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[Sir Tigger KC]

A tenant phoned me a few days ago to report a wasps nest in the attic and they were getting into a bedroom!    I went round the next day and they'd chewed a hole in the ceiling and were dropping into the room one after another. It was like something out of a horror film!   

The loft hatch is right over the stair well and is only accessible with ladders, so I went back today (with ladders) to have a gander in the attic.  I couldn't see the nest but there was a hump under the insulation right where they are dropping into the bedroom and close to where they can be seen coming and going outside.

While I was stood on the ladder and halfway through the hatch into the attic, shining my torch onto this hump, they obviously became aware and started to emerge one by one, each one emerging quicker than the last and were flying straight at me! Aggressive little buggers!   

I beat a hasty retreat!   

I've phoned the council pest control dept but when I described the access difficulties, I was told that they didn't climb ladders etc...    I'm going to try some private pest control companies tomorrow, but was wondering if anyone here has any bright ideas/DIY solutions? 

I've thought of beating the shit out of the nest with a long length of batten or something, but I'm not sure I could do it and get out quick enough!       

Although I have been offered the loan of a bee keepers suit....     



 

[Rods2]

STEMO wise advice panel answer 1l: Go up into the loft, shout at them 'be off with you' and beat the bulge with a short stick. What could possibly go wrong?

STEMO wise advice panel answer 2: Pay him and his whippet a generous advance plus travel expenses and he will put his whippet into the loft. Where chasing flies are good, chasing hot stripped chilli flies and eating even better.

More seriously: It is getting to the cold time of year when wasps die off. So personally I would block the ceiling hole plus ceiling area with a sheet of aluminum and 'dare' them to chew through that and then reinstate the ceiling during the winter. Wasps don't nest in the same place twice, but I would use a sealant to block their loft entry & exit hole(s) to make sure in next & subsequent years they don't find a different area in the loft to nest.

[Bigron]

Cold could be a clue; after reading Rods2's message, I wondered if the sort of freezer spray that plumbers use might help? Less risky than a stick-and-run approach!
What sort of professional pest controller "don't do ladders"?

Ron.

[Viral_Jim]

If it were me, I'd shoot half a can of expanding foam up through the hole they'd chewed in the ceiling. Wait a bit for the fuss to die downl lob a couple of those bug bomb type sprays through the loft hatch at the hump, then beat a hasty retreat!

Again, what could possibly go wrong 

[STEMO]

If it were me, I'd shoot half a can of expanding foam up through the hole they'd chewed in the ceiling. Wait a bit for the fuss to die downl lob a couple of those bug bomb type sprays through the loft hatch at the hump, then beat a hasty retreat!

Again, what could possibly go wrong 

Wear the suit........

[STEMO]

Wait until they're quiet, late evening, and squirt some wasps nest killer into the hole. Beat a hasty retreat and shut the door till morning. DO NOT sleep in a bed under the hole. 

[Sir Tigger KC]

I forgot to mention that we've been plugging the holes in the ceiling with caulk, mastic and tissue and also we've been spraying Raid wasp killer into the holes.    They seem to have got the message that they are not welcome in the bedroom, but the noise they make when Raid is squirted into the nest is scary!   

Luckily my tenant is reasonably relaxed about it, but he has his kids at the weekends and dosn't want to have them there with the wasps nest.  So I have encourage them to bugger off soonish. 


I like the expanding foam idea! 

[aaronjb]

Don't be a slumlord landlord - get a proper pest control company in 

Otherwise, I hear Elon Musk was selling flamethrowers recently...

[Sir Tigger KC]

Don't be a slumlord landlord - get a proper pest control company in

Otherwise, I hear Elon Musk was selling flamethrowers recently...

I'm going to have a phone around today, but I feel that the difficult access is going to be a problem. 

Also because I'm not a slumlord I had the attic properly insulated a while back so there is about a 400 mm thick layer of insulation to contend with as well, which makes moving about up there difficult as well! 

[Viral_Jim]

Wear the suit........

Hey! If a jobs worth doing, it's worth doing with expanding foam!

[aaronjb]

Wear the suit........

Hey! If a jobs worth doing, it's worth doing with expanding foam!

[Viral_Jim]

Well, that escalated quickly! 

[aaronjb]

  I was looking for something more along the expanding foam line, but that gif popped up and I couldn't resist..

[Kevin Wood]

I'd get an insect-o-cutor, mount it in the loft, plug it in and shut the loft hatch quick. Then bang the ceiling a few times and wait for the buzzing to stop.

We got a council guy in to remove a nest in our loft. He just puffed a bit of cyanide powder around the hole they were using to access the loft. He said they only need to tread a small amount into the nest to kill the whole colony, so access to the loft wasn't required. Sure enough, they are all brown bread in quick order.

He did use an external ladder to get to the hole, mind. Strikes me that any pest control bloke who isn't prepared to do that is a bit of a chocolate kettle.

[Shackeng]

I am the go to guy for wasp nests in our Close. I just puff wasp killer powder into and around the entrance. This is all your council guy does. Sometimes two visits are required. Never been stung yet, and don't wear any protective clothing. You should be able to identify where their access point is.
I've currently got one in my own roof, but they don't bother me, and as they serve a very useful purpose, I'll let them be.