Bees that want to bore holes in my carport beams

Every year around this time I have a problem with bumble bees that want to bore holes in the exposed, unpainted beams of the roof of my carport. I've been chasing them off with wasp spray but sometimes one will be successful in drilling a deep hole in the beam, which I fill up with silicone as soon as I spot it.

My B-I-L said they usually won't do this if the wood is painted. I'd be willing to paint them if I was assured it would discourage the bees but there are about 25 beams that are 14 feet long and it would be a pretty big job. I was just wondering if anyone has had any experience with this problem and if so should I use some kind of wood-protecting stain or a regular latex paint. I think I've seen some of the stains advertised as being "bug-resistant" but I don't know if this would include bumble bees.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts.

Reply to
Dennis M
Loading thread data ...

Identify the "bees".

A Carpenter bee is smelling the sap in unfinished wood. I call Carpenter bees "bumble bees". Saw one last week or so. Cover the sap odor with paint or stain - your call.

pic:

formatting link

Reply to
Oren

They are carpenter bees, not bumble bees, although they look quite similar. They love my cedar soffits.

Painting the soffits has significantly reduced the problem, but not eliminated it. So I would say it helps, but doesn't completely eliminate the problem. When I see a borehole, I puff in some powdered insecticide (I forget the name) listed for carpenter bees and then fill the hole with polyurethane caulk after a few days. Then touch up the paint.

It's only a matter of time till I get tired of the routine and rip off the cedar. I like the look, but It's a bad choice living in the middle of woods where there are a zillion pests that seem to love it, from downy woodpeckers to the bees.

Good luck,

Paul F.

Reply to
Paul Franklin

Carpenter bees do look like regular bumble bees. They do seem to prefer unpainted wood but they are not fazed by PT lumber. And they do occasionally bore a hole in my white painted trim. They don't eat the wood and they are solitary so they don't form a colony. They are also not agressive and generally won't pay any attention to you unless you're bugging them. Even then they will usually run before stinging. They bore their holes out of the weather so the holes don't result in problems later. I find it entertaining to cover their holes with clear packing tape. I don't worry about them much though.

Reply to
jamesgangnc

They used to bore holes in my shed, but I painted the wood with used motor oil, and they won't touch it now.

Reply to
ShadowTek

That's a good idea, I wonder if one of the local oil change places might be willing to give me enough used oil for the job.

Reply to
Dennis M

The ones you usually see are stingless males. They have white faces and don't bore. They alert you to the presence of females in the wood. So does sawdust.

Most of the year, it's just grubs in the holes. Squirting a puff of diatomaceous earth in a hole is supposed to kill them when they emerge.

I like to kill the mothers so they won't tunnel and store food for the grubs. I use a pump-up sprayer with an insecticide made from concentrate. I put the nozzle into the hole and squirt. Sometimes six will stagger from one hole.

A stethoscope will tell if there are any bees chewing in a board. If you can get all the mothers one spring, there shouldn't be much trouble the next year.

Reply to
J Burns

They are carpenter bees. The major goal is to get them organized, unionized, and able to build you a new garage. This requires special training.

I'd put a moth ball in the hole and patch it with plastic wood. Someone told me to do this and it works pretty well.

None tried to sting me. Good too since I was 14 feet up a ladder. Of course I didn't try to hit them or anything.

Reply to
mm

Now that is funny, at least to me....

I would expect a visual clue in the beams. Now we can listen?

Reply to
Oren

Carpenter bees may not form a colony but they sure will destroy a house with their nests. They'll bore 10' up unto structural lumber (which won't be structural anymore). They tend to stay where they're born so if you don't take care of them every year, they'll increase exponentially. BTW, the brown paint on my house doesn't faze them at all. They just love the taste of the exposed (trim) rafter ends. If you have them you should be worried.

Reply to
krw

The preferred method is a dust designed for Carpenter Bees and a cork pounded into the hole, then paint. A dowel would be better, but more difficult.

They will buzz you, but are very unlikely to sting. Any damage you do to yourself by falling off the ladder is your fault. ;-)

Reply to
krw

After you think you have killed them all, listening will tell you if you're right. It will detect a bee if you haven't seen a hole.

Reply to
J Burns

Most likely, they will give you all the old oil you want. Though, it does increase the risk of fire.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

What are the behaviours of Mexican carpenter bees? Arrive on the back of a pick up truck, and take a nap in the afternoon?

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I would get a garden sprayer and spray the wood with a oil sealer preservative, it wont take long and the chemicals will keep out bees, even mix in a bit of bug killer. it will really help preserve the wood. There is Horticutural Oil a Pest Killer used on plants you could mix into the mix you make up

Reply to
ransley

The population around our houses doesn't seem to increase. Every year there are 2 or 3 of them.

Reply to
jamesgangnc

formatting link

Just the last few days I've been squirting what I thought were carpenter bees with a water spray bottle. According to that picture they were bumble bees, but they sure where after the wood. I think either kind is very docile, I remember as a kid finding my little brother petting bumble bees! They just look so soft and fuzzy he couldn't resist. He didn't get stung. We had lots of clover in the lawn and the only time they ever stung us was if we accidentally stepped on one with bare feet (our bare feet, not the bees bare feet).

Reply to
Tony

I've had oil base stain and latex paint, and the bees just chewed right through. The only thing that works is to kill them. I tried every kind of bug death out there, but the only thing that worked was hair spray. You pump it into the holes and it gums up their respiratory systems and they die. It's much cheaper and less toxic than bug death, and it works. You can get it right into the holes and it works fast. Then plug up the holes and wait for the next bee to show up. You can just spray the bee directly with the hairspray and it's drop in a few seconds. Easy peasy.

Reply to
h

The idea isn't to instantly kill the adults,rather to treat the nests to kill the larvae when they hatch, late in the summer. To do this use Drione dust on their nests as deeply as possible (they sell long snout dusters for this purpose). The adults then drag the dust even deeper into the nest as they go come and go. In August, when the kiddies hatch, the dust will be there waiting for them. If you don't get the larvae, you'll be doing it all over again next year.

Reply to
keith

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.