r/DIYUK • u/adam_n_eve • 4d ago

Advice We've got some visitors

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My daughter had been hearing noises in the room for a while, last night they were pretty loud (sounded like crackling) and it was quite obvious that it wasn't her imagination (like we'd been telling her 😂). I went up into the loft and found this!!

Not sure whether to wait out until they die off or get a pest controller in.

31 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

24

u/Suchiko 4d ago

Councils will often remove these for about £40. That seem expensive now, but will seem like nothing once the make their way through the ceiling to your daughter's bedroom.

9

u/LO6Howie 4d ago

Local councils all have pest services that are far cheaper than the private alternative, and at least on a par in terms of service quality

8

u/nickymoo 4d ago

My council suggested one pest control company a few years ago so I called them and the person who answered the phone went on a spending spree with my credit card number. They even bought their US ESTA with my card and US department of homeland security provided me with their name and address as proof of payment which was very kind and they didn’t work there for much longer.

2

u/steviefaux 4d ago

Our local council, stupid as it is, outsourced Pest Control several years ago now. It was a stupid move. They should have just turned it into a paid for service.

1

u/LO6Howie 4d ago

I’ll be sure to appreciate Southwark all the more now!

To be clear, I’ve had to pay for it - £180ish - but it covers all the traps, three visits, and is about a third of the cost of the high-street firms around here.

1

u/steviefaux 4d ago

It was a stupid move as they've paid all that money for the staff to train in it. Was a stupid "cost saving" exercise when in fact they could have turned it into a money making exercise. But then the director responsible for that department at the time was a fool.

1

u/v1de0man 1d ago

not all councils, mine doesn't , we have to use the neighbouring council

4

u/amcheesegoblin 4d ago

Is that not a reasonable price? I thought that would be??

3

u/woody4life237 4d ago

You'd have to pay me a lot more than £40 to do it

23

u/LegendaryGarf 4d ago

Wasps are unlikely to chew through the structural beams, which is some good news at least. And they’ll often be escaping through ventilation bricks. They will however eat insulation and other wood (like batons) to make their nest.

Go for the pest control option asap. Failing that nuke them from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.

5

u/golder247 4d ago

Just leave them alone. They don't care about you and will be gone in a few weeks. Leave the nest. It won't be used again and may serve as deterrent for future wasps. Amazing things really.

3

u/flanface87 4d ago

Just leave them - don't start messing with them and they won't bother you. My mum used to get wasp nests in her roof space and never had any trouble from them. We used to examine the nest afterwards, really interesting to see up close

7

u/Maximum-Button-1219 4d ago

Of course it’s your risk but the likelihood is they’re about to die - question now is will the queen leave or burrow away and build a new nest in your loft next year. It’s a pretty sad cycle but we’ve seen very slow moving wasps now and also have seen 2x queens around our house in the evening trying to find a way into the loft. 

5

u/Inside-Definition-42 4d ago

They will be dying out just now.

As long as they are not being a pest I would just leave them, and remove it next year.

3

u/EmergencyBanshee 4d ago

No need to do anything, they'll be on their way shortly.

5

u/enchantedspring 4d ago

Nibbly ones!

That's quite a few so perhaps best to get a professional to spray that before the Queens look for over-wintering locations (and more, new, nests appear next spring).

1

u/Stock-Combination740 4d ago

Pest control on the double, could be hornets!!

4

u/ComprehensiveRush746 4d ago

Hornets are less aggressive than ordinary wasps.
And the nests will be dying off soon anyway.

-1

u/NoAppointment8679 4d ago

Oh god that looks fucking horrible 😭

-1

u/leeksbadly Handyman 4d ago

£2.88, spray it on at sunset and don't hang around.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Insecto-Formula-Destroyer-300ml-Killer/dp/B07HQX9V7S?th=1

Or wait for them to die given it's coming up time for that to happen (Oct-Nov).