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Hunting the wind:
This concept of hunting the wind has always and will always be an integral
part of any serious hunters game plan when hunting for prey that
rely on their sense of smell for survival. The more hunting pressure
along
with the age or maturity of the game animal, the more that animal
relies on the wind to sense human intrusion and danger. A whitetail
deer can
smell human odor a quarter mile away with the right wind, and can
smell human odor on brush or weeds a hunter passes through for several
hours
after he has passed by.
Scent-control use to consist of keeping all hunting clothing outside
when not in use, which would take some of the human odor out of
the equation. The next advances were in technology. Scent eliminator
sprays,
which are used to spray an invisible barrier over clothing to stop
human odor from passing through. Scent-free detergents, shampoo,
body wash, and anti-perspirants were also created to aid in the
fight to
stay as odor free as possible.
Relying on cover scents:
Hunters have been using Racoon, and Fox urine, Skunk, Pine, Apple,
Acorn, and Earth scent as cover scents to mask their own human odor
for years.
While these scents can and do work depending on the situation,
they can also work against you if used improperly. An example of improper
use would be using a scent that does not naturally exist in the
area
it is being used. When pursuing mature trophy animals, cover scents
could potentially alter the thought process of a game animal as
it is routinely passing through your ambush sight. It is preferred
to
be scent-free or have the wind in your favor.
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| Understanding Human Odor |
What causes human odor?
Our bodies are constantly producing scent molecules in a gaseous,
solid, and liquid state. Perspiration (liquid) is the main source
of odor because
it is a breeding ground for bacteria. Overheating and anxiety
(both of which are common in hunting situations) accelerate
perspiration and body
odor. There are also areas of the human body such as underarms,
crotch, neck, feet, and hair follicles that are ideal for bacteria
to multiply
at a very rapid rate. These areas therefore are major sources
of extreme body odor. A hunter's diet also has a great deal
to do with body odor.
Onions or garlic can cause your body to take on their odors.
Our breath is yet another source of human odor, and what we
have recently eaten will definitely affect the severity of
our breath odor.
When hunting animals with an acute sense of smell, the human
odors we expel greatly affect our capability of getting up
close and personal.
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Why can’t we just eliminate it?
The reason human odor can’t be eliminated is simple, you can’t
stop your body from constantly releasing the elements necessary
for creating human odor. We can shower and shampoo with non scent
soap, use non-scent
anti-perspirant prior to going hunting, but these are simply temporary,
short term fixes. |
| Odor dispersal |
Air Flow
The often erratic nature of wind:
Wind currents are at times a hunter's worst enemy in an attempt to
get close to game that relies on their sense of smell. The down side
is that
air currents can change from moment to moment depending on the lay
of the land.
 Thermals:
It is common knowledge that heat rises. Thermals, or the warming and
cooling of air alters air currents in hilly or mountainous terrain
even without the presence of wind. When hunting hilly terrain the air
currents will be going uphill or rising as the day warms up, generally
from daybreak until late afternoon. As the evening air starts to cool
down, the air currents change and go downhill or fall. When these thermal
changes are not paid attention to they can, unknowingly to the hunter,
alter sightings of potential game animals.
How terrain alters the flow:
Field edges, ridges, hills, and openings in woods are
all terrain changes that can drastically alter wind currents. A
steady directional
air current will be altered dramatically by any of these terrain
features. Air currents hitting solid objects change their direction,
similar
to a fan blowing air against a wall. The wall will change the direction
of the airflow. When foliage is still on the trees, the trees will
act in a similar fashion as a wall. Even though they are not solid
they will still deflect and re-route the wind. The changing of
wind direction causes major problems in a attempt to hunt the wind.
The direction change in most cases causes the wind to swirl, in many
if not every direction, making it impossible to attempt to hunt
the wind. Prior to the use of Scent-Lok® it wasn"t recommended
to hunt some exceptionally good locations due to the unreliable
wind currents
in those locations. In pressured areas you generally only get one
opportunity, and it can't be squandered on an unreliable wind giving
away your
position.
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| The Technology behind Scent-Lok |
 Why
carbon?
Activated carbon is the most effective odor-eliminating substance
known to man. The American College Dictionary uses charcoal in their
definition
of the word adsorb: “to gather on a surface in a condensed layer,
as when charcoal adsorbs gases (suck in)”. Militaries around the
world use carbon in chemical warfare suits to protect soldiers. While
these military suits are designed very different from a Scent-Lok
hunting suit, their basic applications are the same. Carbon is also
used in multitudes
of filtration systems for filtering not only air but liquids as well.
It should also be noted that Scent-Lok branded clothing use 100%
coconut carbon, which is more porous and therefore more adsorbtive than
charcoal.
 The
bonding process
In the Scent-Lok products the odor adsorbing
linings are designed so that the human odors,
gases, and moisture pass through the fabrics,
make contact with the activated carbon,
and are then expelled as “filtered”
air. Once through the suit the air no longer
contains human odor. The scientific name
for this molecular attraction to carbon
is called the Van der Waal’s bond.
 How
much carbon is enough?
A very thin layer of activated carbon is all that is needed to adsorb
the odors released on several hunts. Too much carbon is overkill and
cuts down on the permeability and overall comfort of the garment. The
ideal scenario is to have enough carbon for the suit to function as designed,
but not so much that the suit is uncomfortable to wear during warm weather
due to lack of airflow through the suit.
Scent-Lok Technologies spends a lot of time and money on research and development
to assure that their odor adsorbing technology, along with comfort
in the field, is the best in the industry.
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How are odors released?
It is common knowledge that heat makes molecules
move more rapidly. Regeneration is only obtained by using a clothes
dryer. Regeneration is achieved by placing the suit in a dryer for
twenty to thirty minutes on a medium to high heat setting or according
to the label instructions. The heat from the clothes dryer creates
what is scientifically known as Brownian molecular motion, which
causes the scent molecules to move rapidly. This movement breaks
the molecules free from the surfaces of the activated carbon particles
and interior pores of the carbon, and allow them to eventually exit
out of the dryer vent.
When and how to wash: During warm weather when only a T-shirt is
being worn as an undergarment and heavy perspiration is occurring,
it is advised to wash your suit periodically. During cool weather when
heavier undergarments or layers are worn, there is no need to wash
the suit. Washing does not have anything to do with reactivation, but
does get rid of unwanted body oils (caused by perspiration), blood,
and dirt. Washing a Scent-Lok suit can be done 1-4 times per season
without fear of losing carbon from the suit. The permanent ClimaFlex
treatment, that is on all Scent-Lok branded suits made during and after
2001, aids in the extraction of unwanted body oils in high perspiration
areas when washed. Use only non-scent liquid clothes wash or preferably
carbon wash. Once a garment is washed per label instructions it should
be put in the dryer on a no heat setting until dry. Once the garment
is dry, follow the reactivation instructions. ClimaFlex treatment is
also wicking agent, which adds to the overall comfort of the suit during
warm weather.
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Scent-Lok Testing
 Our
fabrics undergo thorough and extensive lab testing before ever entering
the field. We continuously research existing products from the entire
spectrum of scent-control options using state-of-the-art procedures.
We have established concrete standards that we know will guarantee
success when used properly. Throughout our traditional field testing,
we have found the minimum threshold needed to keep deer and other big
game from detecting human scent. We’ve taken this minimum standard
and engineered our fabrics to perform well above this standard in order
to give hunters the most effective system. Our product testing ensures
the most effective system for scent-eliminating performance for the
life of the garment.
Customers are making a big financial investment in Scent-Lok. They
are also investing their own time and effort to follow through on proper
use and care of Scent-Lok. We want you to make sure that when they
finally choose our product, they know that they will have no regrets
and will experience consistently better success in the field.
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| Scent-Lok Care |
Storage:
Storage and care of activated carbon garments is critical to its success.
Immediately after any garment is taken out of the dryer, it is to
go in a carbon lined bag, heavy plastic bag, or in an airtight plastic
tub. Do not use scent wafers or any type of scent in the container
with the suit. The idea is to be totally scent free. It is very important
that the garments stay in the airtight container until used in the
field, and be returned to the container as soon as they are out of
the woods before getting into your vehicle. Do not wear the suit
while driving, getting gas, at home, in a restaurant, or anyplace
where it can pick up foreign odors. It is OK to use scent eliminator
sprays prior to going afield, but it is definitely not needed.
It is also advised to always wear scent-free rubber boots at all
times when bowhunting. Any boot that breathes, leaves odors on
the ground.
We ran a scientific test to verify the ability of Scent-Lok fabrics to be regenerated and continue to adsorb odor that is subject to them without significant degradation to the amount adsorbed.
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Pristine Material:
This is material that is in perfect condition. Greater amounts of scent is exposed to the fabric to the point where it is virtually saturated.
Regenerated Material:
This is the same material as in the pristine material test only it has been regenerated in a drying cycle at 160° F. for 45 minutes. Then after regeneration exposed to greater amounts of scent until virtually saturated.
Conclusion:
As the test data shows, after a regeneration cycle the regenerated performs equally as well as the new pristine material. This confirms that like a sponge, scent can be virtually wrung out to give our fabrics the capacity to adsorb odors time and time again.
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| Alternative "Scent Control " Products |
We ran a scientific test to figure out how effective various “scent-elimination” fabrics are. The graph shows five different fabrics (the bottom one is a control with no product tested) subjected to the various major odor producing compounds that the human body emits, and measured how much “scent” is present after passing through the tested fabric. The higher the spike the more scent is present after passing through the fabric.
No Product Test:
this is the control that you can compare the results of a tested fabric to. There is no product to adsorb any of the odors.
Polyester & Poly-Cotton:
these fabrics are used in non-scent-eliminating clothing and are represented here to show you how a standard fabric performs when subjected to scent. Only trace amounts of odor is adsorbed in these fabrics.
Anti-Microbials:
anti-microbial fabrics deter the growth of bacteria, which is one of the causes of human odor. However it does nothing for actual scent coming off the body. It’s results are comparable to the Polyester and Poly-cotton tests with only trace amounts being adsorbed.
Cyclodextrins:
a relative newcomer to the scent-eliminating market, this fabric works well for certain compounds, but lets other pass through uneffected leaving you exposed to a scent-sensitive game animal.
Activated Carbon:
Scent-Lok odor-eliminating technology is the only fabric that significantly adsorbs all major odors emitted from the human body. After being subjected to the various compounds, the activated carbon test reduced the present scent to virtually nothing. |
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