Help! Wasps nest in compost bin!

[sweetcorn]

I was just about to turn my compost and put it into the 'rotting down' bin for the winter when I noticed a lot of wasps around. Then I noticed them disappearing between the slats of my wooden bin. There are sooooo many of them. What can I do?

[bowsider5]

If you want to kill them then a wasp killer will do the job BUT wasps are really useful around gardens so maybe wait to work with your compost until later in the year and then sort it out once the worker wasps have died off and the queens are hibernating. I presume you'd be wearing gloves anyway so you're unlikely to get stung and even if they can summon up the energy to fly it won't be very fast, especially if you choose a cold day.

[veggiechicken]

They'll die off soon once we have cold weather. I'd leave them be

[alldigging]

Are they def wasps?

Photo needed!

[SlugLobber]

I would simply leave them, too. I had a wood wasp nest the size of a football in my feed room, less than 3 feet from my head, in the overhang at the entrance. Never got stung once. If you can do without it for now, you'll probably find that your compost is nicely aerated once they move on! I don't know if it's the case with all wasps, but they never came back to the nest, so hopefully it's a temporary issue for you.