Find the right help for your wasp problem.

Wasps are smooth and shiny with a narrow waist. Bees are fuzzier and rounder, and honey bees are golden brown rather than bright yellow. Wasps build gray paper nests or fly into a hole; a hanging cluster of bees with no paper is a swarm, and a local beekeeper may collect it.

A small, open paper wasp comb you can reach from the ground is often fine to treat yourself at dusk with a labeled wasp spray, as long as nobody at home is allergic to stings. Ground nests, nests in walls, hornet nests and anything you'd need a ladder for are safer with a pro.

Published ranges for a single nest commonly run about $100 to $600. An easy exposed nest sits at the low end, while nests in walls, in the ground or high up cost more. Ask whether the price includes taking the nest down and a follow-up check.

The wasps inside are still alive. With the entrance blocked, they look for another way out, and that's often into the house through an outlet, light fixture or vent. Treat the nest first, wait until the traffic stops, then seal the gap.

No. Old nests aren't reused. But a sheltered eave, vent or burrow that suited one queen will often attract another next spring, so fix the gap and check the same spots early in the season.

Usually not. Most policies treat pest control as routine maintenance. Check your own policy, and if you rent, ask your landlord, since many leases make the owner responsible for pest control.