I was thinking Louisiana/Mississippi/Florida...

We'd be the deep south for MS, LA and FL.

I have lived in both Ohio and MS, been through Dallas.

More variety of seasonal bugs here in MS, May flies, June bugs, and love
bugs. In Ohio, all I remember were the lady type bugs that Jay is
encountering.

Dallas seems too dry for bugs to survive, just my impression anyway.

Hurricane Katrina seem to awaken the love out of the love bugs as this was
the worst year I have seen since being in MS.

Bug traffic is so thick, for May flies, that they look like a cloud when
swarming, there are that many. They only have a 1 to 2 week live span.
These guys are easy to get off of paint though, so I don't mind running
into them. It's those dang Love bugs that are a mess to clean off.

First frost here is usually December, but the cool weather does seem to
dampen the "deep south" bugs from flying. Maybe the density altitude is
too low *big smile* and they don't have the strength to fly in thicker air.

Allen

[kgruber]

The "Bounce" had nothing to do with it. Plain old water, and enough time
melts bugs.

Karl

"A Lieberman" > wrote in message
...
> We get a ton of "love bugs" down here in my part of the world. I don't
> know the scientific name for these things, but they sure do make a mess of
> anything in their flight path.
>
> A co-worker of mine said that Bounce dryer sheets will help you clean the
> bugs. I figured, nothing to lose, if it's safe to be used on my clothes
> that is next to my skin, then surely it should be safe on paint.
>
> Soooo...., not that trusting, I tried it on my truck and sure enough,
> after
> wetting the grill of my truck, took a bounce fabric sheet, and the bugs
> just melted away. Very little elbow grease needed. Waited a week to see
> if I could see anything harmful, and nothing short term anyway I could see
> wrong.
>
> With that out of the way, I figured to go to the airport today, wash and
> wax my plane. Bought a box of bounce dryer sheets, figuring I would need
> a
> lot of sheets to clean the leading edges, and it turned out, I only needed
> one for each wing, and one for the elevator. The bugs really just melted
> away. It worked much easier then pledge for me.
>
> I ended up saturating the plane with water, used Dawn hand washing soap to
> cut the grease and a soft mop head to initially clean the surfaces and
> then
> use the dryer sheets to get any tough spots. It's amazing how much soapy
> stuff comes out of those dryer sheets.
>
> 7 1/2 hours later, I got a sparkling clean Sundowner just in time for my
> annual beginning Monday.
>
> There sure is a lot of sheet metal on a plane!
>
> Allen

[Darrel Toepfer]

Dan Luke wrote:

> In Mobile the first frost may not happen until December, but the bug
> count goes way down in October.
>
> The love bugs are gone now. They're a 3-week, spring and fall
> phenomenon; worse in the fall.

Dual hurricanes seem to have eliminated the "stinkbugs" for the most
part this year, they usually come out during the soybean harvest. Having
a military C130 spraying for mosquitos at treetop level was pretty k3wl
too. Still have the lovebugs around though...

[TripFarmer]

I heard that 2 beers will get rid of the bugs. Now, I dono't drink the stuff
but I was intregued as to how 2 beers coudl cut the bugs. Here's how......
wet the leading edges, sit down and drink 2 beers, then wipe the bugs off. :o)

It seems the bugs just need to be "rehydrated" and they will wipe right off. I
usually wet the leading edges as soon as I get to the plane. That gives
enough time for them to rehydrate. This works well on the windows, also.


Trip


In article >, says...
>
>We get a ton of "love bugs" down here in my part of the world. I don't
>know the scientific name for these things, but they sure do make a mess of
>anything in their flight path.
>
>A co-worker of mine said that Bounce dryer sheets will help you clean the
>bugs. I figured, nothing to lose, if it's safe to be used on my clothes
>that is next to my skin, then surely it should be safe on paint.
>
>Soooo...., not that trusting, I tried it on my truck and sure enough, after
>wetting the grill of my truck, took a bounce fabric sheet, and the bugs
>just melted away. Very little elbow grease needed. Waited a week to see
>if I could see anything harmful, and nothing short term anyway I could see
>wrong.
>
>With that out of the way, I figured to go to the airport today, wash and
>wax my plane. Bought a box of bounce dryer sheets, figuring I would need a
>lot of sheets to clean the leading edges, and it turned out, I only needed
>one for each wing, and one for the elevator. The bugs really just melted
>away. It worked much easier then pledge for me.
>
>I ended up saturating the plane with water, used Dawn hand washing soap to
>cut the grease and a soft mop head to initially clean the surfaces and then
>use the dryer sheets to get any tough spots. It's amazing how much soapy
>stuff comes out of those dryer sheets.
>
>7 1/2 hours later, I got a sparkling clean Sundowner just in time for my
>annual beginning Monday.
>
>There sure is a lot of sheet metal on a plane!
>
>Allen

[Matt Barrow]

"TripFarmer" > wrote in message
...
>I heard that 2 beers will get rid of the bugs. Now, I dono't drink the
>stuff
> but I was intregued as to how 2 beers coudl cut the bugs. Here's
> how......
> wet the leading edges, sit down and drink 2 beers, then wipe the bugs off.
> :o)
>

If the bugs still adhere to the airframe, drink two more beers...

[Darrel Toepfer]

Matt Barrow wrote:

> If the bugs still adhere to the airframe, drink two more beers...

After 4 its, "Why am I here? Oh yeah to fly that jet over there to
Atlanta"...