How to Make Homemade Insect Traps

How to Make a Homemade Yellow Jacket Trap

Step 1: Cut a 2 liter bottle just below the shoulder of the bottle.

Step 2: Now you have 2 separate pieces - the top part we will use as a funnel.

Step 3: Insert the Funnel into the Bottle.

Before you put the inverted spout into the bottle put 1/2 cups water mixed with 1 teaspoon of dish soap in the bottom of the bottle. A little vinegar added to the water is reported to repel honey bees from visiting the yellow jacket trap.

Put the inverted spout into the bottle. Secure the 2 pieces of bottle together. I use a paper punch and twist ties so the spout can be removed easily for cleaning the trap once it is filled with yellow jackets.

Always clean traps in the evening when yellow jackets are not as active, and always make sure they are all dead before handling the trap. Pour in another cup or so of juice, soda or sugar water. Be sure and pour the sugary stuff in thru the spout so that the outside is coated with the sweet stuff they like.

Your yellow jacket trap is best located at least 20 feet from human activity areas and about 4 ft. above the ground. It should be moved as necessary to keep the temperature around 85 degrees F. Hang it in the shade on warmer days, and in the sun on cooler days.

Many yellow jackets are likely to visit these traps, which means you will need to empty them regularly. If you don't, the bodies of yellow jackets will create islands on which the new ones can rest without drowning. You will need to maintain the bait every few days for best results.

How to Make a Homemade Fly Trap

Follow the same instructions for making your trap out of a 2 liter bottle. I own horses and flies are always a problem. I hang several of these traps every year, with great success.

Use a few chunks of raw meat or some minced meat in your 2 liter bottle and cover it with water. I have had great success with a couple of tablespoons of cat food. After a day or two, the meat will start to decompose and when it comes to flies the smellier the better!

I really enjoy finding recipes to make a natural bait that is cheaper and safer than commercially bought baits. There are few things in this world that I despise more than annoying, disease-carrying flies!

Check out Google for more bait recipes on trapping yellow jackets and flies. There are a lot of ideas out there that are quite interesting.