[VAC] Sticky ceilings

[Terry Tyler <tylerbears@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Fellow Travelers,

The ceiling in our 1977 Airstream has always been slightly sticky. That has
never been an issue for me because it cleans up easily and looks good.

This Spring, we are experiencing a month of seeing our sticky ceiling become
a real advantage. Gnats love us and are perfectly willing to come inside
with us (on our clothing) and continue their feast on our skin.

Unfortunately, they haven't been deterred when we've included high doses of
Vitamin B in our diets, or stopped using perfume and after shave lotion, or
by our liberal use of "Skin So Soft" or "Off" with deet. Even the Campground
Host's pipe smoke doesn't deter them. We wish we had our mesh hats with us.

Today, we learned from the local Ranger that gnats are year round residents
at seashore campgrounds in some parts of the country. She did admit during
the freezing temperatures of winter and the intense heat of late summer,
there are no gnats. Those are her favorite four months here in Mississippi.

Since three weeks ago when we were along the Georgia coast, we've taken to
running our air conditioner all the time, thus  keeping the temperature just
chilly enough so the gnats are somewhat  sluggish when it comes to flying
around in search of a second meal.

After dark, we turn on our big round chandelier light. The heat brings the
gnats to life. They fly to the warm ceiling where they become stuck to it.

The slightly less sticky sections of ceiling don't cause them to become
stuck, but allow them to continue flying around the chandelier. For those
buggers, I use a pressurized can of hair spray. All it takes is a very short
spritz of fine mist and voila - their hairy wings and razor sharp teeth
become immobilized. I think it kills them because they don't move when I
look at them with my 10X microscope and prod them with a toothpick. Don't
remind me, I know my sense of curiosity is a little offbeat sometimes.

Today, I wiped down the entire ceiling from front to back. The number of
gnats stuck to it was impressive, especially along the sections in front of
and behind the a/c vents. Why those locations - still mystifies me.

Every gnat stuck to our ceiling is one less gnat using my skin as his or her
own personal restaurant. The elusive ones who play hide and seek take about
two hours (7pm to 9pm) to catch. We don't go to bed until all are grounded.
It's no fun being their midnight snack while we're sleeping.

Why do I mention this insignificant annoyance? I'm an optimist. Maybe one of
you will share your secret of how to make gnats avoid humans.  We would help
bottle it and join you in making your first million dollars.

Terry
mailto:tylerbears@airstream.net