If you ride in during the summer (who doesn’t???), there may be times when you’re putting bug repellent spray on.
DEET-based products harm synthetic fabric, so opt for a DEET-free bug spray if you don’t want any surprises.
I’ve used picaridin-based products, and they seem to work as good, if not better, than DEET.
It should come as a spray or wash-in. You might be able to use the insecticide but you’d want to make sure it doesn’t have anything harmful/destructive in it and that the strength was suitable for treating gear/garments.