If you’re a homeowner in an area that sees plenty of rain, then you’re probably familiar with mud daubers. They are wasps that will build tube-shaped nests on the sites of homes underneath eaves or along the exterior of any outdoor structure.
Bees wasps are beneficial insects example spiders, including black widows, and they’re usually aggressive towards humans.
A large population of them may indicate other underlying problems nearby. So, this article will show you how to identify and get rid of mud daubers around your property enabling you to enjoy your outdoor space wasp free.
How to Get Rid of Mud Daubers
Here at Pestclue, they are processes we take when carrying out pest control to ensure long-lasting elimination. Below are the steps:
- Identification
The first thing we do and you should do in any pest control plan is to identify what exactly you’re dealing with. Carelessness with identification can lead to wrong treatment methods which will cost you time and money.
Mud daubers tend to be larger wasps that grow from half an inch to more than one inch in length. They have six legs and hang freely.
When flying, a pair of antenna and wings that are either a transparent white or dark rusty orange color is seen, many species featured in typical black and yellow or orange coloring but some species of mud dauber are in metallic blue color.
Some people often confuse these wasps for others like paper wasps or Hornets, but mud daubers are characterized by their long and narrow waists or petioles.
- Inspection
Inspection is the next phase of any good pest control plan. Once, you know what your pest looks like. Check around your property to confirm their presence or to find spots for their activity.
Mud daubers are typically active through spring summer and fall, they’ll construct nests in sheltered areas, like along the porch. The shed underneath used ceilings and against the walls of buildings, mud daubers are solitary.
So you’ll typically only see one adult female wasp up to several tubes cluster together for her eggs. Different species of moths will also create differently shaped nests, but they’re usually tubular with one exit hole per tube.
Also, be on the lookout for any spider activity on your properties. And spiders are hunted by mud daubers be sure to note the location of any cobwebs or nests you find.
- Treatment
After identifying your pests and inspecting for activity on your property. It’s time to start treatment but before starting any treatment.
Ensure to wear your personal protective equipment, remember to keep all people and pets out of the treated areas until dry, always use caution and keep yourself protected.
We recommend you cover up as much as possible with a professional bee suit to prevent stains and direct chemical exposure. Start your treatment by addressing the mud dauber’s food source, spiders, and other insects as well.
Spiders are primarily targeted as food for the larvae, knocked down and remove the webs, or nests with web out cobweb eliminator or a cobweb duster without a ready-made insecticide that will treat spider’s eggs and helps bring down the webs making them easier to remove it.
Also prevents spiders from re-establishing nests in treated areas. The cobweb duster is made of nylon bristles designed to remove cobwebs and spider eggs from any webs in higher hard-to-reach areas.
You can attach the duster to an extension pole before you remove your mud dauber nests, you may need to eliminate any wasps protecting them. We recommend you use it side to side with a quick knockdown like pyrid aerosol.
It is a ready-to-use insecticide made with pyrethrins a botanical chemical that interferes with many pests’ nervous systems. This product works immediately knocking down pests that make contact with the spray.
Ensure to spray makes contact with as many pests as possible. Once all pests have been eliminated and there are no signs of activity.
You can remove the nest with a scraping tool or a pressure washer when using a scraping tool holder nests may need to be softened with water.
- Prevention
Prevention is essential to keeping pests in check, even after you’ve applied pesticides, the best way to stop mud daubers from establishing themselves in your house is to apply a repellent insecticide and eliminate the mud dauber’s food source.
- We recommend you use a product like Sylo insecticide. Sylo is also a viable concentrate that must be mixed with water.
- We recommend you mix and apply this product with a handheld pump sprayer to stop the mud daubers.
- You’ll apply is 0.5 fluid ounces of product per 1,000 square feet of the treatment area.
- Once your solution is mixed, spray the areas where you have noted mud dauber nests.
- Don’t forget to treat along eaves, and any entry points like around doors and windows.
- Conduct a barrier treatment by spraying along your structure’s outer perimeter using the measurement of 3 ft. up the structure and 6 to 10 ft. down, it helps the product leaves the residual that will continue to treat the area for up to 90 days.
- When labeled pests come in contact with the residual, they typically die within 20 minutes.
Conclusion
Lastly, we recommend you repeat this application quarterly to maintain year-round control while mud daubers are normally beneficial, they can become a problem in a large infestation.
When carrying out DIY pest control on how to get rid of mud daubers, we recommend gathering enough investigations and checking their nests.
It can be unsightly additions to our homes, however, by keeping up with these steps you will be able to control an infestation that has gone out of hand. Moreover, feel free to contact us for further assistance.
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