Yellow jackets

[turk123]

It's fall and I'm in wine country in Ohio. The bees are everywhere! They are also getting in my trailer! I'm allergic so I have to be careful.

Where are they getting in??? I've had 6 in a row get into the trailer and fly around the kitchen lights?

Any ideas???

[Countryboy59]

Maybe the hole in your screen door where the sliding part is? Be sure you're not parked over or near a nest. They are very aggressive. I'm also allergic and usually just avoid the outdoors this time of year.

[WayneG]

Around here they are searching for fermenting fruit on the ground this time of the year.
Be careful what you keep in and around your camper that may attract them.

Last year I fond they had built a nest in a cinder block wall near where I store my MH. The hole in the block was only 1/4" in diameter but there were hundreds in the nest and surrounding the MH. They could do the same thing in your framework.

[OTRA15]

Yellow jackets are different from bees, so you might want to read up at Wikipedia. Also allergic reactions can vary depending on the correct ID IMO.

Honey bees are generally not aggressive. Yellow jackets can be for sure. AS trailers have lots of small holes everywhere. Would burning incense inside keep them out during the day? You might have to disable your smoke detector. At night most species are not active.

Do you carry an Epi pen at all times?

Wasps are another problem. Don't ever disturb a wasp nest! And don't ask how I know.



Good luck!

Peter

PS -- Insects can be drawn to any food substance inside, like fruit as suggested, and also to rotting garbage, so be sure to dispose of your trash ASAP.

[Countryboy59]

Allergic reactions vary by person. I'd been stung before with no reaction, and then had an anaphylactic reaction. It can be fatal within minutes.

The OP has yellow jackets, not bees. Yellow jackets are wasps. I wait til night, then nuke the nest.

[OTRA15]

Yes the OP's headline said yellow jackets, but he also said "The bees are everywhere!"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowjacket

Also, yellow jackets are considered to be wasps, but they are not the same as these wasps, which can also sting like crazy:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potter_wasp

Honey bees: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey_bee

Knowing the precise pest will help with the medical treatment etc..

[turk123]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

Yellow jackets are different from bees, so you might want to read up at Wikipedia. Also allergic reactions can vary depending on the correct ID IMO.

Honey bees are generally not aggressive. Yellow jackets can be for sure. AS trailers have lots of small holes everywhere. Would burning incense inside keep them out during the day? You might have to disable your smoke detector. At night most species are not active.

Do you carry an Epi pen at all times?

Wasps are another problem. Don't ever disturb a wasp nest! And don't ask how I know.




Good luck!

Peter

PS -- Insects can be drawn to any food substance inside, like fruit as suggested, and also to rotting garbage, so be sure to dispose of your trash ASAP.

These are yellow jackets, but they are moving slow this time of year. They are just gathering everywhere! I believe I might have found the source. I believe earlier when we had the main door open and the screen door closed, the yellow jackets crawled into the outside pocket of the door. When I closed the door for the night, the small plastic door is left open and let the bees into the cabin.

I do have several epi pens. I have never had to use one, but you never know. My doctor told me never to use one unless you are really in trouble. He said the epinephrine can also kill you!

[Protagonist]

One thing that might help clear them out of the trailer at no risk (but I offer no money-back guarantee if it doesn't work):

Open any window that has a tightly closed screen.

Open the powered roof vent and remove its screen.

Turn on the vent full-blast.

Flying insects tend not to fly very far upwind if they can help it, so they should be pulled outside through the open and unscrened roof vent.

I've never tried it with wasps or bees, but it works great with flies and mosquitoes, so it's worth a try.

[Troutboy]

They can get in through furnace and water heater vents. There are many different types of screens that you can purchase to cover the vents so insects can’t get in.

[Bob Blarney]

Having just acquired an AS that was sitting on a lot for a long time, I've become acquainted with the flying members of the genus Hymenoptera. This is the time of year when many wasps and bees are seeking shelter for the winter.

Bumblebees are groundnesters that tend to seek out abandoned mouse burrows, and AS are often winter homes to those critters. Apparently bumblebees follow the scent.

Yellowjackets are also groundnesters, but and may be in the ground below or in the undercarriage of the AS.

Paper wasps seek apertures in shiny and light-colored objects, and build their nests within - battery boxes, and behind access panels. >A squadron flew out of the rear storage compartment and one of them flew up into my nostril and stung me. Ouch!<

I suggest that you spray with an indoor/outdoor flying insect killer (the brandname escapes me). It does not have an unpleasant scent and has proven effective. Spray in all outside storage and service/appliance compartments, and spray inside if absolutely necessary and then vacate for the day if possible.

[Janet H]

You might try hanging up some fake wasps nests. Other wasps (and yellow jackets) view these as being a territory marker and will avoid them. You can find them in hardware stores and online - they are reusable, pack flat and are cheap. Put one near each side of your rig.



https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Wasp-Nat.../dp/B000W93LUU

[OTRA15]

For a second I got lost, as that looks like a hanging Japanese lantern from Pier One, and I thought we were in the What Did You Get or Small Living Spaces thread!





Good find, wonder if they work?

One of the Amazon reviews says that wasps built a nest inside of the deterrent nest!

[Lumatic]

I have not been bitten a lot. Never used to have a reaction. 2 bites in the past 5 years or so taught me yellow jackets and bees are little flying drunks. First I was bitten in the middle of the Sawtooth range. A yellow jacket got in my beer. Stung me in my throat. I felt my throat swelling up and dizzy. Last time was a couple of weeks ago on the Mogollon Rim in Arizona. The little bugger was swimming around in my Jack Daniels and bit the tip of my tongue. In both cases I took 100mg of Benadryl immediately. If you screw a light bulb out of it's socket and imagine sticking your tongue in that probably is about how it would feel. My mouth, jaw and head immediately began to ache, followed by dizziness. With the 2nd bite I immediately walked over to the next campsite for help and collapsed. I was unconscious for 15 to 20 minutes. The benadryl I'm sure helped but from now on I'm carrying an epipen and a sippy cup. Epinephrine raises the pulse, and lowers the blood pressure, gives you "the jitters" and opens up your breathing passages amongst other reactions. Waiting to know I was in trouble in my case would have been less than a minute, and then might have been too late.

[afneill]

My wife is also very allergic to wasp stings. She keeps 2 Epipens. Having been to the emergency room several times after her having been stung, we think we are well versed on the subject. We live in a rural area with several outbuildings that atttact paper wasps. We try to keep them under control with wasp spray and wasp traps. She stays inside a lot in warm weather. If she gets stung we start with liquid benadryl followed by an epipen. If reaction continues 5 minutes later the second epipen, while we are headed to the ER. The doctors have assured us that even if she did not have a reaction the epipen would not hurt her. Apparently not enough epinephren in the dose to create problems. Since we are about 40-45 minutes from the ER we give the shot and drive fast!

[prairieschooner]

OK so up here when we see the wasps they are attracted to meat.....best way we found is to hang a small piece of meat in a jar of water....they typically fall into the water after trying to feed and................they drown!
If these guys are chasing fruit try using some of the fruit that they are chasing...may just work and it won't cost much.

I also use this approach with rodents using a 5 gallon pail with a pierce of pvc pipe over a rod and some peanut butter. Amazing how many rodents will be in the bucket...I simply throw the drowned rats into the forest and mother nature takes it's course.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by afneill

My wife is also very allergic to wasp stings. She keeps 2 Epipens. Having been to the emergency room several times after her having been stung, we think we are well versed on the subject. We live in a rural area with several outbuildings that atttact paper wasps. We try to keep them under control with wasp spray and wasp traps. She stays inside a lot in warm weather. If she gets stung we start with liquid benadryl followed by an epipen. If reaction continues 5 minutes later the second epipen, while we are headed to the ER. The doctors have assured us that even if she did not have a reaction the epipen would not hurt her. Apparently not enough epinephren in the dose to create problems. Since we are about 40-45 minutes from the ER we give the shot and drive fast!

The epipen needs to be used along with a call to 911. It buys you time. If you're really having an anaphylactic reaction you need to go to the ER.

[DMP54]

[QUOTE=Lumatic;2018336]I have not been bitten a lot. Never used to have a reaction.

You can develop allergies to insect bites at any time in life- and anaphylaxis may occur- a life-threatening situation. You are wise to carry the epipen. Be safe. Taking a Benadryl and Clarinex together wards off a reaction right quick for me.

We lost a huge live oak during Irma, and the vibration from the machines the tree cutters were using let loose THOUSANDS of yellow jackets that were in a hive in the trunk of this monster tree. We are down to seeing a few now after 3 treatments with Spectracide spray, foam, and concrete. The stump grinder cannot do his job until the area is free from yellow jackets. The tree was hundreds of years old, so we may just have to make an art installation out of the trunk