Wasps Around Your Guttering and Fascias? How to Find the Nest in Linton
Calling a gutter cleaner or roofer first is a common mistake; here is the right order of calls, plus a safe way to pin down the entrance before the wasp technician arrives.
Calling the wrong trade first
A surprising number of people ring a gutter cleaner, a roofer or a handyman as soon as they see wasps at the roofline. It makes sense: the problem is at the roof, so surely a roof person should sort it. But a tradesperson with a ladder and no wasp experience is walking into a defended nest, and many will rightly refuse to start until the wasps have been dealt with.
The result is a lost week and an annoyed builder. The sensible order is wasps first, repairs second. Once the nest is treated, the same tradesperson can work in peace.
For households in Linton, in the Leeds area, we suggest a simple sequence, set out below, which keeps everyone safe and avoids paying for a visit that cannot go ahead.
There is nothing wrong with the tradesperson, of course. The difficulty is only the sequence, and a short phone call to rearrange it saves money and frustration.
The order that works
- Spot the wasps, keep clear and note where they are entering.
- Ring a wasp technician and have the nest treated.
- Wait for the activity at the entrance to stop and the wasps to be gone.
- Book the roofer, joiner or gutter specialist for repairs or cleaning.
- Ask the repair person to close the gap and check the board and soffit are sound.
Tell any tradesperson already booked that there is a wasp nest, and ask them to hold off until it has been treated. A decent one will be grateful for the warning. Avoid the temptation to say nothing and hope for the best; wasps and scaffold poles do not mix.
Keep the notes from that first call. When the technician arrives they will ask where the entrance was, and a written line from you saves a conversation on the doorstep while wasps are flying nearby. Pass the same note to the repair person later, so nobody has to guess which board was affected.
Tracing the entrance for the person who rings
Whichever company you call, the more specific you are, the better. A good description can be put together without leaving the ground.
Stand back and look along the line where the gutter meets the wall. The wasps' entrance is rarely in the gutter channel itself; more often it is a slim gap above or behind it, where the fascia board and the wall do not quite meet, or where a bracket has pulled away.
Pay attention to direction. Wasps leaving a nest tend to fly off in a consistent direction towards food, and returning workers come back along the same route. Following the route back leads you to the spot.
If you spot droppings, small crumbs of wood or a darker stain on the board, mention it. Do not climb up, lean out of a window or pull at any loose board to check.
Booking the treatment
Phone 0113 347 0014, or use the form on the contact page. Tell us the position of the entrance, how active it is and what is below it. The price is given on the phone before the technician sets off: £90 covers the nest, any further nest on the same property is £35, and there is no call-out charge. If you are happy with that, we go ahead; if not, nothing happens.
We operate seven days a week and can offer same-day visits. Our technicians are trained and fully insured, and we work on domestic and commercial properties. If you manage a building where several trades are on site, tell us who they are and when they will be there, so the visit slots in sensibly.
If a member of the family is allergic to stings, make sure you say so when you call.
Special cases that change who needs to know
Not every roofline belongs to a single householder, and that affects whom you ring and what you say.
If the property is let, the tenancy agreement usually sets out who looks after repairs and pest problems. Read it before you spend your own money, and tell the landlord or managing agent promptly. A wasp nest is easier to deal with when everyone is working from the same information.
If you share a building with others, such as a block of flats or a row of attached houses, the entrance may be on a part of the roofline that is not yours. Let the other occupiers know what you have seen, and check who is responsible for the fascia and gutters in shared areas.
For a shop, office or similar premises, the same applies: the lease or the managing agent decides who pays for roof repairs. The treatment itself is straightforward, but repairs can involve several parties, so it pays to ask early.
In every case, keep a short note of what you saw and when, along with any photos. It is useful for the technician and for anyone who has to arrange the repair afterwards.
What the repair person will want to know
After the visit, pass on to your builder or roofer exactly where the entrance was. They will want to check the fascia for soft or split timber, look at the soffit for loose panels and examine any open joints around the gutter brackets. Gaps left open are an invitation to the next queen in spring.
If you want the empty nest removed from its cavity, raise that with the technician when booking. Whether it can be taken down depends on where it is and how accessible it is.
Do not allow anyone to start removing boards while you are still seeing live wasps. Wait until the entrance has been quiet for a while. If you rent, check the tenancy agreement before you arrange anything, and tell your landlord or agent about the nest.
Wasps on your property in Linton?
Fixed price £90 per nest, no call-out charge, same-day service available.