The day I found a wasp nest in a flue in Austin

I was doing a routine cleaning last spring at an old house in Austin and when I pulled the brush back out, about 20 angry wasps came with it. Turns out they had built a nest right inside the terra cotta liner, about three feet down. Now I always shine a bright light up every flue before I even start, saved me from getting stung twice since then. Has anyone else run into unexpected critters like that?

4 comments

4 Comments

corap6126d ago

Aw, come on, it's not that big of a deal. I mean yeah wasps hurt but people act like they are gonna die from a sting or something. Half the time you shine a light up there you just see dust and old leaves anyway. I've cleaned plenty of flues in my day and I can count on one hand the times I actually ran into a live nest. Seems like a lot of extra work for something that probably won't happen.

carr.luna26d ago

Wait, @sanchez.ivan, you really just eyeball it instead of checking first?

sanchez.ivan26d ago

Man, I gotta disagree with you on this one. I've cleaned more flues than I can count in this town and honestly, I'd rather find out about wasps the hard way than waste time shining lights up every single pipe. You get stung once, you learn fast, and most of the time those nests are empty anyway.

grantc807d ago

Haha yeah, "most of those nests are empty anyway" is exactly what I tell people. I did a whole row of flues last spring and only hit one live nest, and that was just a handful of wasps, not even a big one. I mean, you get used to the risk after a while, and honestly the time you save not checking every single one adds up fast. Plus, like you said, you learn real quick to be careful where you stick your hand.