3 Easy Thermacell Hacks to Hunt Bug-Free

I hate mosquitoes. And I love my Thermacell. I have only been hunting seriously for about 6 years, so I have never had to brave the swamps of Florida without one. Before Thermacell, the most common ways to combat mosquitoes while hunting were with copious amounts of DEET or a stifling bug tamer suit. The Thermacell appliance is a game-changer. When mosquitoes are invading your airspace, just start it up and 15 minutes later, you will have hours of sweet relief.

The issue is Thermacell has cornered the market on portable mosquito control, and running it at the recommended use will cost you about $0.50 per hour. That is definitely worth it in my opinion, but why pay that when you could cut the cost by 80% with just a couple of quick hacks. Here are some Thermacell hacks to use to stay bug-free for cheaper.

How to Refill Thermacell Butane Cartridges

I seem to go through butane cartridges much faster than the scent pads. If the appliance switch is accidentally turned on in your hunting pack or you forget to turn it off after coming inside, your 12-hour butane could be gone after just one hunt. Also, the scent pads often last longer than the suggested 4-hour lifespan. Scent pads don’t do you any good without butane. But if you want to buy butane separately, it’s going to cost you about $7.99 for just 2 cartridges.

Thermacell wisely made the cartridges so they can’t be refilled – for safety reasons and so consumers would be forced to buy their refill packs. With a couple of household tools, you can easily modify the cartridges so they can be refilled. The best way to explain it is with a video. There are lots of videos on YouTube explaining the process and I have watched many of them. This clip, from YouTuber 3 Rivers Fishing Adventures, does the best job of explaining the process quickly and easily.

You can buy the butane refill with multiple tips at Amazon for $11 with free shipping. Save the tip that fits the cartridge, and you can start using standard butane refills, although the price per ounce on the FasFil refill linked is tough to beat.

Thermacell Replacement Scent Pads

Now that you have plenty of butane, let’s address the scent pads. Thermacell recommends using each pad for 4 hours, but you can extend that life dramatically by tearing your pads in half. You need to tear them lengthwise in order for them to be held tightly into the appliance. Just fold them in half first, and they will tear easily. When the first half pad starts to lose it’s effectiveness, I flip the used half over and place the other half of the pad in the appliance. You can get up to 6 hours from each pad by using this method. If you are hunting post-monsoon and the bugs are especially ravenous, you can always insert a full fresh pad for increased effectiveness.

Alternatives to Thermacell Scent Pads

Doubling the pad life is not cheap enough for me though. I knew there had to be a cheaper alternative to the Thermacell pads. Thermacell pads use a copy of a natural repellent found in chrysanthemum flowers called allethrin. It works very similar to the chemical found in common camping mosquito coils. I’ve seen where hunters have taken pieces of the coils and attached them to the appliance as a cheap alternative, but the methods used seem cumbersome and somewhat ineffective.

The best mat replacement solution I have found is the ARS MAT 12 scent pads. They are designed for use in electric mosquito repellers. They are made in Thailand, where mosquito-borne disease is a serious problem. They can be purchased often for just pennies a piece. The best deals are available if you can wait for overseas shipping. I recently tested these in a swampy area of my local stomping grounds. If they work in the swamps of Florida where it is mosquito season year-round, they will work where you hunt as well. They were just as effective as the Thermacell pads, but I found they only lasted about half of the time. This is acceptable considering the huge price difference. I also found that the pads had to be split in the middle because they are too thick to fit in the appliance. I was able the easily split them with my fingernail. The YouTube video below by River Rat Outdoors shows the process of using these replacement repellent pads.