Ann Hartley
Although this looks a bit like a tennis racket, it is actually a rechargeable insect zapper. I bought it to protect myself from wasps. The conventional advice regarding wasps is Do Not swat them. I laughed aloud when I read that the alternative was to wait patiently until the wasp leaves. This was not “a” wasp. They had a nest outside my classroom door. They were not leaving. I had a duty to protect myself and my students. The only question was if it would work.
If you have never been stung by a wasp you might think I was mean to kill them. Some of them are kind of pretty, actually, if you can get close enough to appreciate that fact without getting killed or maimed. In the United States about twice as many people are killed by bees and wasps than are killed by dogs, for example, and that is about 5 times more than are killed by spiders, snakes, and scorpions combined. Most people do not actually die from a wasp sting, but unlike a bee, the wasp has a stinger that does not fall out, so the wasp can sting repeatedly. When a wasp beats its wings rapidly this alerts other wasps in the vicinity to come and sting you too. Apparently, about two million people in the United States are allergic to the venom of stinging insects. Even if you are not allergic to wasp venom, permanent scarring can result from even one wasp sting. Did you know that even after a wasp is dead it can sting you?
So I bought this thing. It holds a charge for about 2 weeks and recharges quickly in a normal wall socket. It doesn’t just kill the wasps, it turns them into dust.
Viva the zapper!
Wearing heavy leather gloves I once reached to open the door of an out building, forgetting wasps could be around. Something hit my hand and felt like a small dog bumping it, then there was instant and severe pain. I saw the wasp fly away (I’m guessing he was confused or maybe hurt by the heavy leather), then I turned and ran, peeling the glove off as I went for my tea tree oil. It was one nasty sting that hurt for days, making a blistering sore. After a couple of weeks I was brave enough to give some heavy yard work another go. I put those same gloves on and I am not kidding, the place the wasp stung me on the glove initiated pain, swelling, and itching in the same spot on my hand. I was really surprised at how strong the venom was. The gloves went in the trash but it took several days for my hand to heal up again.
Wasps are vicious and dangerous. They need to be turned to dust. Do your duty well!
I believe you. Once I was stung on the face by one just as I brought my golf club down to hit the ball. Not only did that mess up my shot, but it gave me a black eye.
They’re vicious little sods, too. They sting things for fun…
I’ll say! One got me under a fingernail a long time ago and I was just minding my own business. *whine*
Screw those guys, I destroy their nests wherever I find them
Very good solution, Robin, except that in my case we are not allowed to have alcoholic beverages at school. Nice try, though!
One has to be careful not to try to swat with this thing, but to let the insect fly into it.
You are right, their sting is not forgotten even after they have died.
Wow, if these kills cockroaches as well … *evils*
And I didn’t know wasps sting leaves scar!!
Thanks for sharing this!
They don’t always leave permanent scars but they can! I don’t think it would penetrate the thick shell of a cockroach. Some of the wasps are not fully executed on the first pass, but it knocks them down to the ground where they are vulnerable.
I do it in this way.
In the empty plastic or glass bottle I get beer.
I grind the bottles of honey to honey to attract the shins.
Then I hang the bottle near to my grapes, the gases are shrinking.
When they fall into the bottle they simply get drowned. They do not bother you. Drink the beer and drink it half-axed!
I don’t think that would work well on my porch, Robin. The honey might attract ants.