Will a Dryer Sheet in a Mailbox Deter Bees?

If you’re a queen bee, the inside of a vacant mailbox might look like a pretty good place to stay for a while and maybe even establish your hive. It’s protected from the elements, warms up quickly in the sun, and has plenty of room. It’s also a relatively undisturbed space at least until someone moves into the house and the mailman comes with the first mail delivery. Ouch!

If you live on the property, or you’re the one delivering mail, you are interested in keeping the bees away. But, as pest control expert Brad Guerrera cautions: “Bees are vital to our ecosystem, so it’s important to handle situations like this carefully and humanely.”

So, what’s a safe and effective way to deter bees from mailboxes? Some people say to use dryer sheets. Does this work? Let’s find out.

Why Put a Dryer Sheet in Your Mailbox?

Mitch Coluzzi is the head of construction for a company that buys and sells abandoned houses, so he is well-acquainted with the problem of bees in old mailboxes. “An old mailman’s trick is to stick dryer sheets with linalool in vacant mailboxes to ward off bees/wasps,” he says. “It became an old wives tale when folks were using random dryer sheets, but if you use sheets that contain linalool, which is a natural deterrent to bees and wasps, it works.”

Do Dryer Sheets in Mailboxes Actually Deter Bees?

Dryer sheets must have some deterrent value, or no one would have ever thought to use them in the first place, but Guerrera isn’t particularly impressed. “In my experience,” he says, “dryer sheets might provide a temporary fix, but they’re far from reliable.”

Coluzzi, on the other hand, is more bullish on the practice. “We send and receive a lot of mail, so at a cost of just 12 cents a sheet, keeping the mailman happy and safe feels well worth it!”

Snopes identifies the claim that dryer sheets keep stinging insects like bees and wasps out of mailboxes as “unproven,” which means it may or may not work. For the curious homeowner, that probably means that the best way to find out is to try it. You’re more likely to have success if the sheets have a strong scent, says Guerrera. “Bees rely heavily on their sense of smell for navigation and communication, so overpowering scents can disrupt them and make certain areas less attractive for nesting.”

How Do Dryer Sheets Deter Bees?

“Dryer sheets don’t kill bees,” says Nicole Carpenter, another pest control expert, but she agrees with Guerrera that they can be an effective deterrent if they have a strong scent. “The chemical compounds that neutralize static and soften fabrics emit strong, synthetic scents that can confuse bees’ sensitive olfactory systems. The mixture of fragrances and fabric softeners mask pheromones, can make the area less attractive to bees.”

Does linalool make dryer sheets more effective? According to Science Direct, linalool is a common floral volatile found in over 200 plant species, including lavender (a popular scent for dryer sheets). As such, it could well attract bees as effectively as it repels them. If dryer sheets actually do function as a deterrent, it’s probably the combination of linalool and other synthetic chemicals they contain that is responsible.

Alternatives To Dryer Sheets to Deter Bees From Mailbox

“For long-term prevention,” says Guerrera, “I always recommend inspecting mailboxes and other outdoor structures regularly and sealing potential entry points. This not only deters bees but also helps prevent other insects from setting up shop.”

Strong-smelling essential oils, such as neem, peppermint, citronella, eucalyptus and cloves are also known to repel bees and other insects. If you spray one of these oils inside the box, and keep the box closed, you’re less likely to have a nasty surprise when the mail gets delivered, but keep Carpenter’s warning in mind: “There are different bee species, and some bees might like or dislike specific chemicals.”

About the Experts

• Mitch Coluzzi is the head of construction for SoldFast, a nationwide home restoration company.
• Brad Guerrera is the owner of Houston-based Expert Pest Control and is a leading authority in humane wildlife removal and eco-friendly pest management.
• Nicole Carpenter has been working in pest control since she was in high school. She is the President of Black Pest Prevention, which serves North and South Carolina.

Sources

• Snopes: Do Dryer Sheets Repel Wasps From Mailboxes?; (2021)
• Science Direct: Linalool; (2021)

The post Will a Dryer Sheet in a Mailbox Deter Bees? appeared first on Family Handyman.

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