I use Bondo wood filler to repair wood, but it's a two part mix which makes it's very time consuming and you waste a lot of Bondo because it dries so quickly. And, it has to be sanded!
How to repair carpenter bee damage?
- Thread starter plowhog
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Hoho223
Bronze Member
Screened porch has knotty pine for ceiling that extended to edge of roof as the soffit. The bees loved boring in that. Finally after several years I had enough and the soffit on the outside of the screens is now copper flashing over the knot pine. No more bees.
Deere Dude
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After a summer or two of fighting them I found that painting the wood works and for EVERYTHING else I spray with a BIFEN IT concentrate mixed with water. A couple ozs/gallon works well. After spraying right way in the spring and again in the fall the Carpenter bees start finding someplace else to go. Do this for two years and then in the spring yearly after that. Bees return to their old habitat until you break their cycle. This stuff works good for CBs and spiders and fire ants.
I had so many holes inside and outside it would take a full make-over to be acceptable.
I had so many holes inside and outside it would take a full make-over to be acceptable.
JJT
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I've had great success with
I treat in the spring and fall, it lasts 6 months+.
I've had 0 luck with the bee traps. I've ordered some of the sticky traps.
As for holes, I caulk and paint, two coats.
FenvaStar EcoCap.
I treat in the spring and fall, it lasts 6 months+.
I've had 0 luck with the bee traps. I've ordered some of the sticky traps.
As for holes, I caulk and paint, two coats.
Snobdds
Elite Member
woodepox is the best, but you already know that...
My mom has a modern wood cabin that had few logs where bees and wasps made a home.
Woodepox fixed that problem. It dries so hard they couldn't chew through it. I wish I could see their teeth get ground down when they tried again.
My mom has a modern wood cabin that had few logs where bees and wasps made a home.
Woodepox fixed that problem. It dries so hard they couldn't chew through it. I wish I could see their teeth get ground down when they tried again.
CoyPatton
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Since it is not structural, but just wish ti gill the void for paint, I have decent luck with paintable caulk. Does not fo well for stains however. Allow plenty of drying time.
Great carpenter bee traps from scrap!
materials: 4×4 post, pressure treated (a scrap of one is fine. You just need 7”); Mason jar (half pint or a regular mouth pint—most any container works fine; plastic lids are easiest).
1. Measure 7” up from the end of your 4×4. Then, draw a 45-degree angle that radiates down from this point. Cut along the angle. A 14” 4x4 makes 2 traps.
2. Flip your 4×4 piece over, so that the flat bottom is facing up, and mark its center. Then, drill a 7/8 “ hole at the center point, approximately 4” deep. Take care to keep your hole straight.
3. Now, mark the location of your entry holes on the four sides of your block. Each hole should be 2” from the bottom and 1¾” inches from each side. Use your ½” wood bit to make your holes at an upward 45-degree angle. Continue drilling until your hole connects with the hole that you drilled from the bottom. Then, repeat with the remaining holes.
4. Unscrew the lid from your jar, and punch/drill a ½” hole at its center. Leave the other holes as is. Attach the lid so the hole lines up with the 7/8” hole. Attach lid and screw on the jar. Hang using a screw eye, or fasten to house, joist, etc where bees congregate.
1. Measure 7” up from the end of your 4×4. Then, draw a 45-degree angle that radiates down from this point. Cut along the angle. A 14” 4x4 makes 2 traps.
2. Flip your 4×4 piece over, so that the flat bottom is facing up, and mark its center. Then, drill a 7/8 “ hole at the center point, approximately 4” deep. Take care to keep your hole straight.
3. Now, mark the location of your entry holes on the four sides of your block. Each hole should be 2” from the bottom and 1¾” inches from each side. Use your ½” wood bit to make your holes at an upward 45-degree angle. Continue drilling until your hole connects with the hole that you drilled from the bottom. Then, repeat with the remaining holes.
4. Unscrew the lid from your jar, and punch/drill a ½” hole at its center. Leave the other holes as is. Attach the lid so the hole lines up with the 7/8” hole. Attach lid and screw on the jar. Hang using a screw eye, or fasten to house, joist, etc where bees congregate.
How the Trap Works: Carpenter bees discover one of the outer holes and crawl inside it to lay eggs. Once inside, the 45-degree tunnel casts their entry point in the shadows. They see light coming up from the hole at the base of the trap, and move towards it, assuming it’s the exit. Instead of finding their way out, they find themselves in the jar, and can’t get back out.
bdhsfz6
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I thought about getting traps for our carpenter bees but it would spoil my wife's fun. She loves to "stalk" them out on our deck and whack them with a badminton racket. She's pretty good at it. She gets 5 or 6 a day during the season.
s219
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It's pine wood being attacked. Bondo and foam sound interesting. And if bee larvae are in the holes, what are some options for treating those holes before filling? Are there off-the-shelf products that would work?
You raise a very important point. If fresh paint dissuades the bees, after painting they will focus on and more aggressively attack the unpainted wood on the barn interior. I already have significant damage there. But I need to better prepare for that.
btw, the traps that look like a small bird house with a glass jar on bottom work OK. But the "sticky" traps are awesome-- catching hundreds. I need to up my "treatment" game next season ....
TrapStik, Carpenter Bee - Rescue
Carpenter Bees get caught on the sticky surface. They're drawn to the trap with our exclusive VisiLure technology, the colors and patterns under the glue.www.rescue.com
Lookup Drione dust, it's the best way to treat holes before sealing up, both for adult bees inside and for larva that will grow into a bee. You can buy a small handheld duster (bellows with a puff tube) to get it inside the hole. I also have what's called a dust-stick that lets me treat holes as high as 20' up. Treat the hole and leave open for a day before sealing up, to allow other adults to find the dust.
I can confirm it's an old wive's tale that carpenter bees won't attack painted wood. My mother in law's place is fully painted and they loved drilling into her rafter tails. I read a scientific article about the bees once, and something in their eyesight/brain lets them detect woodgrain patterns through paint. I think you'd need super smooth/thick paint and/or cladding to make the wood invisible to the bees.
CH4Ohio
Platinum Member
We can get 5 or 6 every couple minutes down at the barn. They just hover and float around the eaves looking for a good place to drill a new hole. Double points when you catch them mating on the fly and get two with one whack! Tennis racket works best for me. I don't even play tennis, but my backhand has really improved.