Get Ready for the Wasp Season with Effective Wasp Control

Essex and Suffolk Pest Solutions offer successful pest control services to homes and businesses in Manningtree, Ipswich, Woodbridge, Colchester, Braintree, Harwich and elsewhere in the Suffolk and Essex region. We receive an escalating number of inquires about wasps in the summer and offer effective methods to tackle the problem and prevent pests driving sales down, causing a nuisance and threatening public health. If you need effective pest control in the Manningtree area, including wasp control, just read on to find out how we can help or follow the link below.

Pest Control Manningtree – contact us now for friendly, effective service.

Why are Wasps a Pest?

Many people enjoy an outside meal in summer. But there is nothing more off-putting than tucking into a restaurant meal only to find a swarm of wasps circling your food and drink. The ‘wasp season’ falls in July and August time when the feeding habits of these pests change and they seek out sweet carbohydrates. Businesses most at risk of attracting wasps are not only farms, factories and supermarkets, but also those with outdoor eating areas such as pubs, hotels and restaurants, where wasps in large numbers can potentially drive away customers.

However, it is not just wasps getting at food and drink that causes a problem; wasps also pose a threat to public health. As well as the discomfort caused by a wasp sting, thousands of people in the UK receive medical attention as a result of allergic reactions from wasp stings – and the worst affected are often the most vulnerable sections of society such as children and the elderly.

In extreme cases a wasp sting can cause a fatality. Anaphylactic Shock, for example, is a life threatening allergic reaction that can be attributed to wasp stings. In addition to this, hundreds of people die a year as a result of heart attacks brought on by a wasp sting.

Wasps can target rural areas and towns in equal measures, which is why pest control services, are vital in Manningtree, Colchester, Ipswich and further afield.

When is the Wasp Season?

Up to the time of mid-summer, the adult worker wasps prey on other insects to feed their young. At this time, it’s quite rare for humans to get stung by a wasp, as wasp stings are mainly down to either disturbing nests or by accidently standing barefoot on wasps that are hunting in the grass.

However, the habits of wasps change from mid to late July, when they seek out sweeter food sources. This is when they really become a nuisance as these sources are mainly found where humans are likely be – such as by outside eating areas, in orchards or in and around waste bins or other disposal units.  

Where do Wasps Build their Nests?

Wasps nests are found in a variety of places: in banks, hedges, shrubs, in the ground and in and around buildings such as lofts, soffits and under tiles.  In particular, they will be anywhere where that is sheltered and warm. 

Will Wasps Go Back to the Same Nests?

If you do find yourself with a wasp nest near your home or business, wasps won’t return to the same nests. Although the worker wasps die, the queens will hibernate in safe, sheltered areas, such as buildings, and emerge to build a new nest, the following spring.

The average number of wasps in a nest can be vast. In the UK a mature colony could have up to 20,000 wasps. However, at Essex and Suffolk Pest Solutions, we normally find an average of 2,000 – 5,000 wasps per nest.

Which Species of Wasps are the Biggest Pests in the UK?

The biggest pests are the common wasps (Vespula Vulgaris) and the European wasp (Vespula Germanica). Populations change from year to year. Last year (2012), however, saw a relatively low number of wasps, which was mainly down to the variable wet weather in the spring. 

Can I Get Rid of a Wasp Infestation Myself?

Various products are available from garden centres, or DIY stores that claim to offer some form of wasp control. However, this is risky; there are various dos and don’ts that are essential.

For instance, DO wear protective clothing, DO apply pest control solutions at the right time of day, and DON’T apply pest control in confined spaces or where other people are around and may be stung.

Bringing in the Professionals

Not only is tackling the problem of wasps yourself risky, but there is also no guarantee of success, so the best bet is to bring in the professionals.

Professional pest controllers use various ways to tackle the issue of wasps including the use of insecticidal dust that works over 48 hours to eliminate the whole colony. This can be applied with a dust stick or DR5 which allows fully trained staff to treat the wasps from a distance.

If a nest needs to be removed instantly, for example because it is a public health risk (e.g. next to a footpath) then a spray treatment can be used to remove the whole nests if it is accessible. Full protective clothing would need to be worn to do this.

Wasp traps can be an effective way of dealing with nuisance wasps.  These are very popular for use by food retailers with outside eating areas, such as pubs with beer gardens.  Essex and Suffolk Pest Solutions attend client premises to survey and advise on Wasp Management programmes.  We carry out a full survey and then supply and strategically install wasp traps considering such things as wind direction, how sunny an area is and the whereabouts of other food sources (eg. drink or food remnants, orchards etc).  We use Waspbane wasp traps as they do not cause the wasps to swarm and the wasps rarely escape.

About Essex and Suffolk Pest Solutions

If you have a wasp problem, contact Essex and Suffolk Pest Solutions. We are fully insured for all our pest control services in Manningtree, Essex, Ipswich, Suffolk, and further afield. We also guarantee our work so you can be assured of effective results.