Yellow Jacket's Nest in the wall

[hibb]

I'm just glad this nest was abandoned when I popped that piece of drywall off.

David

[Cheri]

I'll bet you were glad.

Cheri

[Joe]

Did you save any of the honey?

Joe

[hibb]

No, and don't call me Honey.

[Jon Danniken]

Big nest, but someone used too much of the sharpen filter.

Jon

[Steve B]

Holy Moly! That's HUGE! I got bit last summer by five of them before I knew what was going on. You can't feel them touch you, but you sure do feel the fire. If they would have been at home, someone else would have been writing this for you.

For everyone, I heard ammonia is the best thing to put on their sting.

Steve

[Frank]

Hope you got their entrance sealed. They tend to come back to the same spot, holes in wall or ground.

[hibb]

This house had the foam insulation installed by drilling holes in the outside walls but some of the cavities were not hit so I found two nests and both were in the cavities where there was no insulation. Here is a pic of what happens to that foam insulation after a while. It doesn't do a very good job.

That room is a lot warmer now that I have it insulated properly.

David

[hibb]

Guilty as charged.

David

[DemoDisk]

This house had the foam insulation installed by drilling holes in the outside walls but some of the cavities were not hit so I found two nests and both were in the cavities where there was no insulation. Here is a pic of what happens to that foam insulation after a while. It doesn't do a very good job.

That room is a lot warmer now that I have it insulated properly.

David

*************

Be careful that you don't set up conditions for rot to set in. I was considering the same thing before reading how blown-in wall insulation keeps wood from drying. Termite heaven!

Jm

[hibb]

I remodeled the room only using fiberglass bat insulation in the walls and ceiling.

[Frank]

I had a couple of spots around outdoor lighting fixtures where they would enter and build nests. Only solution was to caulk around fixture. Another spot in uninsulated garage attracts them and every few years they become a problem.

[Steve B]

Here's a non poisonous suggestion. I buy yellow jacket traps, and they work okay. They also use apple juice as an attractant.

You can make your own out of quart jars or bigger ones from gallon jars for nearly free.

Apple juice works best for me. Some people use raw meat and let it get skanky.

Steve

[Nonny]

I just wanted to post a little cautionary note about Yellow Jackets around the home. The retired director of the Fort Wayne (IN) Children's Zoo was a very nice fellow named Earl Wells. He had a small farm outside the community and retired to it to raise Llamas- his hobby. One day, Earl set up a ladder to wash the windows of his house and the ladder sunk into a Yellow Jacket nest. They attacked him and as I recall, Earl had over 1000 stings. He was rushed to the hospital, but it was too late. . . one BAD way to die.

Should I ever encounter Yellow Jackets around my home, I'd nuke them immediately.

[Jon Danniken]

We have them around here, and I've found them to be extremely tolerant of my presence, even while fiddling around near their nest. Definitely less dangerous than the African bees which are taking over the country.

Jon

[notbob]

Major bummer! I know of which you speak, having been attacked when I was about 4 yrs old, but only a couple doz stings. Still....

I moved to the high CO Rockies (8K ft elev). More damn hornets and wasps then I ever knew existed. One even looks like a furry Gurnsey cow, blk n wht and a hundred percent larger than the rest. Anyway, they're freakin' everywhere and start nest building like crazy in late Summer. They get in the house no matter what and I've seen them trying to start a nest on the brass ceiling dome cover for our ceiling fan. I've discovered most hornet/wasp aerosols like Black Flag and Ace Hardware house brand enough to keep the bastids at bay. These typically shoot a 7-8 foot straight stream fairly accurately, with a little practice. I can hit 'em on the fly. I've even sprayed a 3-5 sec blast into blind holes I've see wasps entering and leaving and it usually kills them off or ruins it for them and I see no more activity. Black Flag sells two cans for $10. Worth every cent and the liquid doesn't appear to stain interior wall paint. I'm making dual quick draw belt holsters next Summer!! ;)

nb

[The Daring Dufas]

The electrical supply house sells the non conductive wasp/hornet spray. The critters often build their nests in or around high voltage gear.

TDD

[Don Wiss]

Yellow jackets are in the wasp family and don't make honey.

Don (e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Oren]

Somebody caught it :-\

Never treat them the same way as dear flies.

[Steve B]

I did on the first post. But, as always .........................

Here, in Utah, I have seen wasp nests bigger than a bowling ball. More the size of two bowling balls. We drove a dirt road from Summit, Utah, that came out at the base of a Brian Head ski lift. It was in the fall when the aspen leaves had fallen. There were a surprisingly large number of the nests, which were highly visible because of the lack of leaves. Had we gone in foliage, we could not have seen how many. I took a pic, but can't find it. If I ever get up there again, I will take another. They were frighteningly large. I am surprised how many of them survive the brutal winters there.

I got stung by five yellow jackets at once this year on my property. I can't imagine a bunch of those after you. ewwwwwwwwwwwwww

Steve