How to Kill a Stinging Insect Nest in Your Home

In many climates stinging insects are a real nuisance. During the warmer months the sound of buzzing strikes fear even in the heart of the most seasoned gardener. Worse is when you might suspect that these insects might have made a home inside your home, coming up between siding and living inside your walls. Suddenly you not only have the little terrors outside in your yard but inside your home as well.

Stinging insects, like all insects, are cold blooded. Temperature change makes a large difference in where they seek to build their nests. When it grows too hot, your nice cool air conditioned home may become the ideal place to build a nest for them. Here are some of the warning signs of a stinging insect infestation.

1. If you find stinging insects inside your home that is a dead give away.
2. Buzzing or humming noises coming from inside a wall.
3. Discolored spots showing up on your interior drywall
4. Finding dead insects inside your home.

Ridding yourself of these hazardous pests is a four step process. First look to see if a large number ot fhe insects are near part of your home. If so watch to see if where they are entering, cracks along faucets, underneath siding, and around facia boards are a good place to look. Identifying the type of stinging insect is important as well. Yellow Jackets are black and yellow striped with pinched waists, red and black wasps both have elongated bodies to go with their coloring. In any case the most important thing is to determine what they are not. Honey Bees have rounded abdomens (back ends) and longish legs, if you suspect you have honey bees nesting in your home take no further action. A professional is needed, due to the damage Honey Bees can cause if they are killed and their honey begins to melt inside your walls, causing a sticky damaging mess.

Once their entrance point is located, you should make sure you have the right tools. In most cases you will have to find a speciality pest supply store in your area to acquire what you need. A bulb or bellow duster is the first thing you need, then a chemical powder to place in it. Boric Acid dusts work well enough, but Drione, Deltadust and other dust products work very well and tend not to clump when moist. Now comes the part that takes a little courage. After reading the label and placing the dust into the duster (only a small amount is needed you do not need to fill the entire duster). Place the tip of the duster into the whole that the stinging insects are coming in and out of and squeeze twice. Be prepared to move away quickly and then freeze for a few moments. Stinging insects are attracted to movement and will lose track of you if you do not move.

Stinging insects coming and going into the nest carry the dust throughout the nest itself and within a few days the entire nest will be dead. It is then wise to use caulk or expandable foam to seal the entrance so no future uninvited guests decide to move in. Leaving the dead nest in the wall does no harm (with the notable exception of honey bees as mentioned above) so make no worry about leaving the dead nest where it is.

It is extremely important to read the label before using any chemical product. The label on a pesticide is a legal document, and misuse can be both hazardous and illegal. However when used correctly it is no hard thing to take care of stinging insects in the home, and coincidently appear to be a hero to your spouse and children, something which no one ever regrets.