Wasps in run

[aimwad]

Hi Everyone -

I have a pretty big wasps nest on the roof portion of my chicken run. What is a safe way to get rid of the nest? My chickens are in the run for the majority of the day - we only let them out in the evenings for supervised free range as we have multiple predators in the area. I didn't want to spray the nest with commercial product, I'd hate to have them get it on them or scratch in the dirt and ingest it.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

Cover yourself best you can, and open things up so you can run, then take a hoe, and slowly position it as close as you dare, then go 'wham'! Hit it as hard as you can, drop the hoe, and run quite a ways away.
We've done this several times. Leave it alone for awhile, a hour maybe. Then go back, and if you need to smash more of it, do so.
They will leave after that, if their nest is gone.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Cover yourself best you can, and open things up so you can run, then take a hoe, and slowly position it as close as you dare, then go 'wham'! Hit it as hard as you can, drop the hoe, and run quite a ways away.
We've done this several times. Leave it alone for awhile, a hour maybe. Then go back, and if you need to smash more of it, do so.
They will leave after that, if their nest is gone.

We tried doing that last year... hubby got stung in the face and neck. We checked it later and the wasps still didn't vacate the next day. Ended up calling pest control to come out and take it down (and yes the guy sprayed it). Thankfully it wasn't in the chicken area, but was still fairly close.

 

[aart]

What ever you do do it at night well after dark, best would be before dawn when it's coolest.
You may have to spray the heck out of it and leave the birds cooped for a day or two.
Can you post a pic of it?

 

[Chickassan]

Spray bottle full of almond oil, one that has stream/spray like you use for plants. Spray nest and wasps, when they're dead knock down the nest.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

The best and quickest method to kill a wasp nest is to use an empty pork & bean can or similar container and put about 12fl ounces of gasoline in it 2/3 to 3/4 full. Slowly walk up to the nest then quickly and forcefully dash the gas directly on the paper wasp nest from close range. Take my word for it, you can't kill wasps quicken with an atom bomb.

 

[ChickenRelatedUserName]

If you don't eliminate their scent, they'll just rebuild the nest. That's what I hear anyway.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

If you don't eliminate their scent, they'll just rebuild the nest. That's what I hear anyway.

If you use the gasoline trick correctly there will not be any survivors to rebuild anything. In fact most of the wasp will die so quickly that they'll still be clinging to their nest and with their wings still folded.

 

[ChickenRelatedUserName]

I don't doubt it. What ever is in the commercial wasp killers is definitely petroleum based.

OP, if you're really worried about it, you could lay down some news papers or something when you spray the nest. If you follow Art's advice and do it at night, everyone should be out of the way and it should be relatively simple.

 

[April’s Zoo]

Spread an old tarp, drop cloth, or shower curtain, or a thick layer of newspaper under the nest inside the run.... when the chickens are out for the evening, use one of the insecticides on the market that are designed for wasp treatment. They are sold in aerosol cans that can shoot a stream of foam over the nest from a distance. You need to cover the nest as completely as possible with the foam. After an hour or so, you can safely knock it down, but it is better to wait until the next day, to be sure that all the wasps were killed— including the ones that were late returning to the nest.... wasps begin coming back to the nest in the evening, and have generally all returned by dark. By the time you are ready to let the chickens back in the run, the pesticide shouldn’t be dripping anymore though, so you’ll be able to remove the tarp/drop cloth/etc. Then you can knock it down the next time you let them out.
I think using gasoline doesn’t really offer any benefit over using a targeted pesticide.... and throwing gas at the nest from a distance is gonna risk having that end up in your run.
You can also choose to use an insecticidal soap to douse the nest after dusk, but since insecticidal soap only works on the wasps that are there at the time you spray, any wasps that come back after you spray will not die, and may sting you when you knock down the nest afterward.
I really think the fact that you free range your birds in the evening is going to work in your favor as far as timing in taking care of this, because you can have them out of the run during the time you need to work.