Why Are Michiganders Finding Dryer Sheets in Their Mailboxes?

Earlier this summer people on social media were talking about how they kept finding dryer sheets in their mailboxes. I didn't think much about it until I saw someone else asking the other day if it had happened to anyone else.

Since this was happening to so many people, we figured it was worth looking into.

Apparently, It's that uncommon to find dryer sheets in your mailbox during the hot summer months.

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Why You Might Find Dryer Sheets in Your Mailbox

The answer is as simple as your mail carrier not wanting to get stung by yellowjackets and wasps.

According to Fox 2, a postal worker took to Reddit to inform people of the truth behind the dryer sheets. Posting under the name Istrx13, the user explained that the dryer sheets are used to keep wasps away.

Postal worker Istrx13:

I can’t tell you how many times, especially during this part of the year, where I’ve opened up a box to see a little nest with three-to-five Yellowjackets just chillin. If I’m really unlucky, they will have made their nest at the very back of the box so I wind up sticking my hand in not knowing they are there. We all know how temperamental these little insects are and merely existing in their presence is enough to piss them off. Last year alone I was stung 10 times on 10 separate occasions.

So please, if you one day randomly see a dryer sheet at the back of your mailbox, just know that your carrier more than likely put it there to deter these Satanic creatures from building their home in it.

The postal worker also said that it's just something to use as a preventative measure. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to go around stuffing dryer sheets into wasp nests.

See Also: Why Michigan Yellowjackets are so Freaking Annoying in The Fall

If you've got a nest building up in your mailbox or anywhere else around, safely place a dryer sheet by it and see what happens. I suggest doing this at night when bees are less active.