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Ozonics and Bears

Anyone started using Ozonics on their bear baits? If so, have you seen positive results?

yes i use on baits. maybe works. yes i use for deer. maybe works. had a 187 lb lion come up to the trail i was sitting on and he picked me out at 30 yards. i wasn't moving and in complete snow camo. He could actually hear the ozo. I could barely hear it. I know his weight because he later got caught, collared, weighed and tagged.

All the pros use them!!

I used one for a season then sold it. I will say I used it in a stand I would think from an enclosed blind it would be a benefit

Yes. From a ground blind. I shot my biggest bear that night. I fully believe it works.

I believe a bear knows your there.

I believe in a thermocell and I also believe in Jesus. The jury is still out on ozonics.

I'm skeptical but I am admittedly that way about a lot of things. That said, I bought one because it certainly can't hurt to give it a try. I guess now that bear season is already here I should break it out of the box and figure out the basics like how to even turn it on/off.

APauls plus one

I’m not saying this to attempt to be insulting to those who like ozonics but it sounds completely ridiculous to me .

I have Ozonics and a Hecs I don’t think either one makes a difference on bears. Give me a hot sow at the bait and I think you could shower in Diesel fuel and that bore would still come in. Well maybe that’s a little extreme.

I've been hunting the same bear bait for the past 5 years, this year will make 6. In that time, I've had hundreds of Grizzly bear photos on my trail camera yet I've never had one come in while sitting in the stand. This past spring, we used an Ozonics every time we sat. I think I sat that bait a total of 4 times, my friends sat it once. First sit, 8'+ Grizzly bear comes in directly down wind. Second sit, 7' Grizzly comes in directly down wind. Third sit, 8'6" Grizzly comes in directly down wind. Fourth sit, 7' black bear comes in directly down wind, a little while later a wolf walks in directly down wind. Fifth sit, no bears but had a wolf come in directly down wind and hang around near the bait for hours. On another bait we used them on last spring, first sit had a 7' black bear come in directly down wind, knew something wasn't quite right and left, then came back, then left again, then came back and left with an arrow in him. My buddy has been using them for the past 3 years or so and swears by them but last year was my first time using them on any of the baits that I hunt. I've noticed a difference, although I guess it could just be a coincidence. I will add that the only black bear I really wanted last year, who was a very regular with regards to attendance, never came in while we were hunting. He was there just before I'd arrive and each night/morning just after we left. No question he knew we were there and I am not saying the other bears didn't know we were there, but I think the ozonics gave us a little bit of an edge, maybe not.

I have a buddy that makes his own ozonics kits and kills big bears every spring he swears by them. He used to post on the now defunk Ontario Trophy Bucks web site all the time and even gave some details on how to make one and use it effectively he liked them better on bears than deer. I should have copied some of his posts but I haven't bear hunted in years.

And here I thought you were just stirring the pot Nick! Interesting, I’m still not sold on them for whitetails, but I suppose in the unique situation of a baited bear hunt, they might pose an amountable benefit?? Interesting results....

Never used one for hunting but I have a commercial unit that I use to cleanse my hunting clothes and certain gear. It works, its a proven science. I also believe in the right situation like a stand with little to no wind or in an enclosed blind they should work. I will admit I never believed they would work in the outdoors but my opinion is slowly changing. I may buy one this summer and give it a go this fall. Shawn

We use them and I believe they work out of our ground blinds. When one is on the bears will walk right in front of the blind and pay no attention to it unless they look in and see you sitting there. When you don't have it my hunters tell me the bears are much more spooky and stay away from the blind. Hard to say for sure on a bear bait especially since we never paid attention to the wind when we hunted from tree stands and killed lots of big bears but a high fence deer outfitter in Texas told me how effective they are in killing the oldest, most smart pigs with a bow at close range. He said the big, old boar pigs at a bait are unkillable with a bow without an ozonics, they always circle downwind and will not come in.

Nick and Mike, those are pretty convincing stats......

One of the guys that got me into bowhunting swears by Ozonics for deer/bear. He owns a couple extra so he can take friends in his stands....wont let you hunt his spots without one. I finally broke down and bought one last year. I had a good year in the tree for sure but I don't have the stats like you guys do to back it up. I will say I sat a few times with it on one end of a property while a buddy was on the other and he had does blowing all around him while I had them under my stand. Not once have I had a deer blow at me with Ozonics, without it it was bound to happen a few times each year. I won't be in a tree without it now. Bought an extra battery so I can do long sits and keep it running. I guess I'm a believer....

Nick

Wow very interesting results.Are you in an enclosed blind or open blind or tree stand?

Eric

My experience is from a tree stand.

Interesting takes. On the bear hunts I've been on, the outfitters didn't even want us using any of the scent killer sprays on our clothes or Thermacells while in the trees. All were different outfitters in different hunting areas and all had different theories of how and what to use for bait, but the one thing they all agreed on was adding anything new/different/foreign to the bait area was going to significantly decrease our chance of success.

Nick, Do you use a Thermacell at the same time as the Ozonics?

Any others have experience using a bee smoker before going to the stand or blind for bears? I use it every time I go to the whitetail stand and swear by it. It's not 100% but I rarely ever have a deer blowing at me. It's nearly always no reaction or a neutral reaction (slow retreat without being spooked).

Scoot, no other real changes made to bait or anything else. I certainly use a thermacell no matter what, the skeeters up here will carry your ass away without one.

Now I am listening, like others I wrote it off as a gimmick. But when I read the first hand testimonies here it has me thinking about buying one.

People have been and will continue to shoot giant bears without an Ozonics, but there is something to be said about the experiences myself and others that do use them have had the past several years. Is it worth the $? I think so... On another note, when using them in the stand, we always point the unit so that it is going with the wind, not into the wind. So if the wind is out of the NW, the unit is pointed towards the SE. If the wind switches, I move the unit as well. Pretty easy to do with the swivel style ball head they have for a mount. I've heard using them in a blind can be dangerous, but it sounds like many have been doing that and no one is dead yet.

Used them on pigs and I say they work. They may not work every time but without one try to get one of those big boars within 20 yards of you.

I second the Texas OF comment with actual testimony. Have killed many hogs and the big ones almost always come in alone and circle downwind. If your set up is not right, they will bust you every time. Ozonics helps a bunch and when I get lazy and forget to bring it, I see less solo boars and the sows which always have the pack with seem much more jumpy if I don't have Ozonics. I use then for whitetails also and would say 80%ish effective. Easy to use especially if you buy the extensions and quick disconnects. Good luck.

Have you guys noticed that scentlock suits are a thing of the past and, recently Hecs and Ozonics are the new fad? They are all gimmicks, they should be sold on the shopping network If they, in fact worked, how did anyone kill anything 50 years ago? Must of been by accident.

2 Points, no one said you couldn't be successful without. I have never used it, but when guys like Nick Muche and Mike's Outfitting swear by it I will listen. They have been contributors here for a long time, and their track record speaks for itself.

That was my thought process as well. I’m still not convinced how much they will help, but I know for certain it won’t hurt.

I know a pretty hard core guy from AK that has shot some pretty big bears and has similar stories as the above.

So if they do work, does anyone ever sit back and say "Is this really fairchase?" I get the feeling if there was some device that totally made you invisible to the senses of the game we hunt, many would jump on it without a second thought. This thread is proof of that.

The amount of Ozone the Ozonics unit produce are not really dangerous as long as you have air flow. If you zipped up all the opening in a blind than they may make you sick otherwise not so much. My commercial unit will cleanse 2000 sq feet, that will make you sick real quick even in a fairly open environment . I use an Air Zone unit, look them up! Shawn

Cazador- I think that's a fair question. I've wondered it myself. I wouldn't want to use a device as you described.....I also don't think it's proven or guaranteed that Ozonics works. Slippery slope for sure.

Although, now that I think about it....they do make a device that you describe....what about a long rang rifle? I would consider that something that "makes you invisible to the senses of the game we hunt" Aint nothing seeing, hearing or smelling you from 800 yards away.

Don't get me wrong, I think you're right and that question needs to be asked.

Been using them for about 10 years, they absolutely work. Especially if you are in an enclosed blind like a shadowhunter or something like that. Point it out the down wind window and its like you are in a totally different world, they don't have a clue. Treestands it works just ok.

I have two nights on stand now with an ozonics running and didn't see a bear either night. Based on the evidence, it is blatantly clear these things are junk.

Here is a first hand account from 2 weeks ago. I used one of the ozone duffel bags, has a little motor and a hose. It definitely has a "thunderstorm" smell but the bear didnt seem to notice or care. The only day i got scented was the day I did not use it to freshen my gear.

Yeah I'm thinking about it Cazador. My feeling right now is that it crosses my personal line. Relying on an electric unit with batteries too keep game from smelling me feels too much like cheating or taking shortcuts I guess. For me, passive versus active concealment feels different. Prepping clothes before a hunt feels different than using a machine during a hunt. And yep I know its all just feelings.

I don't know why I can't resist being a smarta$$ sometimes about ozonics, but enough reviews about blind type situations do make me think they are effective, especially when combined with a closed environment. I have a hard time picturing them being able to wipe out enough scent in an open, moving air situation, though I am sure besides the pain of bringing them in they won't be doing any harm. The question is does the added benefit make a difference in an open air situation.

For those that have used it what’s the battery life?

I can get 6-8 hours with the extended use battery that you can buy separate.

As for the fair chase element the big, old boars are such random and night time bait hitters that they are still a good challenge to kill, even with an ozonics. Feeding the bears thousands and thousands of pounds of food might put the fair chase part into more question.

Ozone kills odors great - given enough time and high enough exposure. These can be met in an enclosed area. In an open uncontrolled environment, its conditions cannot come close to being met. Like spitting in the lake thinking the water level will rise

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