# What would happen if I just vacuumed up all the wasps? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 6, 2004, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327 "2004-09-06T13:59:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/1 "2004-09-06T13:59:31Z")
This year seems to be rather a profitable one for the wasps (syn. _Yellowjackets_) here in the Kingdom of Butter and I was wondering what would happen if I just positioned a powerful vacuum cleaner near the nest exit; assuming that the exit was a fairly small aperture (such as often happens when the nest is situated in a roofspace - the exit is often just a hole an inch or two in diameter through a panel. So for some nests, it would certainly be possible to position a vacuum hose in such a way that it would catch all adult wasps flying in or out. Aside from the obvious difficulties that might be encountered while emptying the dust bag, would this (essentially attrition of the adult worker population) be a feasible way of destroying a nest? ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/2 "2004-09-06T14:44:10Z")
My humble opinion, aka a Wild-Arse Guess: Sucking the wasps into the vaccuum cleaner would probably entrap the ones you sucked in. They wouldn’t figure out how to escape by going back down the hose when the vaccuum was turned off. If some of them did start down the hose, it wouldn’t be hard to get back out, but most of them wouldn’t grasp that. So, you would have outsmarted them. I’d start with a dirty bag, so there was plenty of other stuff in the bag to confuse them. However, if the bag is made of paper, they might be able to eat their way out, depends on what kind of wasps. And, finally, you probably wouldn’t be able to empty the nest – the suction power wouldn’t be great enough to pull the critters from the inside, you’d only be trapping the ones who came in and out for as long as you stood there with the vaccuum on. PS - Last summer, we did this with those damn pseudo-lady bugs that have taken over the country and deposed real ladybugs. They were unable to eat their way out of the bag, or to find their way out the hose. Of course, pseudo-ladybugs ain’t wasps. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/3 "2004-09-06T14:45:58Z")
IIRC, this is about how they got rid of the wasp infestation at the international space station last year. Except of course, they didn’t use a vacuum cleaner, they just drilled a hole in the wall and the wasps got sucked into the airless abyss of space. Professional [vacuum removal of wasps](http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/entomology/444-510/444-510.html) seems to be geared towards sucking up the whole nest rather than capturing the creatures one at a time: > [@](#): > > Vacuuming out entire nests is another option. We recommend that only a professional do this since special equipment is needed. Vacuuming can be particularly useful when bees or wasps are found within a wall void or in an environmentally sensitive area where pesticides cannot be used. If you use a vacuum, remember that once the vacuum is turned off, the wasps will be able to find their way out of the vacuum. Therefore, it is important to quickly seal the vacuum bag and remove it from the vacuum cleaner. Placing the bag into a freezer for a few hours will kill the wasps. There’s lots of anecdotal tales of vacuum victories in the war on wasps: > [@](#): > > \>a friend told me he had good results in removing a wasps’ home with an > \>industrial vacuum cleaner. He borroughed (sp?) one from a do-it-yourself- > \>store, hold the pipe just in front of the intrance of the wasps’ home, > \>and all of them got out to see what was attacking, and -flup, flup, flup- > \>it was almost empty. A good vacuum cleaner is strong enough to suck the > \>wasps together with their home. [here](http://www.omnisterra.com/botany/cp/list/cp96alld/3344.htm) > [@](#): > > My dad and I once raided a hornet’s nest with a vacuum cleaner. Took the better part of a day. Used a shop vac with about a ten foot rigid piece on the end of the hose, with the cone thing on the end. Placed it near the entrance to the hive, which was a little hole in a brick wall, and got returning insects on the way in, as well as ones leaving. [here](http://www.halfbakery.com/idea/Hornet_20Farm) For more, check out the [mother lode](http://www.google.com/search?as_q=wasps&num=10&hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=vacuum+cleaner&as_oq=&as_eq=&lr=&as_ft=i&as_filetype=&as_qdr=all&as_nlo=&as_nhi=&as_occt=any&as_dt=i&as_sitesearch=&safe=images). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/4 "2004-09-06T14:53:53Z")
> [@C K Dexter Haven](#): > > I’d start with a dirty bag, so there was plenty of other stuff in the bag to confuse them. However, if the bag is made of paper, they might be able to eat their way out, depends on what kind of wasps. I suppose a Dyson-style machine would be interesting to watch. In order to kill the insects already sucked up, I suppose I could just leave the motor on and suck a bit of spray insecticide down the hose. > [@](#): > > And, finally, you probably wouldn’t be able to empty the nest – the suction power wouldn’t be great enough to pull the critters from the inside, you’d only be trapping the ones who came in and out for as long as you stood there with the vaccuum on. Understood; however, just capturing a good majority of the adult workers _should_ seriously weaken the nest, as there would not be enough of them to feed the developing larvae. Almost makes me wish I had a handy wasp nest to try it out on, but there isn’t one on my property this year (although the number of wasps visiting my garden is truly phenomenal at the moment - I think it must have been an ideal year for them) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/5 "2004-09-06T14:59:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \>a friend told me he had good results in removing a wasps’ home with an > \>industrial vacuum cleaner. He borroughed (sp?) one from a do-it-yourself- > \>store, hold the pipe just in front of the intrance of the wasps’ home, > \>and all of them got out to see what was attacking, and -flup, flup, flup- > \>it was almost empty. A good vacuum cleaner is strong enough to suck the > \>wasps together with their home. Actually, the ‘attended’ method is one I wouldn’t care to try - the captured insects are going to be emitting ‘attack’ pheremones and these will be streaming out of the vacuum cleaner exhaust vent; for that reason, I wouldn’t like to stand anywhere near it when it is in operation - not that any insects could get out of the nest to attack, but those returning could. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/6 "2004-09-06T15:01:38Z")
If you did decide to do something like that, I would suggest then (after aiming the exhaust away from you). Turning the vacuum on and shooting a can of raid down the hose after the bees. Or maybe even leaving the vaccum off, and pulling the hose out, shooting the raid in and then capping it off again. I really wouldn’t want to be(e) the one had had to empty it later. Upon re-reading the posts, it looks like your talking about a normal vacuum for this. I would very strongly suggest that you use a shop vac for a task like this. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/7 "2004-09-06T15:36:55Z")
I agree on the ShopVac. Lots more suction; long, usable hose; much greater capacity; and no problem with bags. I wish I had thought of this when a nest of yellowjackets built a nest in one of my exterior walls last year. Instead, I just waited for them to die out in late October. I think the vacuuming would have been fun. I also think you won’t have to wait too long to empty it out, even without bug spray. Seems to me that once a worker gets in the house, they spend all their energy up very rapidly trying to get out a window. They usually don’t make it to the end of the day before they expire. I’m guessing you could probably hear very well whether any number of them were alive inside. I imagine a ShopVac full of hundreds of angry yellowjackets makes quite a noise. Just wait until you can’t hear anything, then wait a little while longer for good measure. ---
**Author:** ![MC\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c77e96/32.png) [@MC\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MC_E)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/8 "2004-09-06T15:52:18Z")
On a serious note, I wouldn’t go spraying Raid down the hose of a running shop vac. They have warnings about using them around explosive gasses and whatnot. Now, if I had a shop-vac full of angry bees, I would throuw it in the back of my pickup truck, and go park outside the 7-11 where thieves will steal ANYTHING left in the bed within a matter of seconds. That would give them a surprise 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/9 "2004-09-06T19:01:15Z")
- - - When I was younger there was a older neighborhood lady who would vacuum up wasps with her floor vac, and then kill them by holding the (still running) vacuum cleaner up to the exhaust pipe of her running car. Seemed like a lot of trouble to go to whe there were insect sprays available, but whatever. ~ ---
**Author:** ![fortytwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f9ae1b/32.png) [@fortytwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fortytwo)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/10 "2004-09-06T19:13:36Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Almost makes me wish I had a handy wasp nest to try it out on, but there isn’t one on my property this year (although the number of wasps visiting my garden is truly phenomenal at the moment - I think it must have been an ideal year for them) My part of the kingdom is Surrey, and I’ve got 3 small (cricket ball size) nests in my loft…You’re welcome to practice here. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/11 "2004-09-06T20:25:06Z")
> [@Vetch](#): > > My part of the kingdom is Surrey, and I’ve got 3 small (cricket ball size) nests in my loft…You’re welcome to practice here. > 🙂 Not without a beekeeper’s suit - in the open air, you can run away screaming if it all goes pear-shaped; in a loft, you have to carefully climb down through the hatch while the little bastards sting you to death. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/12 "2004-09-06T21:58:05Z")
You mean… they can _live_ inside the vacuum cleaner?!!? :eek: I have been amusing myself at idle moments during the long hot summer by honing my ability to suck the occasional wasp _right out of the air_ using the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner. I naively assumed that this meant instant death for the wasp. (Aren’t there, like, spinning blades, knives etc inside? 😃 ) Now I learn that they might be able to find their way out? And does this go for… eek… **spiders** too? Normally I’m very humane with spiders, but the other day an ENORMOUS one appeared down the chimney, and the missus was having kittens, and I’m afraid I vacuumed him up. Made a very satisfying sound as it slid up the hose… but might it have found its way out again? Don’t tell my girlfriend! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/13 "2004-09-06T22:03:37Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > IIRC, this is about how they got rid of the wasp infestation at the international space station last year. Except of course, they didn’t use a vacuum cleaner, they just drilled a hole in the wall and the wasps got sucked into the airless abyss of space. 😕 Am I being whooshed here?? ---
**Author:** ![moes\_lotion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@moes\_lotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moes_lotion)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/14 "2004-09-06T22:41:55Z")
It works, I’ve done it three times now. Each time a canister style vacuum was used and the nozzle was positioned within an inch of two of the entrance to the nest - held in place so that I could get a reasonable distance away before switching on the motor. It’s pretty funny to watch, returning wasps don’t seem to have a clue to the approaching danger, they fly straight towards the nest and then suddenly disappear up the nozzle. Wasps trying to leave the nest seem to sense that something is wrong, you can see them holding on for dear life once they get into the air stream but eventually their tiny feet fails them and away they go. The optimal time to do this seems to be just before dusk, when any foraging wasps are returning home. I’ve found that for the mid-sized nests (6" to 10" diameter) that I’ve done it to, after 20 minutes or so there are no more wasps returning home and pretty well any wasp inside has come out to see what all the fuss is about and has gone up the hose. It’s true that they can survive inside the machine, at least for the canister types I’ve used. The sound of a few dozen really pissed off wasps buzzing angrily, echoing up the vacuum hose is pretty spooky - kind of like the sound effect used in the Exorcist. I never tried spraying insecticide down the hose - mostly because some of the commercial products (as someone has already mentiond) produce a potentially explosive areosol, plus I suspect that the plastic parts of the vacuum might be affected. Instead, I light a cigarette and cup it to the nozzle, running the vacuum until about two thirds of the cigarette is consumed. This kills the wasps immediately, although the next time you run the vacuuum it smells smoky. If you don’t smoke, or don’t want to waste one on the wasps, sucking a half cup of flour or any other very fine powder into the vacuum would probably also do the trick, as long as the powder is fine enough to clog the wasps spiracles (sp?) and suffocate them, although it is probably slower than nicotine. I usually knock the depleted nest into a bucket of soapy water and quickly submerge it for about ten minutes. Mostly all that’s left inside are the grub-like wasp larve and one or two rear-guard drones that refused to leave their posts. Curiously, I have never found anything that resembles a queen - but then I’m not sure what one would look like. So, there you have it - the method works for me and I haven’t been stung at all in three applications. It’s noisy and not terribly energy efficient, but if you can find a vantage point not too far from the entrance to the hive it’s pretty entertaining to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/15 "2004-09-06T23:08:23Z")
> [@moes lotion](#): > > Curiously, I have never found anything that resembles a queen - but then I’m not sure what one would look like. Just a big fat wasp, about half as big again as a normal one, maybe twice as big. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/16 "2004-09-07T01:09:02Z")
> [@Futile Gesture](#): > > 😕 Am I being whooshed here?? Yes. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/17 "2004-09-07T01:29:43Z")
> [@moes lotion](#): > > I never tried spraying insecticide down the hose - mostly because some of the commercial products (as someone has already mentiond) produce a potentially explosive areosol, … sucking a half cup of flour or any other very fine powder into the vacuum If you want to use a fine powder use talc. Grain flour is composed of combustible stuff that is finely divided. It is explosive as hell. Grain dust explosions are a continual hazard in farms and flour mills. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/18 "2004-09-07T01:32:25Z")
This page has info in [grain dust explosions.](http://www.fireworld.com/magazine/grainperil.html) ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/19 "2004-09-07T01:32:41Z")
And when you’re done vacuuming up the wasps, you can put the vacuum cleaner on “reverse” and wreak havoc with your waspthrower! ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327/20 "2004-09-07T01:52:39Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > IIRC, this is about how they got rid of the wasp infestation at the international space station last year. **Space Wasps?** [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-if-i-just-vacuumed-up-all-the-wasps/263327.md?page=2)