How to Repel Insects with Outdoor Lighting

Featured Pro: Carter Oosterhouse
Category: Home Decor
Time: 5:51


CARTER OOSTERHOUSE: All right, let’s go, guys.

At an outdoor dinner party, you want to feed your guests, not have them be the main course for all those biting insects. So I’m going to show you how to make some outdoor lighting that gives your patio some ambience and repels unwanted insects at the same time.

I’m Carter Oosterhouse, and this is your GMC Trade Secret.

So now I’m going to show you how to make some citronella candles like the ones that I made here. They’re actually really easy to make, and they don’t take a lot of time either. But you need the essential items in order to make it.

Now, here you can see I used some eight-ounce mason jars. You can use also the 16-ounce or you can use the big dogs, which are the 32-ounce mason jars. You’re definitely going to need some wax, and it comes like this in, like, a flaky, powdery substance. You’re going to need a microwavable measuring cup. You’re going to need a spoon. You’re going to need a wick, preferably one that’s about 10 inches. You’re going to need some clothespins.

And you’re also going to need some sticky wax, which is kind of interesting. And, of course, you’re going to need the citronella as well. And with the citronella, you can also use some scents, too, if you want to throw that in. And, last but not least, you can use crayons too to throw in some added color.

The first thing we need to do is get the wax in the measuring cup and melt it in the microwave. Now, right here I have about a pound of wax, and that’s less than $5 when you buy it at the store. And it is soy wax, too, so it’s very eco-friendly.

So now I’m going to melt the wax for about three minutes in the microwave.

All right, so now the wax has turned into a liquid. So what we’re going to do is we’re going to take our wick first and we’re going to put it on the sticky wax and we’re going to get it all sticky on the bottom. So that way it stays in one place once we start to pour the wax into the mason jar. Then we’re going to take our clothespin and place that right on top.

So now we’re going to put the citronella into the wax. Now, this is one ounce, which goes into one pound. You want to make sure that you check, because some citronella is a little bit better or more highly concentrated. So basically pour this right in here, just like so. And then we mix that up, and this will keep all of those little insects away at night. Perfect.

And now we will start to pour the wax into the jar. Now, I like to only pour about halfway up, because that way – well, one, the wind won’t blow the wick out; and two, you can actually see the flame, so it gives a little bit more mood lighting. So we can probably actually pour another candle to of that wax we have left.

Now, if you wanted to add a little color to it, what I would have done is take one of these crayons, pull the paper off, and throw the crayon into the mixing cup while it was in the microwave for about a minute and a half.

All right, so now let those sit for about half an hour to an hour until they harden and they’re ready to go. But now I want to make a nice little decorative hanger for these candles. I’m going to take a mason jar right here and I’m going to take some wire. Now, this wire is 16-gauge, so it’s actually pretty easy to bend. I’ll take my needlenose pliers and I’m going to stretch it out about three feet. I’m going to clip the end of it. And then I’m going to take about 12 inches from one end. I’m going to bend it just like this.

I’m going to make a nice little loop. And I’m going to twist it around two turns. Now I’m going to place this around the cap of the mason jar. And if you can see, right on the edge there, there’s a nice little groove for this wire to sit in. Bend the wire right around the top of the cap and make sure it’s on the opposite end. Now twist it nice and tight. And I’ll pull it with my needlenose pliers so I can get it really tight.

Now, we have one long end and one short end. Now, the short end, maybe just do like some little fun decoration. Make sure it’s not real sharp or sticking out. This wire is so easy to bend, it’s kind of cool with the little curly Qs that you can make. I’m going to take a little bit more wire, pull it out maybe about 18 inches, and then I’m going to take a screwdriver with a nice little tube on the end of it and I’m just going to bend this wire around the tube like that.

This gets a nice shape for my wire, because then I’m going to take it off. It looks just like that. I’m going to place it over. And then I will lock off the other side onto the far loop. Then I’ll take my little curly Q on the top, lock the edges down. I think that looks great. I mean, you can really just play around with it until you get the style that you’re looking for. Right now I’m going to make a bunch of these, so that way no bugs will be hanging around my party.

You can make these citronella candles and hang from them from a tree or a pergola like this. And, of course, they create a warm ambience for dining, but then they also keep the bugs away.

I’m Carter Oosterhouse, and that’s your GMC Trade Secret.