Dirt Dauber (Mud Dauber) – Control

Q: My husband and I have a cabin in the country. Before we could move in, however, every kind of wasp-looking thing was busy building nests of all sorts on the outside fireplace, on the siding of the house, etc. (Truly, they were everywhere!)

We did away with most of them because we have some allergic people in the family. Now, however, they are coming into the house (how, we aren’t sure). Is there any way to discourage these guys?

We have already determined we need to seal up the house a bit tighter, but we really want to keep them from nesting in the first place. What can you suggest?

A: I’m not a big fan of spraying for insects when it isn’t absolutely necessary ((dirt daubers are beneficial (and kill black widow spiders!) after all)) but I guess you could control them with a surface spray of cypermethrin (Demon) or deltamethrin or permethrin every couple of weeks.

Sealing cracks is the best bet – it saves energy too!

See Pipeorgan Mud Daubers and Mud Daubers.