Fire Extinguishers

I was checking my fire extinguishers this week and noticed the one in my carport had a mud dabber nest in the nozzle. The pressure probably would have blown it out, but. I cleaned it and put a small piece of masking tape over it.

I get them in my air tools. I don't think the pressure would blow them out. I can't even budge them with a pressure washer until they get soft from being wet.

Yes, I plug up all mine too. Also the farmall H carburetor drain, welder tips, etc etc.

That's part of the annual inspection.

They are supposed to visually inspect the nozzle type, and take the hose off the hose type, sight through it.

Also a good idea to turn the dry type upside down and shake the powder loose, especially if on a vehicle or a machine.

Good idea on the tape!

My biggest summertime PIA. Really can tear up a lot of equipment....anything with a hole in it gets plugged.....had one plug up the key hole on a riding mower and had to buy a new switch. Electric motors are at risk big time. I keep several squirt bottles of insect spray mix around the place and shoot one any time I see it. They love to fly though the open 12x12 shop doors. If I close them they keep testing the building till they can find a hole to penetrate. Since they are sliding metal barn door type things, they poke around till they find the cracks at the building-door interface and correct their entrance route. Sitting and waiting, after awhile here they come and head straight for the side of the closed door to get in.

I have attempted to figure out their navigation system. It's quite elaborate and would be worth a study if someone were seriously of that interest. Sometimes I see one coming in at chest height and I am where I can so I deliberately move into it's flight path. Different things happen but at times they stop in flight for a few seconds (getting their bearings since their path was interrupted), find a way around me and get back on their path to their nest.

If you move their nest, they come back to where it was and get confused, spending time flying or walking around looking for it.

One of my air conditioner's condensation drain spots is onto sandy loam and you won't believe the hole they dug over the summer in just that spot. I believe they communicate with each other on where there's mud available close to where they chose to build their nests.....which could be anywhere, folds of a folded tarp for example, I have a spray rig on my Gator-ette (JD L 110, converted to a getaround, multipurpose vehicle) primarily used for spraying Brown Recluse Spiders and Fire Ants and when I think about it I go buy that spot and any place I find them digging.