The Great Mud Dauber Mystery -- SOLVED (finally ;-)

[rgranger]

So in my new-2-me Hunter 26, I would occasionally see a mud dauber fly in and out of the nose of the boat. I'd go looking for the nest but could never find anything. Seeing as they make SUCH A MESS, I really wanted to find and destroy the nest. But I could never find the nest. Didn't see any daubers on my recent cruise but then they were back when I parked the boat on the trailer. Flying in and out as before

Well today I decided to service my cary-on AC unit...

During the cruise, I left the AC unit in the truck....

Now I need to clean up and recharge the AC unit.

r

 

[kappykaplan]

Good find. Glad your problem is solved!

 

[51RD55]

Oh wow! Nature vs man; man vs nature. I bet your real glad to have that sorted out!

 

[Roadking Larry]

My AC unit (just like the one in the OP) spent the winter in my shop at home. I gave it a good looking over and cranked it up on the bench for a test at home before I lugged it down to the boat a couple weeks ago. All was a big GO.
Go it set up on the boat and it was blowing good cold air.
By that time though I was soaked with sweat.
The head on my boat is under the forward hatch where the AC unit sits. After getting it all set up and running I decided I need to use the head. Well, with my back to the vent I was taking care of business when I heard a clanking racket from the AC fan and it blew pulverized mud dauber nest all over my sweaty back and neck, Not only did the noise make me jump and cause me to lose my point of aim but now I'm covered in mud and I need to clean the head and cabin floor.

 

[woodster]

My AC unit (just like the one in the OP) spent the winter in my shop at home. I gave it a good looking over and cranked it up on the bench for a test at home before I lugged it down to the boat a couple weeks ago. All was a big GO.
Go it set up on the boat and it was blowing good cold air.
By that time though I was soaked with sweat.
The head on my boat is under the forward hatch where the AC unit sits. After getting it all set up and running I decided I need to use the head. Well, with my back to the vent I was taking care of business when I heard a clanking racket from the AC fan and it blew pulverized mud dauber nest all over my sweaty back and neck, Not only did the noise make me jump and cause me to lose my point of aim but now I'm covered in mud and I need to clean the head and cabin floor.

mud wrestling anyone

 

[rgranger]

My AC unit (just like the one in the OP) spent the winter in my shop at home. I gave it a good looking over and cranked it up on the bench for a test at home before I lugged it down to the boat a couple weeks ago. All was a big GO.
Go it set up on the boat and it was blowing good cold air.
By that time though I was soaked with sweat.
The head on my boat is under the forward hatch where the AC unit sits. After getting it all set up and running I decided I need to use the head. Well, with my back to the vent I was taking care of business when I heard a clanking racket from the AC fan and it blew pulverized mud dauber nest all over my sweaty back and neck, Not only did the noise make me jump and cause me to lose my point of aim but now I'm covered in mud and I need to clean the head and cabin floor.

That is hilarious.... uh.... I mean, I'm really sorry that happened to you. Great story though...
.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

I'm glad you found the culprits, but that's not a mud dauber nest, it's a hornet nest!
Mud daubers do what their name implies...they pack tubes with mud that hardens into stucco. They're especially attracted to open tank vent and above-waterline open thru-hulls...they even packed the venturi tube on my boat's gas grill with mud one year. They don't fly either...they lay their larvae in the mud and leave. We have to scrape it out with screwdriver.

 

[rgranger]

Hi Peggie... the picture was hard to make out but they were mud daubers. They started their mud pipes on the coil in my AC unit then followed the coil around .... so the pipes turned into curls that curled in on themselves and made it look more like a blob. It was very much mud and the little buggars look like wasps-ish creatures. And unlike hornets, they were not very aggressive. I've had two run in with hornets and one with yellow jackets this year already. Only got stung once though....not sure why so many stinging insects this year.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

I did a little more research and I stand corrected. It seems there are several varieties of mud dauber...and apparenlty what you had are a species called "open pipe" mud daubers. I 'd never heard of 'em before.
http://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/stinging-insects/open-pipe-mud-daubers/
I learn something new every day!

Interesting that you've already had a run-in with yellow jackets this year...they're an autum scourge in my neck of the woods...we never see 'em till then.

 

[rgranger]

...

Interesting that you've already had a run-in with yellow jackets this year...they're an autum scourge in my neck of the woods...we never see 'em till then.

Yes I agree.... I've lived here for 24 years and in my mind, yellow jackets are more of a problem (in my yard) in dry years or late in august when things get more dry. It has been a very wet summer so far. I've had two nests on my back deck. They made their nest between the deck planks and the under-side ceiling panels... so they are really hard to kill completely since I can't get a clean shot with the spray and... I'm not willing to use the gasoline trick on my deck ;-)

We also have something called "bell hornets" around here that are the size of a grown man's thumb. They are not terribly aggressive (thank God) since their stings can kill a person... and of course we have the Whinne The Pooh type hornets that make the nests that you see in trees...

But the only ones that ever seem to mess with the boat are the mud daubers. I had once purchased a new piece of fuel line. I got busy and left it in the shed for a week before I got around to hooking it up.... and a mud dauber had made a nest in my new fuel line. Little buggars. When I know I'm going to be away from the boat for a while, I leave a jar of moth balls open in the boat. Seems to help.

 

[speras]

We had multiple mud dauber nests in our Mac that we needed to clean out this weekend. She was at the slip for several weeks without any action from us, which might have made it more attractive to the daubers. I found probably a dozen or more small tubes throughout the interior, and even in the folds of the sails that were stowed below decks.
I first thought of moth balls, but considered that since the interior has at least some airflow that their active ingredients would just disappear over time. So I bought a pair of hanging traps (Rescue! WHY) from HoDe positioned outside at either end of the boat. We'll see if they help. I'm cautiously optimistic even with the mixed reviews.
Interesting comment from another sailor at our marina: he thought the spiders haven't been nearly as bad as in prior years, but the wasps are much more of a problem.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

People have all kinds of remedies that are supposed to relieve insect stings--rub tobacco into 'em, aspirin...none of which work. Meat tenderizer does! I used to keep a bottle of it in the medicine chest in the head on my boat. Wet the sting...sprinkle meat tenderizer on it, rub it in. In less than 5 minutes you won't know you've been stung. Unless there's a reason why you can't take antihistamines, a single OTC Benedryl capsule relieves any swelling. I've used it for yellow jackets and also the time when I poked a fire ant mound with a short stick (WHAT was I THINKING???) and they were all over my hand and fore arm in less time than I could drop the stick. Hosed the ants off, covered my arm with what amounted to a meat tenderizer paste and took TWO Benedryl that day! 10 minutes later it had never happened.

 

[Justin_NSA]

We use to have all sorts of trouble with them on the Mac. They would build nest on anything. Structure, clothes, anything. I think the Hunter closes up too tight for them to get in. We never have them now, which is nice because we haven't has to hang the pest strips and release all those chemical below.

 

[rgranger]

Peggie.... I feel like I'm picking on you ... sorry... don't mean to...but tobacco does work... but first about the meat tenderizer. Meat tenderizer is an enzyme that breaks down protein. The venom in bee stings is an acidic protein. So the meat tenderizer works by breaking down that protein and makes it easier for your body to carry it away. Very effective....Tobacco works by a different mechanism. The nicotinoids (nicotine and related compounds) are part of a family of compounds called alkaloids. These are basic and can pass through the skin, so they neutralize the acidic portion of the bee venom. Tobacco will also work very well on fire ant bites because the venom in fire ants is formic acid. I keep a pack of redman in my medicine cabinet (as well as benedryl and meat tenderizer) for bee stings and ant bites. I'm actually surprised that meat tenderizer worked on your fire ant bites... I can't think of a mechanism to explain it. Meat tenderizer should also be effective on jelly fish stings since there is protein involved...but I have not tried that one yet. I have used tobacco on wasp, yellow jackets and ants with good effects. The tobacco seemed less effective on yellow jacket stings than wasp stings and was fantastic with fire ants. If you try tobacco again, you need to make a balm. I usually stick a whetted wad under a band-aid pad and just stick it over the sting for about an hour. Usually the sting will be gone by that time (except yellow jackets-- only partially gone). Same thing with fire ants.

 

[Pat]

We had an infestation of mud daubers in our mainsail cover....they built homes at every mainsail slug. While not a 'big' issue . the main sail had large areas which were stained by the nexts. We talked about how to get the stains out and decided to try Oxy-Clean laundry detergent on each stain while scrubbing with a long-handled brush and low and behold, the stains all came out.....someone on this forum also suggested using dryer sheets so now we have dryer sheets stuffed in the main by the mast and also at the aft end of the boom/sail cover.....This has worked very well.....we also use them in the cabin as necessary.
The daubers at our lake do not seem overly aggressive...many years ago we had a friend who was a teacher in an environmental elementary school here in Wichita....one weekend everyone was getting stung by the daubers and such only to find out that Sue had put a bowl of honey on the bow of her Erickson 28 because the daubers were frantic for nectar...Pat

 

[MitchM]

if something with a vent doesn't work, a good thing to do is look for hornet or dauber mud blocking the vent -- like a fuel or water tank or holding tank vent... a bad blockage in your fuel tank vent can cause real engine problems which mechanics will cheerfully share you $$$$$ before they figure it out.

 

[All U Get]

I've had two run in with hornets and one with yellow jackets this year already. Only got stung once though....not sure why so many stinging insects this year.

Election year.

All U Get