Removing a wasps nest.

[Matthew]

Hi,

I hadnt been in to the loft for a few months. Last night I found a wasps nest in there. Its only small about the size of a fist and is quite a thing of beauty.

Its at the edge of the roofspace near the eves. Im not sure whether its dormant or not. I was going to try to slide a box underneath it and knock it off the back of the ceiling felt using a long 6' pole. Then quickly place a lid and fly spray it. At least our loft is cold and anything inside should be sluggish I hope.

Do you think it will work and how firmly attached are the nests?

Thanks, Matthew

[Set Square]

What you have is almost certainly an over-wintering place for a queen wasp. They are often quite pretty - like little chinese lanterns. Try to give it a generous dose of fly/wasp killer *before* removing it.

[Huge]

You needn't bother. The wasps leave in the winter and do not re-use old nests. Block up the hole they used to gain access to the loft so they don't re-use the loft space if you don't want them back next year.

(And believe me, I loathe wasps, so if I reckon it's OK to leave them, it likely is.)

[Chris Bacon]

Have you seen any wasps around? The only ones I've seen are queens looking for somewhere to hibernate (they easily fall prey to the rolled-up newspaper!). Don't try what you're proposing when wasps are active, i.e. earlier in the season, or they'll make you pay for it, if you're not protected.

I should think it's empty, if you can get it off fairly intact, it will be interesting to examine it.

[Chris Bacon]

It's as big as his fist - so, probably a nest that's been abandoned at this time of the year. One option is to get a plastic bag, and close it around the nest, gathering the whole thing in the bag, which should obviously not have holes! If there's anything alive in there, which I doubt, a few drops of petrol squirted in will quickly gas it.

[Peter Johnson]

That was pretty much the advice I got from the local authority pest control when I found a couple of nests a few years ago, so I left them, and sold up the following year! Apparently small nests are made at the end of season and are never fully viable.