Think that once the summer is over and the BBQ has been packed away, that’s the last you’ll see of wasps? Unfortunately, not. For Area Pest Control, winter can be a busy time of year for removing wasp nests in the home.
Take earlier this month. We were called to a customer in Bedfordshire who spotted wasps coming out from under the roof tiles. We had a look inside the house but were unable to locate the nest, so we worked from the outside to treat the access point.
A week later we got another call. Rather a lot of dying wasps had been discovered in the guest bedroom and the owner had no idea where they were coming from. On our return, we spotted a small hole in the wall and quickly realised what was happening. Some of the surviving wasps had eaten through the wall to make their escape!
Dealing with a wasp nest inside the home
As the insecticide powder was preventing the wasps from leaving via the front of the nest outside, they had decided to go out through the back way, which was untouched by the pest treatment. And once the wasps had figured out their exit strategy a bit of plasterboard wasn’t going to stop them.
Once we knew what the wasps were up to, we re-treated the nest to exterminate the last of them. As the guest bedroom wasn’t being used, we sealed the hole with tape to prevent any wasps coming out until we returned a week later.
At our next visit, we carefully removed the tape and were pleased to see that there were no longer any live wasps in the nest. The plasterboard had been weakened from the wasps’ activity, so we removed the wall very carefully to avoid any damage to the ceiling or surrounding area. We were then able to take out the wasp nest. All that was left was for us to reinstate the wall with plasterboard ready for redecorating.
Wasp nests in winter
Don’t be surprised to discover a wasp nest in your house in November. You might not have been aware of the nest during the year but when the male wasps start dying off over winter you may suddenly find evidence.
It’s best to get a wasp nest removed. They can start to give off a fish like smell as well as offering harbourage to other insects.
