When the image of a wasp comes to your mind, a shudder travels through the body, but imagine if you were to contact one. It can be both a horrifying and hurtful experience. A paper wasp is known to sting several times unlike other of its kinds, but it only does it when it threatens in its household. As mentioned by ‘Pest Zone Pest Control Toronto’ (It is one of the leading pest control companies in Toronto), people usually muddle up paper wasps with yellow jackets and bald-faced hornets. Still, true paper wasps build nests featuring open combs with cells carrying larvae. They secrete a chemical that repels ants around their nests.
If a colony of paper wasps establishes near your house, the chances are that you or your other family can contact one and worst, get stung. For this reason, we’ve compiled a list that will prove helpful for staying safe from paper wasps that have set residence outside your place.
Tips to Stay Away from Paper Wasp
Although wasps are beneficial to the farmers, they sting you and can cause an allergic reaction. Before it’s too late and they build a nest beneath your home roof, here are the tips to keep paper wasps at bay:
1. Avoid an Established Wasp Nest
It is a devastating thing to come across a wasp’s nest in your background. You might be thinking of shutting down your house and sealing all your doors and windows so that none of them can enter in. But this can affect the amount of outside activity of the family members to be performed daily. To prevent getting stung you won’t need to lock down your headquarters, but all you need to do is to avoid that nest at all costs. As paper wasps only attack when they’re contacted in their nest, so you don’t need to worry about them if you go around their dwelling to perform any task outside.
2. Use Traps or Repellents
There are numerous traps and repellents in the market for controlling wasps or getting rid of them. But be sure not to harm or kill them when having them removed. If a paper wasp feels that it is in danger, then it sends a signal to its wasp colony to come to its rescue. To avoid being swamp-stung by a whole colony of paper wasps, be careful in trapping and repelling them using effective products.
3. Do This If You Contact a Wasp
Contacting a wasp can be one of your worst nightmares to come true. However, if one interacts you should refrain from becoming frantic and screaming out your lungs. Paper wasps feel threatened when they observe any alarming activity. If you see a wasp approaching you, be sure to remain calm and walk away from it.
4. Never Do This If You Contact a Wasp
While the norm is known to swing rackets and shoes at the site of a wasp or bug, this act can cause a whole swamp of wasps to attack as the one being attacked can call in the other to gang up on you. Defending yourself by trying to kill them off with household items can you cause harm.
5. Keep Edibles Out of Sight
It’s a no brainer that wasps and bugs are attracted to food and sugary items in households. If paper wasps live in your backyard, then the chances are that they’ll make frequent visits to your house in search of food. So, it’s best to keep your kitchen and other areas clear of food items and maintain cleanliness for maximum protection from wasps. You can cover up edibles that are to be consumed or place them in jars away from the reach of insects.
6. Work the Extra Mile
If you worry a lot about the safety of your children from wasps, you can take extra measures to ensure safety. You can identify the entry places of the wasps, for examples windows, holes and cracks, vents. Shut your windows and cover holes and fill cracks with sealants that prevent them from entering the house.
Conduct thorough research on facts about paper wasps to get sufficient knowledge on how to carefully deal with them. You can also try making a homemade trap by following DIYs online. Avoid things that attract them to you or your children, like wearing coluorful clothing or accessories. Take actions to get the nest removed or call professionals to get the task done safely.
7. Stay Safe in the Summers
Winters are hard on every insect. Most species of bees and wasps die off in the cold weather. Likewise, paper wasps also become the target of cold breezes. However, one member of the pact survives solely and continues the task of producing offsprings to recreate her colony that is the queen wasp. Once summer comes back, the queen and her army come out of hiding and begin the search for food. You have to be careful and take precautions as mentioned above to steer clear of any of these wasps entering your home in search of nourishment. Stay aware of any wasps entering your house if they were present last summer under your porch or on a tree in your garden and vanished in the winters.
8. Take Care of Your Waste
Don’t think that you’re done by clearing away food and they are remaining from inside your home, paper wasps are hungry insects that when coming out of hibernation are in extreme need of food. They’ll take refuge anywhere they find something to eat, be it from the garbage. It’s true, the paper wasps that reside in your yard or nearby, can travel and land on your trash bins if they’re revealed of food scraps or leftovers. So, make sure to seal away your garbage tightly and stuff them properly in the bins to not have any wasps lingering around and find ways to enter your home.
9. What Can Happen When a Paper Wasp Stings You?
Bees and wasps sting. But when a wasp stings you once, there is a chance that it can do it a couple more times due to the fact that its stinger remains attached to its body unlike a bee’s to allow it to do so. It is best that you avoid getting stung by any of the wasps but supposedly if you do, make sure to check that you don’t experience any allergic reactions. As if the bite wasn’t enough, paper wasps are known to transfer allergic reactions to those they bite. Luckily, not everybody is prone to reactions, but after a sting, you should check your breathing. See if you sustain a headache or feel lightheaded. Examine your body for any marks or hives. However, if you get all these symptoms at once in addition to vomiting and nausea, there is a chance that you’re experiencing anaphylaxis, a reaction that needs immediate treatment. If you go through any of the allergic reactions more than just a slight redness, make sure to call for help and get medical attention ASAP!
Hope this article was helpful in providing tips to keep paper wasps at bay from your house.
Besides these tips for paper wasp, we have provided a wonderful article on how to prevent your homes from termites and other pests and also on how to make your home germ-free.
Also Read:
Make your Home Pest-Free this Monsoon with Home Remedies!
Make Your Home Termite Free with these Termite Prevention Tips!
10+ Tips & Tricks to Keep Your Home Germ Free
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