yellow-jackets in my yard (rent, fence, law)

[hickoryfan]

Hi all:
I have a nest in the ground near my mailbox. Any suggestions on getting rid of the bees.

[arbyunc]

The most effective way I know is to unload a can of hornet/yellow jacket spray into the nest. Do this at night when they're settled down.

Scratch that, the most effective way is to turn a raccoon loose near the nest. They will completely dig up the nest and eat them like candy, leaving nothing but a hole in the ground. Maybe you could rent a raccoon?

[Charlotteborn]

Largest pot you have of boiling water (might have to do it twice) .

[The Native 1]

Get yourself a can of gas. Find the exit hole in the ground. Usually yellow jackets have an exit and entry hole in the ground so it is ideal if you can locate both. When you find this pour a little gas down the hole. Step back and light a match. Throw the match down the hole. No more problems after that. Be sure to do this at night when they are dormant. The scary thing about yellow jackets is you never know how large the nest is because it is underground. This method has always worked for me.

[bs13690]

The gas method is what I have used in the past. I am sure it violates some sort of law, though.

[coastalgirl]

OMG! You people are horrible! OP, have you tried calling a pest control company? I'm sure there's a more humane way to eliminate, or possibly relocate the wasps.

[The Native 1]

Originally Posted by coastalgirl

OMG! You people are horrible! OP, have you tried calling a pest control company? I'm sure there's a more humane way to eliminate, or possibly relocate the wasps.

I guess you could try sweet talking them out of there. Seriously though...there are probably more humane ways of getting rid of them.

[NCyank]

Originally Posted by coastalgirl

OMG! You people are horrible! OP, have you tried calling a pest control company? I'm sure there's a more humane way to eliminate, or possibly relocate the wasps.

These aren't like honey bees. Yellow jackets are DANGEROUS!! They are one of the few wasps/hornets that will sting you completely unprovoked. And they don't just sting, they bite and sting repeatedly just to make sure you get the point. There can be hundreds of them in a nest and they are hard to get rid of because they nest in cavities, sometimes inaccessible to traditional sprays. Now, maybe you want to negotiate or try to relocate the nasty little buggers but death by gas and flame is no more or less 'humane' than death by poison spray or powder.

We had a nest in the outside wall of the house, there was a small gap by the hose spigot and that was the entry point. We could not even open the garage door because the vibration sent them into a rage. That was in the spring when the colony was small. By the end up summer the nests can easily triple in size, or more. Now, we obviously couldn't gas them and we couldn't spray in the small hole so we had to call an exterminator. He came in a full bee suit because they know well how dangerous angry yellow jackets can be. There is no 'relocation' program...they aren't that cooperative.

[XcapefromNJ]

Originally Posted by bs13690

The gas method is what I have used in the past. I am sure it violates some sort of law, though.

The law of common sense perhaps? Gas is much more volatile and flammable than what most people are used to, say... lighter fluid. Easy to blow yourself up or catch yourself on fire. But really, would poisoning a yellow jacket with a neurotoxin (watch them twitch and die) be more "humane" than burning them with gasoline?

[Mom of 3 girls]

Not so sure if it is humane for the bee, but we spray that foam (in a can- not sure if the proper name but you use it seal it holes around your house). We spray in the hole and whatever is left in the nest dies, and the rest of the bees that are outside can get in.

We had a nest under the fence at the gate so whenever the family would goto the pool, the vibrations peed off the little boogers.... and after being (all of us) stung at the beginning of the summer, we unleashed the rest of our foam can. Thank goodness none of us are allergic.... found out that none of the kids are allergic since none of them had been stung before when all of this happened... so we consider ourselves lucky.