We think there is a wasps nest in the roof of the porch - what do we do?

[IHeartKingThistle]

They are going in and out through a gap in the mortar. Pretty sure they're wasps. Don't think there's any access to the main roof.

Is there a procedure I should follow? Help!

Find a pest controller that deals with wasps in the yellow pages. They'll tell you if it is definately a nest and if it is, will sort it out for you. They will either kill the wasps in situ or remove the nest, depending on the situation, access etc. should cost about £40.

Most councils will come out and treat a wasps nest. We had one a few years ago and it was sorted out. But there is a charge usually. I think that's the safest rather than trying to tackle it yourself.

Not all councils offer this service sadly, ours don't.

Tell them to either (a) buzz off or (b) beehive themselves

We have had three wasps' nests.

DH successfully tackled them with a spray he bought from B&Q.

One was an absolutely massive one in the loft, and I think he was rather foolhardy to take it on. He did have some protective gear he'd borrowed from work, though.

I'd get it done professionally if it were up to me to handle it.

I have wasps in my attic every year.

The wasp man knows to expect my call!

£40 and they're all gone.

fwiw, when we had a wasp nest in the roof above our bathroom (so 1st floor, not ground floor - so a bit different) we called out the council, & the bloke said that if we left them alone they wouldn't bother us, being too busy coming in & out looking after the babies, & it turned out that was quite true

he also said they would go away & not come back at the end of the summer & that was true too

So if you're prepared to chance it, you could just leave them to it.

But I can understand why you wouldn't want to, with them being just by your front door...

Our council got rid of ours, but charged about £40. (Kirklees Council ).

Thanks everyone! Will ring council tomorrow. DS has allergies and I have no idea how he'd react to a sting, otherwise I'd probably leave them be.

Are you certain they are wasps and not bees? If they are wasps then the nest will break down later in the Summer, they don't stay there forever. The main sting risk is if you are in their flightline as they leave the nest, but it sounds as though you are below that? I would worry if they are in a place where your normal movements might be seen as a threat to the nest, and I would worry if the nest is getting very large. Either you can kill them yourselves (night-time is best as they are all in there) or call the pest people as above posters have said. If you leave them alone then a wasp trap from waspbane is great for mopping up the dopey sting-happy stragglers you can get later in the year.
Oh and if they are bees, don't kill them!

If your ds has never been stung before, he won't react the first time he is stung, but he could react the second or subsequent time.

Really? That's interesting.

Forgot all about those drunk ones at the end of summer. Need to get rid I think!

If you can reach to where you see them crawling in, squirt some ant killer powder along the track they follow. They will take it in with them and this eventually kills the whole nest.

We had a wasps nest near our porch and this method worked a treat. It was in fact the council pest control man that told us to do this and saved us a few quid in call out charges !

Our local park has one of these It seems to work - I dont ever see any wasps there even in the cafe /picnic area. Might be worth checking out.

I have a waspinator, and they do help keep wasps away from an area, but if there is a nest already in situ then the wasps won't relocate.

I called council, after considering DIY, and was pleased after I'd seen the protective gear. First info I got was that they were indeed wasps and not bees, so don't worry about this aspect, and last info was that I'd get free return visit/s if they returned within a month.

Definitely worth dealing with!

We decided to leave ours last year...until we had all been stung,and I had my usual allergic reaction AND ended up on antibiotics after it got infected.

Eventually DH did a (effective) DIY job on it,but in hindsight,it'd saved a lot of fuss if we'd just done it sooner....

We have one nest a year in our eaves (we are in a bungalow). We usually leave them to it, even though last year's was just above the front door. It doesn't seem to make any difference how many wasps come into the house.

This year we have a free "trial" of AA Homecover, which, I was pleased to note, includes free wasp-nest removal. Of course, for the first year in ages we don't seem to have a wasp-nest!

ask council for name of wasp man, our council sub contracts and its 25 cheaper to ring direct

Definitely get rid of it. I had a wasps' nest outside my bedroom window once (September to November). They were in the loft and coming and going from the eaves.

Here's the thing: they don't die. You think they should, but there's frost on the ground and the little blighters are still getting into your house and buzzing angrily. I kept expecting them to go away on their own and they just wouldn't.

Get the pest controllers, is my advice. If they're in the porch roof, one trip should be enough. My pest people had to come back twice, because they killed the outside nest but not the part in the roofspace. Angry buzzing wasps eight feet above your head. All night. Do. Not. Recommend.

Am I the only one still laughing at K999? [bugrin]

I always use KPN Wasp Nest Removal - Nick is a really nice man & only charges about £35. I have used them a few times now & every time the treatment works within about 30 mins. I have added a link to there website at the bottom.
www.wasp-nest-removal.com

I would leave and never go back