The Forestry Forum

General Forestry => Sawmills and Milling => Topic started by: tjhammer on October 15, 2012, 07:35:04 AM

Title: bore bee's
Post by: tjhammer on October 15, 2012, 07:35:04 AM


     has anyone on the forum had any problem this summer with bore bees,would paint stop them from making nests in my barn,there are so many more this year than last,do bee traps really work ???
  tj
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Cypressstump on October 15, 2012, 07:47:37 AM
Good Luck !

I am interested in the answers you recieve. I too have them things boring away on some exposed rough pine rafters. They do not seem to bother with some latex painted wood adjacent to the non-painted raft ends.
I bought some shore-nuff bee killer concoction from the local feedstore. It did not seem to affect the bees much after a couple weeks.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: jimparamedic on October 15, 2012, 07:57:34 AM
The bee's are bad. But then so are the wood peckers that come to feast on the larva. Sounds like a jack hammer and looks like a beaver has been there.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Riggs on October 15, 2012, 07:57:43 AM
I'm with you guys, I'd love to know a safe way to stop them. I keep honeybees, so I don't want to risk them.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on October 15, 2012, 07:58:44 AM
Are you talking about carpenter bees that bore into wood to make their home?  If so, they return year after year to the same hole, making their cavities in the wood larger, more extensive, each year.  Control is achieved by squirting their hole with an insecticide approved for such use (a cool, nighttime is best as they are not real active) and then putting a hardwood dowel in the hole entry so those that are not killed cannot return.  Your county extension agent can tell you what insecticide is effective and approved...a dust is probably best, but even a commercial can of wasp spray will work.

For more info,see extension.missouri.edu/p/g7424
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Slingshot on October 15, 2012, 08:45:37 AM

   And then build you a few of these......

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7LXWXMM4Uk





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Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Slingshot on October 15, 2012, 08:53:00 AM

  Here is the damage they do......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=i-TGT0Y22vQ





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Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Magicman on October 15, 2012, 09:05:51 AM
Thank you Slingshot for that informative video. 
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Cypressstump on October 15, 2012, 09:28:09 AM


Can't open that video. >:(
I was given one of those electronic flyswatter killer things that look like a tennis racket.. I think my neighbors stopped coming around about the time I recieved that gift... come to think about , if I saw them doing what they seen me doing from a distance, I'd probably shy away as well... some guy jumping around playing air tennis by himself may sway me to steer clear too. ;)
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: tjhammer on October 15, 2012, 11:09:47 AM
5yrs ago I built a deck on my house it was treated wood,I thought I was safe from all the wood eating bugs,I could not beleive how much damadge hade been done in one year,I went to the co-op and got some kind of insecticide to be mixed in water  I sprayed my deck,the next morning under every hole was a bee and it lasted all sumer but to spray a barn I could not afford it around 50.00 a half pint,have looked into bee traps don't know how well they will do.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Raider Bill on October 15, 2012, 11:28:51 AM
I have a problem with them on my porch in Tenn. if I find a hole I spray wd40 in the hole. They come right out and fall dead but it doesn't last long. I bought some traps which caught a very small amount. I then went to drastic measures.... Got 18 in one day 14 the next!


 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14445/IMAG1275.jpg) 

 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14445/IMAG1277.jpg)
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: hackberry jake on October 15, 2012, 12:23:13 PM
Is spruce/pine/fir the only wood they eat?
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: slider on October 15, 2012, 12:27:58 PM
Last year at my wife's log home they were the worst that i've ever seen .Some where i read to caulk the holes early in the morning or late evening while they were in the nest.I caulked every hole that i could find.It solved the problem .Over 90 % were gone the next day.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: clww on October 15, 2012, 12:36:01 PM
Luckily, I have not seen any in our log cabin structure....so far. ::)
I've built lots of stuff and have cut lots of wood. I've seen these bees in all types of building material, normal and pressure treated. I've also seen them in many species of trees, both standing dead and healthy trees. The stuff they invade has always seemed hit-or-miss to me.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: grweldon on October 15, 2012, 01:47:50 PM
I hear them in my house supporting structure, all made from CCA pressure treated wood.  I would expect that the copper in the preservative will prevent the bees from boring in to it.  I do not know about the new "yellow" preservatives...

Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: POSTON WIDEHEAD on October 15, 2012, 08:12:47 PM
Quote from: Raider Bill on October 15, 2012, 11:28:51 AM
I have a problem with them on my porch in Tenn. if I find a hole I spray wd40 in the hole. They come right out and fall dead but it doesn't last long. I bought some traps which caught a very small amount. I then went to drastic measures.... Got 18 in one day 14 the next!


:D :D :D :D :D Raider, have you started shooting them with your revolver?  :D :D :D :D :D
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on October 15, 2012, 10:17:55 PM
Because the carpenter bee does not eat the wood, but is merely tunneling to make a home, treated wood does not offer much protection.  That is why an insecticide powder is effective as they get it on themselves and then their food. 

The best time to plug a hole is a night when it is cool...they are not active then. 

Woodpeckers like the hollow sound from the bees tunnels, so it is,common to find both.

They like the softer woods, with pine being a favorite.  That is why plugging a hole with a hardwood dowel is effective...the wood is too hard for them to chew.  They like a little bit wetter wood as it is easier to chew.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: YellowHammer on October 15, 2012, 10:41:42 PM
I've had good luck using Delta Dust powder with a bellows applicator.  Just squirt some powder in the holes and and any bee that gets the dust on it will die shortly.  The dust has a pretty good residual effect lasting several months and also kills spiders, wasps, and most other bugs but is safe for humans.  It's a good way to keep my barn mostly pest free.
YH
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Raider Bill on October 16, 2012, 10:26:12 AM
Quote from: YellowHammer on October 15, 2012, 10:41:42 PM
I've had good luck using Delta Dust powder with a bellows applicator.  Just squirt some powder in the holes and and any bee that gets the dust on it will die shortly.  The dust has a pretty good residual effect lasting several months and also kills spiders, wasps, and most other bugs but is safe for humans.  It's a good way to keep my barn mostly pest free.
YH

Is that the brand name Delta Dust? Think Tractor supply has it?

Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Texas Ranger on October 16, 2012, 10:36:33 AM
Oh well, got to fess up.  I use them to sharpen my eye with a bb gun.  Good areal  pass shooting.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Draco on October 16, 2012, 12:14:01 PM
Sevin dust (found in local garden center for insect control on flowers and vegetables) is extremely deadly to all wasps and bees.  It is the biggest problem with this product.  Our honey bees have had some serious setbacks over the past decade, or so.  Mason bees (the kind that is being discussed) are mostly native bees that serve the same purpose as our dwindling honey bees do.  Without pollinators, we would all starve.  But, if you want to do in all of your mason bees, get a dusting container and squirt a bit of Sevin in the holes after the larvae have emerged in late spring.  Plugging the holes afterward will help, by forcing adult bees to excavate new holes.  I have not tried this, but Sevin also comes in spray form.  If you have thousands of square feet to cover, it would not be economically feasable.  Spraying the wood may prevent new excavation, but multiple applications would probably be necessary.  Rain would wash it away and it has a short time period before it becomes a harmless substance.

I hope this helps because I know a lot more about nature than logging and milling!
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: catskillpond on October 16, 2012, 01:15:54 PM
We have  rental houses where the bees would come every year and boar into the eves. We usally put 20 mule team boraxo soap and corn meal in a soda can with a small amount of sugar under our lumber piles that come off the mill to kill the carpenter ants which works flawlessly. We made up a mixture with water and sprayed the eves and the bees never came back.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Raider Bill on October 16, 2012, 03:57:42 PM
Quote from: Texas Ranger on October 16, 2012, 10:36:33 AM
Oh well, got to fess up.  I use them to sharpen my eye with a bb gun.  Good areal  pass shooting.

I was speed drawing and even shooting from the hip. Everyone was in awe of my marksmanship there was even some bets placed. It was deadly to the bees.

I never told them I was using rat shot.. A couple guys asked to try so I made like I was reloading and put regular long rifle rounds in. Of course nobody even came close.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Cypressstump on October 16, 2012, 04:21:44 PM

[/quote]I never told them I was using rat shot.. A couple guys asked to try so I made like I was reloading and put regular long rifle rounds in. Of course nobody even came close.
[/quote]

Funny you mention that. Years ago me and a buddy went squirrel hunting, he with 20 ga. and me w/ .22 rifle. I had my limit coming out, he not so lucky. A woodcock had flushed a few times in front of us, my friend missed once. I told him I'd take next shot with my .22. Unknown to him, I put in a .22 LR CCI shot, number 9 I think it was. I saw where the bird landed, eased up nice and quite, shot him dead as it flushed. I never told my friend of the birdshot used. I was quite the shot as well as yourself! Mean huh?
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: bigred1951 on October 16, 2012, 05:32:50 PM
they bored holes all in my mamaws porch rafters..so i would get the wasp and bee spray and spray all the holes and watch them come out and die and then respray.. that seemed to work well along with wd40 sometimes..and finally i had enough and went and bought some expanding foam and filled all the holes i could find..only seen one bee since this summer haha
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: YellowHammer on October 16, 2012, 11:13:39 PM
Delta Dust is a commercial name for Deltamethrin which belongs to the chemical class of pyrethroids, naturally occurring insecticidal compounds that are synthesized from chrysanthemum flowers.  Deltamethrin is a staple of commercial pesticide professionals, is not soluble in water and so is highly stable in an protected physical environment.  It is sold as a dry powder for dusting, and also as a wettable powder which can be sprayed for broader coverage.  It's available through the internet, and depending on the application technique is commonly used per label to protect building interiors. Delta Dust is classified as a non-restricted use pesticide by the EPA.  Its also considered kitchen safe and authorized for use in federally inspected meat and poultry plants for crack and crevice applications.
I have a restricted use pesticide license and as with all pesticides it needs to be used with care and responsibly, and since I use it for the interior of my outbuildings and rafters, it doesn't get washed off, doesn't cause secondary contamination, and will only kill the insects in areas where I target them.

Here's a publication from LSU AgCenter, which lists Deltamethrin as a recommend pesticide for carpenter bees and also for powder post beetles, for which I also use it in spray form when I'm treating my sawn lumber.
And no, I don't own stock in the stuff,  ;D just have a lot of experience with it and have concluded it is a very useful tool in my operation.
http://www.lsuagcenter.com/NR/rdonlyres/2125FCAE-95A5-483A-8EF2-96DB96911E1B/84862/11HouseholdInsectsforHomeowners2012.pdf

YH
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: tyb525 on October 16, 2012, 11:32:21 PM
Brake cleaner in a can is good for immediate kills, has a longer range than most wasp sprays.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: Charles135 on October 18, 2012, 09:32:52 PM
Them darn Carpenter bees get into my oak down here in upstate SC.  I spray used hydraulic oil to treat my oak and pine structures and they don't seem to like it very much!  I have to spray the stcruture about once every three years to keep them out!  It makes a pretty greyish red color wood. 
Charlie
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: hackberry jake on October 18, 2012, 10:34:18 PM
Never herd of em eating oak! Thems some tough bees!
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: WDH on October 18, 2012, 10:40:18 PM
I had an aunt that had some red cedar cut 30 years ago and stickered stacked in the second floor of an old barn.  I ended up with the wood.  About 60% of it was totally riddled with carpenter bee tunnels.  It was a carpenter bee Convention Center.  There are not many critters that can do that to eastern red cedar.  They are tough, indeed.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: trailman on October 19, 2012, 10:33:04 AM
    i visited a college in new york that had a castle. it had a little pile of saw dust under the enterance doors. i thought it must be bees in there doing some remodeling.
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on October 19, 2012, 10:32:11 PM
Did you know that the male carpenter bee does not sting?  The female can sting, but does so rarely.  How can you tell them apart from bumblebees?  Bumble bees have a yellow belly, for one thing.

https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/30498/carpenter-bee-bumble-bee_copy%7E0.jpg
Title: Re: bore bee's
Post by: LorenB on October 22, 2012, 02:14:57 AM
Along with TJ, I'd like to know if paint will keep carpenter bees from chewing into wood.  I painted the exposed lumber on my kiln building for just that purpose.  I'd sure hate to learn that I wasted my time and money.  It was exterior latex paint, if that matters. 

Anyone know? 

Thanks,
-- Loren