Stink bugs!!

[PcolaCamper]

Our travel trailer is infested with stink bugs. They are hiding somewhere and one or two at a time show up. Last Fall we were camp hosts in NC Smokies, and they hitchhiked home with us. The last week of October they were all over the campsite. I tried bug spray which was a mistake, left an odor and only stunned them long enough to catch in my soapy water trap. The back storage compartment has a strong odor too which may be because I sprayed a lot of bug spray in it, and unfortunately the odor comes through to the inside. I don't know for sure whether the lingering odor is the bugs or chemicals from the spray. I'm stumped, don't know how I'm going to rid our camper of these creepy pests.

[Carb_Cleaner]

What is this soap and water bottle you speak of?
I usually suck them up with our dust buster and empty the catch basin, outside. If it's late in the evening and I don't feel like going outside to empty the dust buster, I plug the nozzle of the vacuum with a paper towel, so they can't escape. After dropping the bugs on the ground (empty the vacuum's bucket), I squish them with a rag, throwing the rag away into our outdoor trash can, having read that their odor warns other stink bugs to stay away.
We camped in Williamsburg, VA last Summer (near enough to Northern Neck, I guess), and they came out of the woods to swarm our rig, just before Sundown. When we got home, I opened all outdoor hatches, like the fridge, battery compartment and water heater, to vacuum them up. Although they weren't numbered in the hundreds, a few is too many. Don't forget to check your stove's exhaust hood vent, power-cord door and under roof vents.

[DSDP_Don]

We stopped in North Carolina three years ago for my nephews wedding. We were there three days and saw them on the exterior of the coach and found a few inside. While driving into DC a few days later I saw one climbing my "A" pillar. I crushed it with a Kleenex. That was a huge mistake. The smell was atrocious. We found several through the trip and one or two every trip for two years.

I know they get active in the heat. Maybe crank the heat up to 80 for a couple of days and flush them out.

We're doing a coast to coast trip this summer and intend to fuel up and drive straight through the area if I can.

[RoyB]

When I got over-run one time I used the long hose of a vacuum cleaner to suck them up from all their hiding places... Then I would go dump the vacuum and do some more... My trailer has the air conditioner duct built into the ceiling foam from one end of the trailer to the other. This was plum full of them...

We had them real bad here in Northern Neck VA a few years ago. Last year I thought they were going to be bad but wasn't... The year they so bad here a few years ago the local TV guru's keep telling everyone how good they were to cook up and eat them... I guess alot of that went on for awhile around here haha... Not me however....

Roy Ken

[BluegrassBill]

Asian Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs. Our neighborhood east of Woodland, Wa. was besieged with them last fall. We vacuumed hundreds with a shop-vac outside and soapy water to hold those hand caught inside. Only insecticides that say stink bugs on label will work. They hide in clusters and singularly. At our house I found them packed under the roof vents and eave gutters. On the winterized motorhome anywhere they could fit including the tire covers. I started the engine just to warm it up and they came out in droves from underneath. I expect as the weather gets warmer they will be coming out of hibernation.

[tegu69]

Yeah we got them from northern North Carolina last fall. We used pieces of duct tape to catch them (dozens of them). We probably still have some and a friend suggested we use Terro stink bug killer. He bought his motorhome complete with stink bugs and he tried all sorts of remedies and thinks the terro worked.
Another friend in NC told us that this year is supposed to be worse than last year.

[CavemanCharlie]

They have been seen in MN. Soon they will be everywhere. I don't know about Stink Bugs. But, I found a product called "Tempo" that worked wonders on the Chinese Lady Beetles. You spray that on the outside of your house / camper and when the bugs come in they die right away.

I would certainly give it a try for the stink bugs. I doesn't seem to have much of a smell.

[wildtoad]

We picked up a batch of them coming through Tennessee one time. Could not even go out the door without hundreds of them trying to get in. It took two years to get rid of them. Beat of luck....

[PcolaCamper]

The Ortho Home Defense sounds like exactly what we need. I'll look for it and let you know how it works out. Non toxic when dry and no odor according to the info I found. Thank you!

[lots2seeinmyrv]

We have them in Maryland. Never saw those darn bugs until we moved here. In the Fall they get in the house and trailer. They find hiding places and go dormant over the winter. They are waking up and are starting to get active.

I went in the trailer and went through some dish towels and they were hiding in there! Fridge is clean and they crawled under the crisper drawers. They crawl up in between the drapes.

Good luck!

[newman_fulltime]

spray yourtrailer with home defense they hate thel stuff i spray mine twice a year

[PcolaCamper]

Did the bomb leave a bad odor? Not that that matters at this point I guess!
I have a bottle of soapy water I'm using too, has screw top lid. Also tried one made with 2 liter coke bottle cut in half and top inserted upside down into bottom filled with soapy water.
We have a short local trip coming up then home for about 5 weeks before going to host at Shenandoah May and June. May have to strip down the camper and use the bomb.

[Campforever]

IT IS MY HOPE THAT SOMEONE ON THE FORUM KNOWS A REMEDY BESIDES THE "BOMB." I AM A CAMP HOST IN NC AND WE HAVE THEM. SO FAR COLLECT THEM IN A SOAPY BOTTLE WITH A TOP.

LOL, EVEN MY DOG WANT ROLE ON THEM, NOW THAT IS BAD...

[amandasgramma]

We were invaded last summer by a member of the stink bug family. To say it freaked me out is putting it mildly. I'm not tslking a few, I'm talking 1000000000000s. We vacuumed up, sprayed, etc and nothing worked. We finally used a chemical bomb. Now mind you, we gad vacuumed where the insides of my new white vacuum was now brown from bug juice!!! After the bomb, we walked in to a layer of black snow all over our rig!!!!!!!! I'm suggesting to just go ahead and bomb the rig. Good luck!