'Farmer inventor' creates trap to prevent mosquito breeding

Without using electricity or chemicals, Mr. Nguyen Van Khoe (living in Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai) made a trap to attract mother mosquitoes to lay eggs and trap the larvae in a plastic box.

Mr. Khoe, 60 years old, did not finish 8th grade but with his passion for invention, he invested time and effort for more than two years to create a mosquito catching device.

The idea originated in 2016, when he founded a company providing solar drying solutions. When installing drying systems for customers, he realized that almost every place was facing mosquito infestation, especially during the rainy season. Solutions using electric rackets, mosquito repellent incense or chemicals "are more or less unsafe, causing side effects for people with allergies such as the elderly and children" , he thought. In 2022, while opening the water fan to clean, he discovered many mosquitoes flying out of the cooling water tank. When he removed the fan's water tank, he saw many mosquito larvae swimming inside. "I thought of making a mosquito trap from this discovery", Mr. Khoe said.

Mosquito trap invented by Mr. Nguyen Van Khoe. (Photo: Cong Khang).

Without any professional knowledge, Mr. Khoe went online to learn about the biological habits of mosquitoes. He realized that the current solutions only kill adult mosquitoes, but their reproduction and increase in numbers have not been taken care of or prevented at the root. Realizing that mosquitoes have the characteristics of reproducing and laying eggs in stagnant water and dark places, he created a mosquito-catching device by preventing them from increasing their numbers through egg laying.

He designed a cylindrical mosquito trap made of 3D printed plastic. The product consists of two main parts: a place for the mother mosquito to lay eggs and an area to contain the larvae after hatching. When the user pours water into the trap, the water will attract the mother mosquito to lay eggs. The egg-laying area has a funnel-shaped structure with a gap at the bottom. In 3-4 weeks, the eggs will hatch into larvae and they will follow the gap to the storage area. Because there is no food and they cannot escape because the entire area is sealed, the larvae will die after a few days, and their bodies will fall to the bottom of the jar. When the mosquito trap has a lot of residue at the bottom, the user will clean it and pour out water for continued use. "The characteristic of mosquitoes is that they like to lay eggs in clean water, so this product is very suitable for catching mosquitoes ," said Mr. Khoe.

During the manufacturing process, he said the most difficult part was designing the opening for the larvae to swim down to the holding area. The opening should not be too small for the larvae to pass through, but not too large for them to swim back to the egg-laying area. For about 6 months, he tested many opening sizes to find the optimal width. He ordered 3D printing for the plastic frame to save costs when adjusting the technical parameters. Actual testing showed that after about 3 months, the device could catch 50 - 70 larvae and hundreds of eggs .

Structure and operation of Mr. Nguyen Van Khoe's mosquito trap product. (Video: Cong Khang).

The 60-year-old inventor said he would give the product to each family to use for 1-3 months to evaluate. When giving away the product, he will survey the location and environment around the area and advise on the most appropriate trap placement for maximum effectiveness. He plans to sell the product for 100,000 VND to serve the people . "The government has repeatedly promoted the idea of ​​no mosquito larvae and no dengue fever. My product can contribute to achieving this goal ," said Mr. Khoe. Mr. Khoe's mosquito trap product was granted a utility solution certificate by the Intellectual Property Office in early 2023.

Talking about dropping out of school in the 8th grade, he said it was a "somewhat impulsive decision". At that time, his academic performance was quite good. That school year, he got sick and had to be hospitalized for two weeks. When he was discharged from the hospital, he returned to school and received a 2 from his teacher when he could not answer the questions. He was so ashamed and sad that he decided to drop out of school and venture into business in many fields. "When I went out into the world, I studied by myself to survive and told myself to study more to make up for the time I missed from school ," Mr. Khoe said.

Mr. Nguyen Van Khanh, 40 years old, residing in Binh Chanh district, assessed that the product, priced at 100,000 VND, is very affordable for people. After long-term use, it can be cleaned and reused, making it safer for people and the environment compared to traditional mosquito killing methods.

Master Tran Phi Hung, an expert in parasites and insects, former lecturer at the Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Natural Sciences, Ho Chi Minh City, said that the mosquito trap the author is targeting is the species that transmits dengue fever to humans. Dengue mosquitoes are active during the day, like to lay eggs in small containers, in the shade and slightly dark, suitable for the solution the author proposed.

However, Mr. Hung said that in places with high density, it only takes one to two days for them to lay many eggs in containers with the above characteristics, not just in locations with traps.

According to Mr. Hung, the author needs to add additional solutions to attract mosquitoes to lay eggs in his trap. "It is necessary to compare the author's mosquito-catching container with other containers to clarify its effectiveness ," he said, each species of mosquito will have different egg-laying habits. There are species of mosquitoes that lay eggs in still water, slow-flowing water or fast-flowing water. There are species that like to breed in clean water, but there are also species that breed in dirty water, in shady places. Depending on the characteristics of each species, there will be a suitable trapping method.

Mr. Khoe checks processed products at the mechanical workshop. (Photo: Cong Khang).

Experts say that , in addition to this method, mosquito traps can be used with light to attract them at night. Natural mosquito traps are usually safe, but Master Hung believes that for mosquitoes in particular or harmful insects in general, chemical extermination is considered the fastest and cheapest method. However, using chemicals will have effects on nature and humans, so it should be used in reasonable doses.