Carpenter bees!

[s219]

BTW, I also used to pretreat everything with Viper insecticide (Cypermethrin) but stopped because it was a chore and I wasn't sure it really helped.

 

[Bayfisher]

.22 pistol with bird shot, good for @ 10ft

 

[Deere Dude]

I am on the Bifen IT bandwagon.

I have a 70 year old barn we bought in 2013. The first year I was splitting wood and these big nasty liking bees would dive bomb me, but surprisingly they didn't sting. Shortly after that I learned of the dreaded carpenter bee.

My barn is 40x60 was a horse barn with oak wood walls on the inside and oak wood roof rafters. I noticed at that point they were drilling into my wood all over. Think thousands of holes and many are difficult to get to with a ladder. I tried bee traps as suggested for 6 months and got a handful of bees out of the thousands flying around. I got some bee powder to put in individual holes but that was expensive and to daunting of a task.

Someone clued me into Bifen IT because they said Carpenter Bees come back to the same area they leave, season after season. I have a 25 gallon sprayer that I mixed with 1 oz Bifen IT per gallon of water. I sprayed every stick of wood I had including wood piles for the fireplace. A few weeks later I learned I should have sprayed 2 oz/gal. So I redid it all. The bees stayed away after that.

For a three years I would spray early in the spring and then again in late summer. Then last year I sprayed once in the spring and forget the fall. It seems to work quite well. I still have a few traps up and they get a few but Bifen IT seems to do the trick. They do still fly around the barn and lawn but I never see the landing where I don't want them to and I don't see any tell take dust piles anymore.

I spray down inside my shop, siding and soffit on the house and shop and inside all these buildings. It takes care of spiders and bugs in general so no cobwebs od black widow either. All for about $25 a year plus spraying time. I had to spray my treated wood on trailers, outdoor furniture and pine trees and bushes that I didn't want tose or even other bugs on.

 

[zzvyb6]

.22 pistol with bird shot, good for @ 10ft

I'm all in with this technique, too. Several benefits: 1) it's kinda fun ! 2) it advertizes to the neighborhood that there is gun fire on the premises. Troublemakers should move on. I used to use the CCI blue tipped ones but a few expurts suggested these were hard on the barrel. Now I use the crimped end loads. It REALLY impresses your guests that you can hit a 'bumble' bee with a 22 at 10 -15' and turn it into sawdust. A near miss causes propulsion failure and you can play WW-II nose gun camera procedures to finish them off.

Now I have a situation where I still have a few that come to visit but as soon as the Ruger appears, they disappear !

 

[spitter]

I go through about 6 cans of the spectracide every spring . I hate them scab carpenter bee's them don't carry union books . I have had call backs on jobs where they thought I drilled holes in the wrong spot it was them scab bee's. The only thing good about them is when they start digging in you can spray the sh*t out of them slow and stupid . Me and my kid have a contest every year to see who can kill the most of them. I just replaced the rake boards on the one side of the barn whenI went to the other there was a new hole in it . You would have to think it was like ringing the dinner bell.unch:ullinghair: death to carpenter bee's:drink:

 

[mikester]

I've tried blocking them in with caulk or roof tar, but they just drill a new hole out.

Kill the larvae and the bees. Treat the holes then plug them ASAP.

I use flexible 0.035 welding welding wire bent with a small hoop on the end to probe the depth of the holes to kill the larvae. I then use a section of 0.060 air line with the foaming insect killer to flood the hole from the very end to the exit. I then plug the holes with caulk.

If you catch them early the holes are only 2-4 inches deep. If you leave the larvae and plug them in you will end up with several feet of hole.

The adult bees are solitary and supposedly dont sting. They like drilling under sheltered overhang spots, up about an inch deep then turn 90 degrees and can go several feet in. The key is to be vigilant in early spring when they are most active. If you kill the bee when they start the hole make sure to treat and plug it right away otherwise other bees will continue the destruction. They can do a lot of damage in one night when the are trying to build a new nest so daily checks of your property when they are active will help you prevent a major problem later on.

The bees generally do not like treated surfaces eg. fresh stain/paint/varnish so keep your place clean and maintained.

 

[Gunny]

Last year we had a terrible infestation of carpenter bees, side and back porch, gazebo, deck rails, garage - there were little piles of sawdust laying around everywhere.

On a recommendation, I bought Demon WP, it's nasty stuff, but the results are immediate if you spray the bee, then an overnight reduction once you spray along the wooden surfaces. Haven't seen any more around since then, so it must have some residual effect.

 

[Diggin It]

The adult bees are solitary and supposedly dont sting. They like drilling under sheltered overhang spots, up about an inch deep then turn 90 degrees and can go several feet in.

That's what I was thinking when I saw the post about a Queen and workers. Theses are not hive type bees.

I pulled down about a foot long piece of 2x2 corner support once. It was all but hollow, more like a square wooden tube.

 

[Ford850]

Mikester and Diggin It are right about them being solitary. I corrected my earlier comment to clarify. The females are in the tunnels laying eggs and stacking up brooding chambers.

 

[oosik]

The only "creature" around here that digs in the residential wood are flickers( type of woodpecker ). After 38 years out here my PanAbode cedar home has five small holes that I've puttied shut. Not a big problem.

However - thank God & knock on wood. The pine bark beetles do not like cedar. They can and have done extensive damage to the pine forests in this area.

 

[Gem99ultra]

Google Carpenter bee traps. You can make one from a mason jar and scrap would in about 15 min - and they work.

My chickens love em.

I wish you could convince my Carpenter bees about how great those traps are. I bought one and have had ONE bee in 4 weeks actually go into it. And that one was probably insane. So far, for me, that hasn't worked. The bees are still making dust piles. Perhaps there is some sort of bait that I need to put inside the jar?

 

[dalola]

I wish you could convince my Carpenter bees about how great those traps are. I bought one and have had ONE bee in 4 weeks actually go into it. And that one was probably insane. So far, for me, that hasn't worked. The bees are still making dust piles. Perhaps there is some sort of bait that I need to put inside the jar?

If you can catch one, bait your trap with it. I've heard the new traps lack the "smell" to draw them in. Once you get some in there, the party is on. At least that's been my experience....great success with the traps, but I did bait them that first year.

The type of trap may also factor in, some seem better than others. Good luck!

 

[CADplans]

About a decade ago,, I used a totally different approach to carpenter bee control,,

I figured the bees probably like sugar,, so I dissolved sugar in water, and mixed in some malathion,,
using a pump-up sprayer, I sprayed the inside of an old wood shed that the bees had been having their way with,,

The bees were 100% controlled for that year,, I repeated it the next spring,,
we did not see a carpenter bee for 3-4 years after that,,

I am sure other insecticides would work, I just happened to have malathion available,,,

I thought about putting the same mix in a humming bird feeder,, and hanging it in the shed,,
never got around to trying that,,,

 

[CADplans]

I wonder if some variety of wood works as a bee trap better than other types?

How about a piece of firewood,, do the bees single out dimensional lumber over rough natural wood for some reason,, ??
Is it possible they are attracted to a smooth surface?

Pine, oak, locust,, Hmmmmmmm,, what would be the best choice?? cedar??

 

[Ford850]

I wonder if some variety of wood works as a bee trap better than other types?

How about a piece of firewood,, do the bees single out dimensional lumber over rough natural wood for some reason,, ??
Is it possible they are attracted to a smooth surface?

Pine, oak, locust,, Hmmmmmmm,, what would be the best choice?? cedar??

Redwood and cedar were the hardest hit at my place, but SPF and Yellow Pine in my open sided pole barn shed were nearly as bad.
I have lots of hardwood firewood and have never found a carpenter bee on that. But they do like the yellow pine and treated yellow pine that the wood shed is built from.

 

[thekkfan]

I wish you could convince my Carpenter bees about how great those traps are. I bought one and have had ONE bee in 4 weeks actually go into it. And that one was probably insane. So far, for me, that hasn't worked. The bees are still making dust piles. Perhaps there is some sort of bait that I need to put inside the jar?

Maybe you need a ship in a bottle? LOL

 

[QRTRHRS]

I always thought that carpenter bees did not sting until I was picking up some hay one day. I picked up a bale that was against a tin barn wall and there was a small nest between the bale and the tin. Buggers got me in the ankle like six times, wham, bam. They were not hard to smack with a piece of broken pallet that I found.

Those traps have not worked for me. I too like to take them out with a tennis racket. I have been meaning to look for some kind of wood epoxy in a tube rather than use caulk to repair some holes in my almost new run in sheds.

 

[thekkfan]

I always thought that carpenter bees did not sting until I was picking up some hay one day. I picked up a bale that was against a tin barn wall and there was a small nest between the bale and the tin. Buggers got me in the ankle like six times, wham, bam. They were not hard to smack with a piece of broken pallet that I found.

Those traps have not worked for me. I too like to take them out with a tennis racket. I have been meaning to look for some kind of wood epoxy in a tube rather than use caulk to repair some holes in my almost new run in sheds.

Those were bumble bees, not carpenter bees. I've helped clear out a nest under an old cabinet underneath a shed. Have bee spray in each hand, because they will chase you forever if you miss!

 

[jk96]

If you can catch one, bait your trap with it. I've heard the new traps lack the "smell" to draw them in. Once you get some in there, the party is on. At least that's been my experience....great success with the traps, but I did bait them that first year.

The type of trap may also factor in, some seem better than others. Good luck!

Location seems to be key for me. I have one up high and one lower. The one up high as work very well compared to the other one.

 

[Fuddy1952]

I wish you could convince my Carpenter bees about how great those traps are. I bought one and have had ONE bee in 4 weeks actually go into it. And that one was probably insane. So far, for me, that hasn't worked. The bees are still making dust piles. Perhaps there is some sort of bait that I need to put inside the jar?

Sales lady at local farm store said what works is to put one bee in the jar, whacked with a racket. That attracts others.
I made traps like she said. You take 4"x4" lumber scrap and cut it about 4"-5" long. Drill four holes in them at an angle. Mine the four holes (same size they make...about 3/8" or so) ended up together at the other end. Cut a jar top hole, screw it to wood.