Carpenter bees

[Frosty]

We bought our house in '07, the neighbor that owned it had a porch built with a free standing roof. While it's not the best looking thing out there, or the best "structural engineering" it is fairly sound so I see no need to tear it down until it needs to be. Every year we have hoards of carpenter bees that are diligently working to get this porch roof replaced! While practicing my back hand has been fun, its not making much headway. Anyone have any tricks to get them to move on or die? I kinda prefer the die option.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Build a trap. I built mine out of scrap wood in 5 minutes with a chop saw and brad nailer. (and a couple used water bottles)

Its not immediate, but it helps. It traps ONLY the females, so it eliminates the reproduction. In following years

They see the hole, think its a bore hole so they crawl inside. They get inside and fall down into the bottle. They literally spend the rest of their lives trying to escape through the clear plastic.
https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=carpenter bee traps

 

[Dead Duck]

 

[bulletsmith]

I have zero experience with carpenter bees, but this site has never failed me:

carpenter bees - Do It Yourself Pest Control

 

[Michigan Slim]

I tuck steel wool into the holes while they are inside. They chew on it and die.

 

[Cameramonkey]

I have zero experience with carpenter bees, but this site has never failed me:

carpenter bees - Do It Yourself Pest Control

HOLY F****! $30 for the trap!?!?!? Thats $4 in parts and 10 minutes of labor. I'll make you one for $20. (or ebay has them for $10)

 

[Frosty]

Now I'm debating between dead ducks solution and camera monkeys... Hell I'd never seen a trap before, those will look nice hanging all over the front porch! I found some for $15, probably going to just buy a couple if I don't have a scrap 4x laying around. Thanks guys!

 

[Frosty]

I tuck steel wool into the holes while they are inside. They chew on it and die.

Definitely going to do this in the morning, hell, maybe now! Thank you.

 

[bulletsmith]

HOLY F****! $30 for the trap!?!?!? Thats $4 in parts and 10 minutes of labor. I'll make you one for $20. (or ebay has them for $10)

Lol no doubt. Sorry I meant to post the link with this vid. It talks about killing the larvae inside the wood and prevention as well. They sell sprays and other stuff.

How to Get Rid of Carpenter Bees (Wood Bees) - Treatment & Control

 

[churchmouse]

Great ideas.
We battle these things every freaking year. They scare the hell out of the terrorists. (G-daughters)

 

[possum_128]

At night, use a calking gun to fill the holes. They will be trapped inside with no air and will die. If you are not sure which holes to fill, fill them all! If unsure where the nest is, look for the guard bee. It will be the one that stays around the nest and never leaves the area. After that, problem solved!

 

[churchmouse]

They get in behind the trim boards on my shop. The holes are not visible. Huge doses of what ever weak ass chemical we can find to spray in those areas works sometimes.

 

[olhorseman]

We bought a log cabin here in North Carolina two years ago. Last year it was a battle with the carpenter bees, hundreds of them. I eventually sprayed Drion(e) dust in their nests. You could hear the bees trying to get out of the nest. Later I found the dead bees on the ground. Drion(e) also kills any eggs that hatch in the nest. I did not plug up the holes so other bees could enter the hole and contact the dust.

This year the number of bees was only about 20% of last year. I treated a couple of more nests I found and within a couple of weeks I was down to less than a handful of bees. This winter I will put steel wool in the holes and caulk them. I heard Sevin dust also works but have not tried it. I'll stick with what I know for sure works.

 

[tmschuller]

Badminton racket.. Then at night put wet cotton balls dipped in seven dust. Poke them in the holes and when they chew on to get out =dead bees. But the badminton racket is more fun

 

[CTS]

I once shot a carpenter bee out of the air with an SR-22...sadly no one was around to see it. Made a neat yellow poof.

There are some good suggestions in here already, one I haven't see is NBS 30. You can add it to the outside layer of stain or paint and they won't mess with it for years, it's the only thing that finally worked for me.

 

[AndrewG]

Sevin dust around the holes or sevin liquid on a cotton ball stuffed up the hole. it will kill but will need to be reapplied again next year.

 

[eldirector]

Neighbor's shed is full of them, and the occasionally try to move into my privacy fence. I just spray 'em, with wasp spray. The holes, too. Every year they retreat back to the neighbor. Well, they ones that survive.

 

[Paul30]

These are great traps you can build yourself for cheap. I did several, and friends have done them and they work well. I just used treated 2 x 4's. You can't actively hunt them and win that game. Traps get them all the time even when you are gone. Hopefully it will do it before they do lots of damage. Even if you kill a few, they may be back next year. These traps were easy to make, and a good investment for future use.

Carpenter Bee Traps (UPGRADED)

 

[ggglobert9]

Quick killer and cheap...starting fluid is immediate

 

[rhino]

Carpenter Bees (aka the Incredible Bee Hullks) are amazingly resistant to consumer-available insecticides. I've hit them with direct streams of wasp & hornet spray and they just slow down a little in flight due to the momentum of the fluid. It apparently has no immediate toxicity for them.

I recommend:

1. The flamethrower idea
2. Baseball bat
3. Hammer
4. Biga** medieval two-handed sword
5. .308 or bigger

On the bright side, if they can sting, they don't seem to be inclined to do it much. They just kind of lumber along and eat your stuff.