They build their nests inside the pipes and get stuck inside the fans in my bathrooms and hallway. Occasionally, some get out and fly around my house. My husband is highly allergic so he has to leave the room while I chase them and kill them. They are going in through the tops of the pipes on my roof and building their nests, and this happens every year. What can I do to keep them form getting in the pipes? I want to cover the pipes with breathable material but I need some ideas. Anyone recommend anything? Thanks!
2007-02-18 16:05:41 · 5 answers · asked by sweet_and_fabulous_female 3 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
Research and call a pest exterminator to evaluate and rectify the issue. Covering the pipes will not solve the problem.
All nests must be sprayed and destroyed. Then you must find out how they are getting in the first place. The entry point must be sealed. All soffits must be wasp free. Look for small holes they have made. Most home stores have insect guards. If nothing else, get some window screen in a color to match your roof stacks (usually black or white). Wrap the screen aound the wasp entrance and fasten with a cable tie. The pipe can still vent while keeping the wasps out.
Any respectable exterminator will come and spray the area to kill the wasps and give you a guarantee for the season: if the wasps reappear after the spraying, the exterminator should come back as many times as necessary to complete the job.
They use chemicals much stronger than what is available to the public. You can spend $300 a season on wasps spray every week, or pay an exterminator $175 a season for guaranteed results.
I have a carpenter bee problem and a wooded deck and fence that is a feeding ground to them. My exterminator comes once a year for the initial spraying and comes back any time the bees reappear, free of charge. It’s written in the contract. Look into it.
2007-02-19 00:21:14 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i would recoment using a slightly larger kind of mesh, screening seems like it would build up with dust too quickly and cause more problems(dont want to have a nasty little encounter when you go to clean the vent buzz buzz) look around for something with 1/8 openings, large enough to resist cloging, but small enough to keep most bugs out. you dont nesicerily have to install it on the outside of the vent. you could take the top off and put it inside. try stapling or riviting it into place so it will not fall out. if the bees still build nests in the vents you can kill them with some raid, or just let them go with the peaceful assurance that they can no longer get inside. bravo on taking care of your husband.
2007-02-18 17:35:00 · answer #2 · answered by cronos51101 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
screen mesh is the most obvious, just attach the mesh to a ring that can sit on top of your exhaust pipe and seat the ring on the pipe.....and shouldn't the fan have a cover to keep things from flying in? Get a new exhaust fan if it doesn't, they aren't that expensive and worth your husbands life.
2007-02-18 16:15:43 · answer #3 · answered by Z 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I don't know any solution, but congratulations to you on loving your husband so much to do that for him.
If you can see the wasp nests, perhaps you can spray them early on with that long distance (15-20 feet) wasp killer spray. Alternatively, you could put some kind of screen over the fan vents in your bathroom ceilings to keep them from coming in.
2007-02-18 16:15:17 · answer #4 · answered by Larry 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
If it isn't to hard to get to you can cover the vents with window screening. It's just that this could catch dust etc & clog up & need cleaning some times.
2007-02-18 16:20:57 · answer #5 · answered by Floyd B 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋