Don’t Bug Me

Weekend Projects department; digital illustration of a man holding a beverage and laying in a hammock

Landscape close-up photo view of a man in a black hat, black long sleeve t-shirt, light grey shorts, and strapped cameltoe sandals holding a ProSol Bugs N All Multi-Use Vehicle Cleaner spray bottle product model in his hands as he sprays the liquid into the front bumper area of his white truck while holding a yellow rag towel in his other hand

Cleaning insect splatter from the front of an RV or tow vehicle seems like a never-ending battle when traveling in buggy areas. Having the right products tempers the grunt factor.

By Bob Livingston / Photos by author

nyone who has traveled through different regions of the country knows that some places tend to be more “buggy” than others — but no matter where you travel, stopping for any length of time means dealing with bug splatter on your rig.

Over the years, products designed to remove bugs have come and gone; some worked, and some were snake oil. My go-to product for cleaning the mess has long been a Bugs Off Pad (formerly called “The Love Bug Eraser”), which works great with just plain water and a little elbow grease (bugsoffpads.com). Last summer, though, I added another “weapon” for removing squashed bugs to my arsenal of cleaning products: ProSol Works Bugs N All Multi-Use Vehicle Cleaner (bugsnall.com). The combination of the Bugs Off Pad and Bugs N All cleaner makes the job even easier — especially if the bug splatter is allowed to bake on the surface for a while.

The nice thing about Bugs N All is that the spray-on formula does most of the work for you. You just spray it on and hang around for 30 to 120 seconds while the liquid neutralizes the acid and turns the bugs into mush. Then, it’s just a matter of wiping the surface with a wet towel; you can also hose off the area after wiping.

Landscape close-up photo view of the ProSol Bugs N All Multi-Use Vehicle Cleaners kit showcasing a bigger bottle and a smaller bottle on top of a white truck

The basic Bugs N All kit comes with a clearly marked, empty spray bottle that holds a quart of cleaner. Just mix 2 ounces from the 4-ounce bottle of concentrated liquid that comes with the kit into 30 ounces of water for effective bug removal.

Landscape close-up photo view of a man's arm/hand wiping down the side of an RV with a yellow rag towel

Bugs N All easily removed the splatters that “graced” the front of the fifth wheel. If you do this after the day’s drive, there won’t be a build-up and the job will take less time.

Landscape close-up photo view of a man's hand holding a yellow rag towel in one of his hands and using the light forest green Bugs Off Pad product with his other hand on his truck's bumper

Removing the cleaner and splatter with the Bugs Off Pad upped the ante quite a bit. The combination of the Bugs Off Pad and Bugs N All made short work of the dried-on bugs on my truck’s bumper. It proved to be a winning combination.

While Bugs N All proved to be highly effective, I found that using the Bugs Off Pad to break up the stuck-on splatter allowed the contents to be whisked away more quickly. Although tempting, it’s important to refrain from wiping the solution off with a dry towel — you might scratch a painted surface. If the directions are followed, there’s no risk of damaging paint or decals; nor will it remove wax.

You do have to make sure the surface is always wet, which requires reapplications of the Bugs N All solution (it’s best to clean the bugs off in the shade to prevent premature drying). The formula is non-abrasive, non-toxic, biodegradable and has no petroleum distillates — and, as such, is also touted for cleaning rubber roofs (which I did not verify). But the solution did clean dirt as advertised.

Bugs N All solution is not cheap, but it’s concentrated so the overall cost can be amortized. It takes 2 ounces mixed in a quart of water to make an effective bug-removal solution. The basic kit sells for $18.99 and includes 4 ounces of concentrate and an empty spray bottle that’s clearly marked. For $36.59, you get the same empty bottle and a quart of the concentrate. Bugs N All is sold on the company’s website and Amazon.

Now I have a new summer travel mantra: Bring em’ on!

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