Start of wasp nest

northwest1965

I have a potting shed and over the last few days have noticed a few large wasps in there.

I am now concerned there may be the start of a nest going on.

What do i look for (or my husband as I ain't doing it ) I can't see any apparent wood stripping on the shed itself

Silvertabby

We had this last year, but were able to destroy the nest before it became a problem. Ours was fixed to a ceiling rafter, was a little over golf-ball size, and looked like it had been made out of paper mache. It had little honeycomb shaped cells in it, and was quite a work of art - but if we'd left it we wouldn't have been able to use the shed for months.

Fosterdog

We get them every year, as described above they are around golf ball size, a creamy browny colour and look like they are made from paper, that is when they are new and small, they eventually get much bigger.

Getting rid when they are very new is as easy as just destroying it but once more wasps have taken up residence it is obviously much riskier.

APennySaved

Thanks - great to have wasp nests described, as we had one a few years ago (BTW like other posters here, these were found in garden shed) but we thought initially they weren't a wasp nest as thought that these were meant to be bigger (we must be remembering large wasp nests as seen in comics in our childhood!).

But can you tell me what TECHNIQUE (DIY) or SERVICE did you use to get rid of wasp nest?

Would prefer NOT to get a service as did so last time & it was quite pricey. We are happy to try DIY if it is cheaper, but don't want to run any risks of getting stung! :eek:

Farway

When I had one starting I used the most obnoxious chemical I could find in my lethal horde in garage, sprayed it and ran

It worked, a few Polar bears may have been harmed in the process

At this time of year there is only the Queen there, and perhaps some little 'uns

[Deleted User]

I killed a wasp nest in my shed using a foamy spray (found it - https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000TAY2EQ/)

You wait until dusk when they are slower but you can still see, then spray from a few meters away (then run like I did!). It sticks to it all, then dissolves it. It did the trick first time.

No need for a special service if the nest is in an easy to access place.

molerat

Plenty of off the shelf DIY foamy sprays available in the sheds, a pro is only necessary if access is a problem or maybe if the nest is as big as seen in the horror movies

My son called a pro in because theirs was in the attic right down in the soffit, accessing it from the loft could have been risky if they got annoyed so the man used a can of spray on a long pole and sprayed into the access hole. Job done, they cleared the nest away when they had the soffits replaced this year.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I just stood outside behind the shed door and knocked the paper tennis ball down with a broom, then legged it pretty sharpish in case any tenants were annoyed and mature enough to be mobile.

If it had been any larger, I'd have paid somebody to take the risk for me, as less than eight foot as the angry wasp flies from the back door was a little too close for my liking. Mainly because I can't run and leap up three foot of steps very quickly. Twelve foot away over the wall and in a disused garage was fine by me, as all I ever saw of them was their methodically stripping my plants bare of bugs, beasties and caterpillars all summer.


I just keep checking in spring in case one lady wasp decides it's the perfect spot. As it is, all the solitary bees seem to enjoy their homes outside the shed, so I think I've escaped the door-broom-sprint-and-leap event for another year.

Apodemus

The good thing is this is one situation where you don't need chemicals at all (so the polar bears can rest easy!).

Simply use a hand sprayer or garden sprayer and mist the nest with water. The mist is too fine to upset any guarding wasps, but the paper nest sucks the water in. The wasps simply cannot have a damp nest, it will become mouldy inside and kill the brood. After a couple of days they will move on to drier quarters.

Davesnave

Wasp nests here are usually in the field banks, which are riddled with animal holes. The wasps just take over an old burrow. Makes sense; why draw attention?

As they're usually a few hundred metres from the house, with plenty of food near the nest, they don't bother us much. I just need to know where they've taken up residence, so I don't start thrashing the ground around their entrances with the brushcutter!

In a rented property we had for a while, a few years back, there was a nest in the lawn. Every time I mowed, they'd come out and buzz around, but I think these ground-nesting wasps are of a type that isn't very aggressive. I was never stung by them.

Suffolk_lass

If anybody has a ground nest as the previous poster describes (but it is too close to the house, or a bee-hive, for comfort) good old nippon ant powder is the stuff to use. Spray it around the entrance hole on a dry evening at dusk and reapply a day or two later to ensure it has worked.

We have also had wasp-starters in wooden sheds, and a nest too close to our bees (that attacked the hive and stole the honey in late August), oh yes, and one in the thatch that we had to get a professional to spray (outside our (then) small Son's bedroom window. Up to tennis ball size is fine to treat yourself - we bought a spray and applied it at dusk. No need to run away.