Wasp nests in the Cabin

[mgmathews]

Does anyone else out there have problems with wasp nests in your cabin? I have an '83 M25 and every time I open my companionway hatch I'd better have a can of wasp spray with me. They build nests between the sliding top hatch and the hull, and in various places inside the cabin. Has anyone successfully sealed your hatch to prevent this?

Thanks!

[rgranger]

Yep!

I always have wasps in my boat. An under the tarp that I have over the boat and etc. etc.

I always wear a baseball cap so I can swat them down when they fly at me. They really are slower than most people think... it is just hard to get over the initial fear when you see them come at you.

A few moth balls in the cabin helps keep them out. Just have to remember to add more balls.

I think they can smell the old nest because once you have a nest in a spot they seem to want to rebuild in the same spot. Maybe scrub the spot with a cleaner????

[Boblee]

Also watch where they can really do damage as in water outlets on the motor, gun barrels etc.

[Craig LaForce]

I assume you are talking about mud dauber wasps? I am glad my boat is back in salt water as there is no more wasp problem in salt water. Had the boat at a fresh water lake for 3 years in Tulsa and it was a major pain with all the mud dauber wasps there. The problem is, if you seal the hatch, then you will have mildew instead of mud daubers. My latest goofey idea before I moved was to get a bunch of those nylon netting balls they sell for the shower and stuff them around the hatch cracks. I figured some air would still get through, but keep the wasps out. Someone on the trailersailor website swears by putting a small abount of Pennyroyal oil in the cabin to keep all insects away. No personal experience however.

[mgmathews]

The wasps I'm getting are the ones that build the paper nests.

[March]

I got some really cool wasp repellant from Menard's about 5 years ago. It smelled like mint and came in a spray can, large SIZE, and it's supposed to be ecologically clean. Sprayed it liberally in the bilge and even in the crannies, including the head, and it helps really well with keeping the wasps away, along with the stale odors. I tried to get another can last year, but they didn't carry it anymore. Can't remember the brand but if I did, I would get it again in a jiffy.

[Wind Chime]

From what I understand wasps are very territorial, so if there is another nest near by they wont come around.

I had some at work, and bought a fake nest and hung it up. They were gone right away and have never been back.

Someone told me you can just fill a brown paper bag with newspaper and hang it up, and it will do the same thing.

[Craig LaForce]

Is this the stuff?



http://www.thegreenestdollar.com/2009/0 ... uct-revew/

[March]

Wow, that's great! The name brand doesn't ring a bell, but I'm sure that it's the same kind of stuff. Thanks, Craig!

[Craig LaForce]

My pleasure. Hope it works out. Wasps are no fun and they are persistent as heck. Having a minty fresh boat as part of the bargain is also neat.

http://www.amazon.com/EcoSMART-Wasp-Hor ... d_sbs_ol_7

http://www.amazon.com/EcoSMART-Insect-R ... d_sbs_ol_3

Amazon seems to carry their product line.

If Amazon and Google ever merged, I think they could take over the world in less than 5 days.

[Catigale]

Paper wasps are pretty docile - if you move slowly, you can just snap the nest off and toss it outside. Repeat once or twice and they figure it out and go nest somewhere else. One season I did get bald-faced hornets in my fuel locker- that wasnt fun. I dont do hornets due to a bad experience painting houses. I broke down my left wing environmental dogma and had Jim fly in his C130 and release dioxins to get rid of them Dont get Agent Orange on blue hulls - horrible clash....

[hart]

I was painting a house last week and got stung by a paper wasp. The nest was on the backside of the fascia and I didn't see it until after I hit it with my brush. Ouch.

My V222 and my Compac 16 are filled with wasps right now. I'm seriously thinking about getting a couple of bug bombs and tossing one in each boat. I wouldn't do it in the X but those 2 boats are a mess on the inside already anyway.

[Scott]

There are a few threads on this, (search) and a few on spiders that went in this direction.

We use moth balls, just a few, hung in a bit of panty hose. 2 sacks with 8-10 moth balls in each will chase them out and keep them away. Just place them in a tupperware container and let the boat air for a few minutes before launching. Some of the others here have reported good results with dryer sheets.

[argonaut]

Ah, summer again. Joy.
I have no scientific evidence to support this but the big fan I keep running in my cabin seems to keep them from getting too homey inside.
I don't think they like to have a really windy Landing Zone and they'd kind of have to work hard to offset the constant 15 mph breeze inside.
Plus the fan seems to keep the mildew down a lot. This is like a 14" diameter three speed thing I leave on 'high', I suspend it from bungies near the ceiling.
Outside I have found them under my boom cover (nice surprise), in the mast at the wire exit hole, and in my console. They like any place there's a hole.
Mud daubers filled the nozzle of one of my fire extinguishers too before I started doing the fan thing.
When the boat lived on the trailer at my house I had to seal the hatch gap with some fiberglass screen. That white filmy bridal veil fabric netting stuff works pretty good for that too, just stuff it in the crack. Fabric stores sell it pretty cheap and I use it for mosquito netting too over the forward hatch.
I don't know what it's really called, it was one of my wife's ideas & worked great. I had an idea to make a strip of screening with snap fasteners you could snap over the main hatch gap then easily remove but I haven't followed through on that mod yet.
Screen lets the boat ventilate but slows down the critters.
Keep a can of wasp spray in the fuel locker just in case. Don't want to be unarmed three miles out when you find their latest nest.

[robbarnes1965]

Had 'em too. They built a nest on the back of my radio! I cleaned it off and they haven't been back for 2 years but I am always on the lookout...

Glad to see it's not just me.