Cavity weep hole question

[redpis]

Hi,

I have weep holes which are being invaded by wasps, I have temporarily sealed the holes to stop this, the weep holes look like the pics, (not sure of the internals without digging one out)

Is their a insect grill to stop wasps, what would the pros advise, installing a different type etc ?

Untitled

• redpis
• 25 Apr 2009
• 1

Untitled

• redpis
• 25 Apr 2009
• 1

Many thanks

Ian

 

[^woody^]

I have never seen a weep hole weep.

Fill them up

 

[joe-90]

Shytalkz has - we had a huge argument about them last year.

 

[^woody^]

Oh dear, I must have missed that one.

Ok, fill with something like cloth, which will stay permeable but will fill the void.

Another similar material is ...... mortar. lol

 

[stuart45]

I have never stood in rain and seen them weeping, but I have seen the staining below on a few houses, so some must be working.

 

[alittlerespect]

Not trying to tell anyone how to suck eggs, but the weep holes are inserted above the line of cavity trays, the idea being that they allow any penetrating rainwater above the cavity tray to escape rather than have the rainwater build up and/or create problems further down the line.
The weep holes should have had a fine mesh built-in in order to avoid the exact problem that you are encountering.

One other point worth considering, the wasps must have a nest inside the cavity somewhere, and if you want to get rid of the problem besides adapting the weep holes you will need to get the pest control people out!

Regards

 

[^woody^]

Weep holes may have a purpose when the cavity is totally clear and the external face bricks prone to prolonged saturation (due to exposure and/or material) and if this potential run-off can not be designed out.

In real life, most walls never get saturated, the cavity tray is full up with mortar droppings, and cavities may be fully insulated.

Even if water runs down the internal face of the bricks, it hits the cavity tray and then either soaks back into the wall or travels to the end of the tray .... and then runs down the inside of the leaf to the bottom of the wall.

I don't think I've ever seen a convincing argument to use weep holes - only technical reasons why they may be needed.