Martin Ansfield from Pest Busta clears a wasps nest from a hedge in Enniskillen
IN recent weeks, people could be seen scurrying to get away from wasps.
Imagine, then, if you happen to have a wasps’ nest under your soffit or in your roofspace. What to do next?
Not so long ago, Fermanagh District Council provided a pest control service to deal with wasps, rats, mice, you name it.
The Townhall no longer provides that service, but a number of private firms do, among them Pest Busta, based at the home of Martin and Jenny Ansfield in Sillies Grove, Derrygonnelly.
At £40 a time, Martin will see to your wasps’ nest.
He dealt with two on Monday and three on Sunday.
He has also been getting rid of rats, mice, silver fish, cockroaches, etc for the past year and a half, for private and commercial clients, but it’s nearly all wasps at this time of year.
So, what are you supposed to do of a wasp keeps flying around your head?
“Stay calm”, is his advice, “and, nine times out of ten, they won’t annoy you, unless you go for them. If you aggravate them, they will defend themselves.”
He explained that wasps are attracted to perfumes and deodorants, hence the hair.
And, they keep him busy.
“I have had an offer to work for Strabane District Council in their area, so things are getting bigger and bigger, so much so that I’m hoping to take my son, Steven aboard next year.”
As regards a problem in a restaurant, he peels off the ‘Pest Control’ signs on his van beforehand.
“It saves embarrassment”, he explained.
So, how does he deal with a wasps’ nest which, by the way, is a work of art.
“It’s basically wood chips which the wasps chew up till it’s like papier mache and, inside, there are four or five layers, like a honeycomb. When you look into the next, you cab actually see the eggs about to hatch.”
When he goes to a house, he first observes where the wasps fly in and out.
If the nest is under the tiles or slates, he removes what he needs to expose the nest and puts down a lethal powder which is then carried into the nest on the wasp’s wings. Job done!
Martin is on call 24/7, and he will go wherever the work takes him.
“My policy is to go the extra mile to please the customer, and I will always do a follow-up call to make sure there is no activity.”
And, he will go anywhere, within reason: “The other day I did two wasps’ nest in Lifford.”
He has contracts with creches as well as with firms and eateries, and he has yet to come across a pest that is beyond his control.
What about rats, then?
“It’s no different. You find the source where the rat’s nest is and you can either use poisons inside a box or set traps inside the box. But, rats and mice are more for the winter time. They come inside then.”
To read more.. Subscribe to current edition
Receive quality journalism wherever you are, on any device. Keep up to date from the comfort of your own home with a digital subscription.
Any time | Any place | Anywhere
