Wasps in a Nesting Box

8mv

Hi there
I've noticed that wasps have moved into a vacant nesting box outside our back door. If I leave them alone for a couple of months, will they die off when the season is over? I don't want to do anything drastic like burn them with fire unless I really have to. At the moment, they are not a problem.

rje66

8mv wrote: »

Hi there
I've noticed that wasps have moved into a vacant nesting box outside our back door. If I leave them alone for a couple of months, will they die off when the season is over? I don't want to do anything drastic like burn them with fire unless I really have to. At the moment, they are not a problem.

They will become a nuisance later on when their duty in the nest is done and they crave the sugar it supplied but is not there anymore. Cue annoying wasps around the garden when you have a bbq!!!

rje66

8mv wrote: »

Hi there
I've noticed that wasps have moved into a vacant nesting box outside our back door. If I leave them alone for a couple of months, will they die off when the season is over? I don't want to do anything drastic like burn them with fire unless I really have to. At the moment, they are not a problem.

They will become a nuisance later on when their duty in the nest is done and they crave the sugar it supplied but is not there anymore. Cue annoying wasps around the garden when you have a bbq!!!

Ambersky

Ive had a couple of wasp nests over the years and they have never bothered me. If I dont bother them they dont bother me. In autumn there are some irritating and unusually persistent wasps around all right but that seems normal to me and part of being outdoors. I have one at the back of my house in the attic and their opening is close to my office window ( I have a fly screen) and I can see them coming and going. In previous years I have had a nest to the front of my house.
They eat some of the bugs in my garden and Im trying not to use insecticide so I reckon we have been co existing fairly well up to now and Im going to leave them and see how it goes.

8mv

Thanks Ambersky
I agree that they are not a problem and I don't want to disturb them at the moment. However, the nesting box they are using is one of those with a camera in it, hooked up to the TV in the kitchen. (They've covered the camera lens with their nest material, so unfortunately, we can't see them in their environment) I'd like to have it back at some stage. Will they abandon the nest at the end of the season?

Ambersky

Yes they abandon the nest in the winter, how soon Im not sure but they leave a beautifully made feather light construction that feels like its made of paper. You can safely remove that and have a look when they have gone but it breaks very easily so its hard to get it out in one piece to show anyone.
I think my attic must be ideal for them as its true they have never gone back to the same nest but have moved to different places. I reckon if I put a bit of effort into blocking the holes in the facia and between the roof tiles etc I could get rid of them but I will see how this year goes.
I dont use the attic that much so its ok.

droidman123

Can anyone reccomend a good pest control company or is one as good as the other? I have a wasps nest in my attic,I can see them coming and going from outside my house.there's a tiny hole just above my front bedroom window. Would the pest control guys have to get into the attic or just spray the stuff into the hole? I was going to leave them but my young daughters bed is just below where I think they are,they can't get into the bedroom but its unsettling for her at night as she can hear them.

Edit, I hope I am posting in the right place,apologies if I am not.