yellowjacket infestation - need assistance

[norseamd]

My house is under siege, and there are yellowjackets that are able to get into my house willy nilly, and I have 2 cats that I need to worry about. People have already been stung, in the middle of their sleep no less.

They seem to be tunneling into this house, or some type of crap.

How do I deal with this problem, and get rid of all of them?

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Most yellowjackets live in either internal walls/crawl spaces etc. or, the ground. You need to locate the nest and use one of the pyrethrum based insecticides. The good news is yellowjackets only use the nest for one season before moving on. Of course if there's easy access to crawl spaces etc. moving on might be twenty feet away.

 

[norseamd]

Most yellowjackets live in either internal walls/crawl spaces etc. or, the ground. You need to locate the nest and use one of the pyrethrum based insecticides. The good news is yellowjackets only use the nest for one season before moving on. Of course if there's easy access to crawl spaces etc. moving on might be twentynfeet away.

Going by what has been going on, that would make sense. I am wondering if they are able to use the vents as a highway throughout the whole house.

I almost got stung about an hour ago.

 

[Carson Dyle]

Probably western yellowjackets if they're aggressive.

Yellowjacket ground nests

Nests in the ground can be controlled by placing an insecticide dust, typically containing permethrin, in and around the nest entrance during the night. The dust particles will adhere to the insects as they leave and reenter the nest and control will usually be achieved within a few days. Pouring a liquid insecticide into the nest entrance is less likely to be effective as the liquid may not reach the nest depending on where it is located within the burrow.

Concealed yellowjacket nests

Yellowjacket nests that are found inside homes in wall voids, attics, concrete blocks, or similar spaces are much more challenging to control. The most effective treatment is with an application of a dust, e.g. containing deltamethrin. Unfortunately, there are not many products like this available to the general public that are registered for use in buildings. An aerosol insecticide is not very effective. In fact, an aerosol spray can sometimes cause yellowjackets to look for another way out, which often leads them to the inside of homes. Also, don't seal the nest opening until you know all of the yellowjackets are dead as this can also cause yellowjackets to move into your house. It is usually best for a pest management professional to control hidden nests in buildings.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/insects/find/wasp-and-bee-control/

 

[norseamd]

Probably western yellowjackets if they're aggressive.

Actually, I think they are German Yellowjackets, and they are very aggressive. Seems the German Yellowjackets are the most competitive wasp species in North America, and not only are they very aggressive and industrious, they are very invasive.

Also, this is Minnesota, and it looks like the furthest east Western Yellowjackets go is the Black Hills, which is the only reason that I can think of why South Dakota seems to be considered part of their range, but not any of the other Great Plains states.

 

[MongGrel]

You might need an exterminator for that one.

Hard to nuke from orbit if they're in the walls.

 

[norseamd]

Just saw one fly up to my window like he wanted to get in. Flew away quickly too, like he was on a mission.

I am not lovingly enthralled with what I am reading.

http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-Bio09Tuat01-t1-body-d5.html

 

[Carson Dyle]

So put traps out until you can figure out if you can rid of them or hire someone to do it. Sounds like it's about the best you can hope for once they're in your house.

And flyswatters. And multiple layers of clothing. :'(

 

[MongGrel]

I used to see a lot of those in Indiana when I lived up north, but not in my house.

Had an Uncle that could go into shock from one sting, we used to clear out big ground nests with a bush hog and several gallons of gas ever year in one far off camp site the family owned every year.

They are pretty aggressive, we usually had hornets around that were more level headed than those guys.

 

[Blain]

Hang several yellow jacket / wasp traps outside to help thin the herd.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

My house is under siege, and there are yellowjackets that are able to get into my house willy nilly, and I have 2 cats that I need to worry about. People have already been stung, in the middle of their sleep no less.

They seem to be tunneling into this house, or some type of crap.

How do I deal with this problem, and get rid of all of them?

A friend of mine had a similar problem with bees. The made a massive nest under his siding. I think he heard them in a wall that his cats kept scratching at. A bee guy came out suited up and removed a bunch of siding to get at them. His cost wasn't too expensive because the bee guy got the queen and a bunch of honey out of it. I doubt that's an option with yellow jackets or wasps.

 

[DrPizza]

If you locate the nest and it's in the ground, it's easy to deal with. If you locate the nest and it's in the wall of the house, it's more difficult to deal with.

I've run into a couple in the ground - and it amazes me at my age how fast I can run. Or, if I'm lucky, I freeze in place and someone else runs (wife) - they usually give chase for a short distance and sting the runner, not the person frozen in place. My solution: kill it with fire (if in the ground) - a propane torch to use as a pilot light (don't want to burn my fingers) and a can of starting fluid (ether) work well. I now have a very large propane torch capable of 2 feet long 3-4" wide blue flame. That works very well also. It doesn't take long to completely incinerate a nest (in the ground) but either method would set a house on fire within seconds.

 

[edro]

Got stung by a regular wasp yesterday while mowing the grass.
They had a nest attached to my deck.
When I came back around with the weed eater, I hit the nest.
Splat. No more wasp problem.

 

[DrPizza]

Got stung by a regular wasp yesterday while mowing the grass.
They had a nest attached to my deck.
When I came back around with the weed eater, I hit the nest.
Splat. No more wasp problem.

I have a few honey bee hives around the area. I mow to within a foot of them and they don't bother me. Last week, I was mowing along the edge of one of our driveways before I parked our boat. I hit some gravel and threw it at one of the hives. My wife laughed as I came driving down the road at full speed, waving my hands in the air like a madman. She picked out the stingers for me on my neck; I got my arms myself.

 

[MongGrel]

Got stung by a regular wasp yesterday while mowing the grass.
They had a nest attached to my deck.
When I came back around with the weed eater, I hit the nest.
Splat. No more wasp problem.

Was a teeny little nest is you solved it with a weed eater that easy.

Some of the in ground nests can be over 20' in diameter I've seen in the past.

Took a walk to the store today and saw about 20 honeybees hard at work, I was about a foot away and watched em awhile, I usually don't see that many in one spot these days.

Was odd that it was on flowers on a hedge near a very busy road.

 

[SparkyJJO]

As a kid I was deathly afraid of wasps and such. As a teenager that didn't change much, until I stepped over a yellow jacket nest in the ground and they just latched onto my ankles. After that, it was war. Sure, I still don't like them and try to avoid them, But any sign of intrusion or nest building and they're dead. I was getting yellow jackets in my house this spring as they were evidently crawling through a bad seal in my door or around my dryer vent. Hosed both areas down with spray and haven't seen them since.

I had them in the bedroom wall of my rental I was in a few years ago. Could hear them buzzing and chewing away. Called the landlord, who got an exterminator out, and the guy asked if I had anywhere to go. Told him no, and he said OK, don't come outside for the next hour. Watched from the window as he handled the nest from outside and made a mad dash from the side of the building lol.

 

[Elixer]

If you locate the nest and it's in the ground, it's easy to deal with. If you locate the nest and it's in the wall of the house, it's more difficult to deal with.

I've run into a couple in the ground - and it amazes me at my age how fast I can run. Or, if I'm lucky, I freeze in place and someone else runs (wife) - they usually give chase for a short distance and sting the runner, not the person frozen in place. My solution: kill it with fire (if in the ground) - a propane torch to use as a pilot light (don't want to burn my fingers) and a can of starting fluid (ether) work well. I now have a very large propane torch capable of 2 feet long 3-4" wide blue flame. That works very well also. It doesn't take long to completely incinerate a nest (in the ground) but either method would set a house on fire within seconds.

This your video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2sC29_XR88

You know, I wonder, if you attach some kind of a device that does this automatically on a quad-copter, it might be the perfect excuse to get one!