Lots and lots and lots of wasps

[lb99]

I was having the obligitory pre shifting cleanout yesterday, and whilst rummaging in the back of the wood bin, I suddenly found myself surrounded by 1000s of wasps. Naturally I bolted, and I was surprised not to get stung at all.
I cracked open a beer and sat down to watch them for a while, it took quite a long time for them to calm down ( about 4 cans), and I was able to see where the entrance to the nest is, the only problem is that its tricky to get to and buried under a whole heap of garden rubbish, which will make it really hard to sneak up on them with a bottle of petrol.
Anyways this morning at about 12.30, I loaded up the pump sprayer with petrol and proceeded to douse the area, paying particular attention to where I suspect the entrance to be.
Then the neighbours came home pissed and procceded to get loose with fireworks - scarey.
This morning I still have a heap of wasps, and to top it off they are on to me, I cant get anywhere near them, has any one got any good wasp killing tips?

[eliot-ness]

No problem. If you are going to use petrol wait until sunset, the wasps will all be back in the nest. Put a few inches off petrol in a bottle and push the neck of the bottle into the hole. leave it for a couple of days and your problem should be over. Wasp killing powder can be put in the entrance to the nest at the same time of day. Takes a bit longer to work.

[apteryx_haasti]

Call in a professional exterminator. That's what they're paid for.

We once went to what had been called in as a house fire (volunteer fire brigade) because people had seen a huge puff of smoke behind this house.

We got to the steep driveway and can't see smoke nor does it look like the house is on fire. So, the officer and I go up the driveway to suss out what's going on. There's this guy with a garden hose, surrounded by wasps. Turns out he had tried to burn out their nest using petrol soaked paper (in the middle of summer when he lives on the edge of bush reserve) and had accidently set fire to a little bit of bush, which he had managed to put out with the garden hose (that was the puff of smoke that had been called in by the public).

The officer explains to our fire chief down in the truck what was going on. I'm watching the wasps buzzing around this guy. Chief asks do we need any more water up there...we just look at the guy and decide nope. Nope we don't.

Good luck with your wasps!

[Jantar]

Go to your nearest garden shop (or Mitre10) and buy a small container of Carbaryl. This is normally mixed as a spray, but instead use the neat powder and sprinkle it as close to the entrance of the nest as you can get. The wasps will carry the powder into the nest and kill it from the inside.

[DingDong]

I use CRC, with the long nossel... they die straight away (if they're all in there)

You could always burn the shed down, I'll bring the beers:yes:

[lb99]

You could always burn the shed down, I'll bring the beers:yes:


erm the neighbours might be a bit upset, seeing as the woodshed is built against their garage.

ha ha, one of the kids chucked a rock at it "I'll get em out dad" now they are all out, the birds are having a field day, even the cats are having a go.

I'll have to have a go at clearing some of the rubbish out tonight , and see if I can get at the actual nest

I have to adbit it is kinda fun stirring them up, like playing with explosives really

[bull]

Go to your nearest garden shop (or Mitre10) and buy a small container of Carbaryl. This is normally mixed as a spray, but instead use the neat powder and sprinkle it as close to the entrance of the nest as you can get. The wasps will carry the powder into the nest and kill it from the inside.

Yep Carbaryl sp? is the way to go, i normally make a blow pipe with some carbaryl in it, walk to the nest entrance, blow pipe and the carbaryl goes all over the entrance, then walk away. Normally overnight the nest will be dead as the wasps pick it up on their feet and take into the nest.

[Dai]

And when you are finished I'll have the nest.

Very good as wadding in BP cases.

[Shadows]

I've taken out a few nests at night using a 50:50 diesel/petrol mix poured right in the entrance from a nozzled petrol container. Pour it right in there and then plug it really quickly afterwards with a rag soaked in the same mixture. Don't freak out too much when the ground starts buzzing angrily beneath your feet (you can sometimes feel the vibration), unless you find that the nest has other entrances you don't know about!

If the nest is way too hard to get to, as Jantar said before, toss some Carbaryl at the entrance. The wasps will do the rest themselves. If it is really bad then wait until there is a cool evening (plently of those at the moment) and direct a fine mist of water at it from a hose for a couple of hours. This will hopefully cool the nest down a bit and make them sluggish enough for you to get closer.

Either way you'll want to get out of there pretty quickly and stay away for a day or so.

[Timber020]

If its close to the house you can leave a vaccum cleaner running next to the entrance for a while. Then just spray some killer up the pipe before you turn it off.

Poison works best though

[lb99]

I used the trailer cover and built a fumigation tent, I left a small opening for them to get in and out, and gave it a good squirt with some industrial insectiside from work, I came back and gave it another dose every 15 min or so. so to get in or out of the nest they have to fly though a tent full of insectiside, now there is f'n heaps of dead ones writhing on the lawn, and f'k all in the air, so thats got the numbers down a bit, tonight I will clear out the rubbish fron the corner and try to find the entrance.

[kro]

I used an old can of crc, and a cigarette lighter, the little bastards didn't stand a chance. They took over my mates garden shed, and we went all rambo on their asses, and fully torched the colony.

[TonyB]

My old man always used to use a beer bottle (not a stubbie) full of diesel. Seak up on the nest after dark and shove the beer bottle into the nest opening. At this point it pays to scarper. I think there are baits and things you can get these days which are more environmentally freindly...

[Ixion]

Wasps had built a nest within the wall of a house I had some years ago. They entered by a crevice by the chimneystack, but the nest was some distance from that within the wall cavity, and judging by the number of wasps, was a large one.

I obtained a "Borer-Bomb" from the hardware store , lit the fuse and pushed it through the entrance crevice, to fall within the wall.

Vast clouds of stinking smoke emanated from all the joints in the wall, a spectacular sight. Hordes of dying and infuriated wasps emerged also, intent on exacting a final revenge. I was sensible enough to run away as soon as I had tossed the bomb in, and watched from a good distance.I was quite impressed with the spectacle, as were the neighbours.

After an hour the smoke abated, leaving only a lingering unpleasant odour for several days. All the wasps were no more, and no further trouble was had.

I can unreservedy recommend the "Borer Bomb" product, which in those days was to be had , for a very moderate sum, at all good hardware stores, chandlers, station agents and general providers. I do not know if they are still available, having had no need of recourse to them in recent years.

[Motu]

The Borer Bomb was the weapon alright,but I could smell the stuff for years,decades later in some of my stuff.I've only had to deal with paper wasp nests,and WD40 sorts them out.We had a bee swarm go into the ceiling of a bedroom once - they were quiet over winter and I didn't realise they were still there,I thought the swarm had moved on.When they got active again we kept getting a lot of bees in the house,more and more every day,kids were getting stung.I got a guy to come around and get them out,he came after dark and took the queen,poisoned the rest.Then I had to clean up - rip out ceiling tiles,scrape all the wax from the timber (they will come back to that apparently),paint it and fit new tiles.

What sort of wasps? The fat yellow and blacks (German wasp?) make ground nests,the skinny ones make paper nests and are nasty.Wasps haven't been in this country long,the German wasp arrived in the '40's I think.

[Lias]

Couple of summers ago we had real problems with a wasp nest under our house, with the entrance near our front steps (but still hidden under the house) I was fucked if I was crawling around under our house which has very low foundations trying to deal to them and paid a professional $120 to sort it out.. money well spent imo.

[lb99]

What sort of wasps? The fat yellow and blacks (German wasp?) make ground nests,the skinny ones make paper nests and are nasty.Wasps haven't been in this country long,the German wasp arrived in the '40's I think.

I think they are the paper wasps, the skinny ones, the nest is inside the walls of the woodshed, under a pile of rubbish (bark and stuff)

Those german wasps are mean, we could do with a few here to keep the flys under control

[jrandom]

I was having the obligitory pre shifting cleanout yesterday...

Well done on avoiding getting stung. I can recommend the Ecolab pest control guys if you need someone to call. [Edit: Although they're probably not available in Blenheim.]

However, I just gotta say. Discovering a wasp's nest while clearing out? Luxury.

This one time, about three years ago, I was cleaning out the shed prior to shifting house. Lifted a cardboard box over my head and a wee spider dropped out and crawled into my right ear. No shit. It took me a few seconds to realise what had happened.

Did the mad ear-slapping jumping dance of doom for a wee while but it didn't help. Spider quietened down and I figured I'd finish the job and then pop down to the A&E and get it syringed out, or something.

As it so happened the spider stayed quiet and I didn't get around to being arsed about going to sort it out, so it stayed in there overnight. I got woken up several times by it skritchy-scratching around on my eardrum.

In the morning it was still there and I'd had enough, so I inserted a wet cotton bud and gave it a tickle-up. It ran out and down my cheek and got slapped and proudly displayed to Mrs Fish and the kids. It's a pity that they [edit: spiders, that is; not Mrs Fish and the kids] always curl up their legs when they die; it looked much bigger before it got walloped.

I would have used the wet cotton bud to start with, but my phobia of sticking things into my ear canals is much more powerful than my phobia of having mostly-somnolent spiders in there.

[sunhuntin]

Well done on avoiding getting stung. I can recommend the Ecolab pest control guys if you need someone to call. [Edit: Although they're probably not available in Blenheim.]

However, I just gotta say. Discovering a wasp's nest while clearing out? Luxury.

This one time, about three years ago, I was cleaning out the shed prior to shifting house. Lifted a cardboard box over my head and a wee spider dropped out and crawled into my right ear. No shit. It took me a few seconds to realise what had happened.

I would have used the wet cotton bud to start with, but my phobia of sticking things into my ear canals is much more powerful than my phobia of having mostly-somnolent spiders in there.


screw that mate! bloody hell...id likely tear me ear off to get it out...cant imagine nothing worse! im amazed you didnt wake up covered in web actually.

i had a horde of baby spiders hatch out in the little live xmas tree i used to have in my room. woke up xmas day, sat up and looked in amazment at the size of the webbing all of the ceiling. though i hate spiders with a vengence, i made damn sure they almost all survived....likely ate a few while asleep though. :sick:

[jrandom]

id likely tear me ear off to get it out...

I'm no arachnophobe. Spiders are good bugs. All crawly things are fine by me, in fact, except cockroaches. Fucking cockroaches. I jumped out of a perfectly good inflatable boat and into a lake last week because a bush roach crawled out between my feet.

If I ever follow Rincewind to EcksEcksEcksEcks, I suppose I'm going to have to develop a healthy level of spider-hatred, purely for self-preservation, or I'll probably turn green, swell up and die within the first week after sitting on a toilet seat without DDTing the underside first.

[Motu]

I jumped out of a moving car - going downhill!,when a wasp was buzzing around me.My wife seemed to bring the car under control easily enough,apparently she wasn't concerned about the wasp with a driverless car.I picked myself up off the road and got back in the passenger seat.

And as a note to the safety Nazi's - I was wearing no protective gear at all,not even a helmet!

[jrandom]

Nazi's

You did that on purpose, didn't you?

Didn't you?

[Motu]

What you seige?

[sunhuntin]

I jumped out of a moving car - going downhill!,when a wasp was buzzing around me.My wife seemed to bring the car under control easily enough,apparently she wasn't concerned about the wasp with a driverless car.I picked myself up off the road and got back in the passenger seat.

And as a note to the safety Nazi's - I was wearing no protective gear at all,not even a helmet!

i had a bee get under the visor of dads full facer once when i was wearing it. went cross-eyed looking to see what it was, calmly indicate, pull over and sit there wondering how to get the helmet off without getting stung. eventually worked out the visor does, in fact, move. both went home happy.
have been attack by two other bees though. one got wedged in the padding of my open facer. stupid me didnt know he was in there face first and got a finger full of sting when i went to flick him out. its hard changing gear with only two fingers!
second time, it got between my neck and jacket collars. didnt know it was there, and was looking at a giveway. turned to the right, prick. hmmm...whats that burning sensation?

both times a dab of honey did the trick in stopped the pain and swelling...i went home and self-fixed both times and then was back out again. gonna have to remember to put honey in the bike somewhere. too expensive to buy.

[Daffyd]

My ex wife had a great aunt that was killed when a wasp got into the car her husband was driving and got inside his glasses. It stung him in the eye and he lost control. This was many years ago...before the advent of seatbelts etc.

[Pixie]

Yep Carbaryl sp? is the way to go, i normally make a blow pipe with some carbaryl in it...

I'd love to see someone do this,but get stung by a wasp and suck instead of blowing:laugh:

[Pixie]

Well done on avoiding getting stung. I can recommend the Ecolab pest control guys if you need someone to call. [Edit: Although they're probably not available in Blenheim.]

However, I just gotta say. Discovering a wasp's nest while clearing out? Luxury.

This one time, about three years ago, I was cleaning out the shed prior to shifting house. Lifted a cardboard box over my head and a wee spider dropped out and crawled into my right ear. No shit. It took me a few seconds to realise what had happened.

Did the mad ear-slapping jumping dance of doom for a wee while but it didn't help. Spider quietened down and I figured I'd finish the job and then pop down to the A&E and get it syringed out, or something.

As it so happened the spider stayed quiet and I didn't get around to being arsed about going to sort it out, so it stayed in there overnight. I got woken up several times by it skritchy-scratching around on my eardrum.

In the morning it was still there and I'd had enough, so I inserted a wet cotton bud and gave it a tickle-up. It ran out and down my cheek and got slapped and proudly displayed to Mrs Fish and the kids. It's a pity that they [edit: spiders, that is; not Mrs Fish and the kids] always curl up their legs when they die; it looked much bigger before it got walloped.

I would have used the wet cotton bud to start with, but my phobia of sticking things into my ear canals is much more powerful than my phobia of having mostly-somnolent spiders in there.

I would wager that that little spider laid her eggs in your brain

[What?]

I deal to wasp nests on a regular basis. Favoured weapon is petrol poured into hole, then a wad of newspaper jammed in said hole to prevent escapes.
2nd favourite weapon is Carbaryl (takes longer to work, but petrol doesn't flow up hill...)

Tip - do the job on a dark night, and use a red light to see with (hunting spotlight with red lens, but a red plastic bag tied over a good torch does the job). Wasps usually have a few guards near the nest entrance, and a white light will wake the buggers up.

[Kiwicare]

I am a bit of an expert in dealing with wasps having been doing it here in NZ and in the UK and Ireland professionally for 30 years (ohh crickey is it that long?).

DO NOT USE PETROL - While this might seem like good fun and will kill wasps, it is dangerous. I have met a few people that are lucky to be alive after trying this and have come away with only minor burns and embarrasing loss of facial hair and pride.

If you can identify the entrance to the nest use a powder type insecticide such as carbaryl wasp dust or carbaryl wettable powder. The wasp dust comes in a puffer bottle which will allow you to puff the powder into the nest. Otherwise use a long spoon or ladel to coat the entrance with powder. Do this in dry conditions. Damp will make the powder stick together and wasps will not pick it up on their feet and walk it it the nest.

Powder has a calming effect on wasps, in the same way that beekeepers use smoke to calm bees. Liquids will tend to make wasps angry. Carry out he treatment at dusk when there is little activity.

German wasps and common wasps are only distiguishable by the patern of stripes on their abdomens and both are known as paper wasps. Their nests are made of 'paper' they make from chewing wood. Early in the year the workers feed primarily on sweet foods but they are likely to change their diet to more protein later in the season and this seems to make them more aggressive. Wasps will catch insects on the wing and will attack bee colonies in a raid for the bee's honey store. There are other species of wasp in NZ but these are solitary wasps or only form loose colonies and are unlikely to sting.

Wasps can sting multiple times, unlike bees that have barbed stings which stick in human skin and is left behind when the bee flies off. The bee then dies of its wounds.

A good source of info is www.kiwicare.co.nz

[MSTRS]

There are other species of wasp in NZ but these are solitary wasps or only form loose colonies and are unlikely to sting.



What about the Asian Paper Wasp http://img2.photographersdirect.com/img/24234/wm/pd2148373.jpg. These are aggressive little shits. I have been stung by these things and it's nasty.

[Supermac Jr]

I used an old can of crc, and a cigarette lighter, the little bastards didn't stand a chance. They took over my mates garden shed, and we went all rambo on their asses, and fully torched the colony.

This is the best way to do it. Flammable deodorant (sp) or similar works fine. Funny as when you've got the flame going and they 'get' to you...

[Winston001]

Interesting thread dredge. ;)

IB99 - there is an old retired guy in Arrowtown who's life mission is to destroy wasps. So far as I know the QLDC supply him with Carbaryl and he does it simply as a community service.

Ask around.


Groan - you're in Blenheim, not Arrowtown. Duh.

[lb99]

I moved out of that house like 30 months ago, left the wasps for the landlord to deal with.
I moved to a street with some state houses, so now I have feral kids to deal with.........

[Elysium]

, so now I have feral kids to deal with.........

P should work, its what the gangs use.

If anyone wants to see a huge wasp nest go to Te Manawa here in Palmy (same place where Motorcycles Unleashed was held) they have this massive wasp nest cut in half. About a metre or more in length.

[GOONR]

When I was a kid I was playing tag in an old arm base in the UK. Saw my mate and ran through a load of bush to get to him.... There was a wasp nest in the bush, cracked it wide open with my head, ferk the little bastards chased me for ages. I got stung ALL over, shit it was painful. I don't go anywere near the little bastards now.

[Oakie]

I moved to a street with some state houses, so now I have feral kids to deal with.........

Leave a plate of Carbaryl at their door....