Worthless Wasp Spray

[olfart]

I'm beginning to think the EPA has a vendetta against us, and they're enlisting the aid of wasps and other insects. We're covered up with wasps again this year, but none of the wasp spray I've bought so far has any effect on them other than to piss them off. First I bought some Hot Shot Wasp & Hornet spray that touted its new foaming formula. After going through two cans of it there were only 2 dead wasps (I stepped on them when they flew off the nest and landed on the ground). So then I tried Eliminator, which used to be a good brand. Same song, second verse. Same foaming crap that didn't work from a Hot Shot can. I'm thinking all of it's made in the same factory and canned under different labels. I'm sure the EPA has banned whatever ingredient used to work, leaving us defenseless against the airborne marauders.

The only thing I have that works is my Red Ryder BB gun, but it's hazardous to outdoor floodlights and such. Oh, I've also used .22 rat shot on nests in the goat sheds, and it works really well. Just too darned expensive to use on a regular basis.

[Boston_Joe]

I feel your pain. With the old wasp spray you could see them fall out of the sky. The newer stuff only kills them if you hit them dead center and they drown. Might just as well have a water pistol.

We don't have too many wasps but what I do have plenty of and they are far more worrisome are those damn carpenter bees. They are evasive in flight and hitting them with spray is not easy.

[olfart]

We don't have too many wasps but what I do have plenty of and they are far more worrisome are those damn carpenter bees. They are evasive in flight and hitting them with spray is not easy.

Just wait till they go in their hole in the wood and shoot a BB into the hole. Can't miss. In flight, .22 rat shot in a revolver is pretty good sport.

[redman2006]

a couple of thoughts. First, carpenter bees and a badminton racket +/- adult beverages actually make for a fun couple hours of entertainment. We make a huge dent in the population around our house that way. I have built a bunch of the carpenter bee traps, they don't work worth beans.

Secondly, I use Adams Flea Spray on wasps. Not as fast as the old aerosol sprays, but cheap and effective, and being a vet, I have plenty of it.

[junior125]

I bought some of the Eliminator stuff from Walmart and it seemingly works alright, I've knocked a few mid flight with it, can empty's pretty quick though

[olfart]

But do they stay down when it knocks them out of the air? That's my gripe, they fly away from the nest covered in foam. Sometimes one will be too heavy to fly with all the foam and will hit the ground, but I have to be quick to get there and step on it before it flies away.

[airdrop]

When I was a kid the best was a cup of gasoline and it kills them dead right now . I know your thinking fire but hey I'm here to write this and not one house burned down . Oh not one idea expressed here is approved by any .gov agency and reread your insurance policy before use

[olfart]

Unfortunately the gasoline would also damage/kill the flowers and shrubs under the nests, and that won't fly with the lady of the house. And of course we all know that we want her to remain a lady, not a homicidal maniac.

[kickstand]

You could always try this...

https://www.bugasalt.com/products/yellow-bug-a-salt-2-0

I remember AA talking about it a few years ago. I've never tried one, so I couldn't say good or bad.

[junior125]

But do they stay down when it knocks them out of the air? That's my gripe, they fly away from the nest covered in foam. Sometimes one will be too heavy to fly with all the foam and will hit the ground, but I have to be quick to get there and step on it before it flies away.

they usually try to get away, but they stay down long enough I can get a much closer shot on them again, mainly because I believe in overkill

[olfart]

You could always try this...

https://www.bugasalt.com/products/yellow-bug-a-salt-2-0

I remember AA talking about it a few years ago. I've never tried one, so I couldn't say good or bad.

I've had one for years. It's great on flies and other small critters. Sometimes it will knock a wasp out of the air, but no permanent damage. If you catch one on a solid surface such as a window or a wall, however, it can be devastating at close range. It'll take wings off and leave them afoot if you get a good close hit. The wasp's armor is a little too tough to expect a kill with the Bug-a-salt. The ones I've been spraying are 9' up in the eaves of the house, and that's way out of the Bug-a-salt's effective range on wasps.

[W.Lynn]

And of course we all know that we want her to remain a lady, not a homicidal maniac.

Wow, if she's that scary, ask her to do it?

[olfart]

Oh, she's done it plenty, and she shares my opinion of the worthless spray. But don't dare damage any of her shrubs or flowers in the process!

And scary she can be when she wants. She was a reserve deputy sheriff in Dallas County for a while, and she worked as a teacher aide in a Dallas middle school. That's enough to make anybody scary.

[kickstand]

I saw a bumper sticker on a mini van a few days ago that read "You don't scare me, I'm a teacher".