|
About Our Company
Residential Services
Commercial Services
Handyman Solutions Specialty Services
|
What You need to know about carpenter bees
Carpenter Bees
Carpenter bees are large, yellow and black
(or blue‑black) bees that become active in early
spring. This bee is commonly 2/3 to 1 inch long,
usually with a shiny abdomen and a yellow
thorax. Its look‑alike cousin (the bumble bee)
has a fuzzy abdomen. Although it is rare to be
stung by one, their sheer size is scary and
people generally stay clear of them.
Carpenter Bee Biology
Carpenter bees get their name from their
ability to drill through wood and nest in the
hole. Their drilling creates a near‑perfect
hole, approximately 1/2 inch in diameter. The
hole is usually located on the underside of the
wood surface; including siding, soffits, decks,
overhangs, fence posts and window frames.
Although the hole appears to be only an inch or
two deep, it rarely ends there.
The female carpenter bee will turn 90 degrees
and bore a channel from 6 inches to as long as 4
feet. This channel serves as a main corridor
from which she will drill small chambers a few
inches deep. These chambers become egg holders.
She will deposit an egg, bring in a mass of
pollen for the newly hatched larvae to feed on,
and then seal it all off to ensure it's
development before she repeats the process for
the next egg.
The male spends most of his time flying
around the nest playing guard. This is ironic as
nature has left him ill prepared: he has no
stinger! Only the female can sting. Simply
killing the male will not solve your problem.
You must treat the nest.
Signs of Carpenter Bee Infestations
Half‑inch, round holes appear, and piles of
sawdust are found underneath. Along with the
coarse frass (sawdust) found underneath the nest
entrance, there are usually dirty‑yellow streaks
of fecal matter staining the wood below the
hole. If you are near a nest, you will likely be
buzzed by the male carpenter bee on guard. He is
loud and aggressive, but remember that he does
not have the ability to sting you.
The female can sting but she is normally very
docile. A single pair (male and female) occupies
each nest. It is not uncommon to find several
pair of carpenter bees nesting in one structure.
They frequently nest near each other and often
in the same area year after year, causing
extensive damage. You may find old holes near
newer ones. Sometimes the female will renovate
an old nest gallery and reuse it.
Control of Carpenter Bees, Carpenter Bee
Elimination
To control carpenter bees, do not concentrate
on the adults. The annoying male bees are easy
to kill with a wasp freeze such as PT515.
However, killing the male will do nothing to
stop the cycle. You must treat the nest with a
product which will have a long residual killing
time. If you spray liquid residuals in their
hole, you may kill the female bee. The eggs are
protected, however, and six to twelve months
later the larva will emerge. Since liquids are
absorbed by porous wood, they will be gone when
the larva hatch. This means the larva have a
strong chance of survival.
To insure complete control, use a dust called
Drione. It has a desiccant action and can remain
active up to 3 months in the nest and the nest
galleries. When the larva emerge they will be
dehydrated by the Drione Dust. Apply the Drione
(using a Crusader Duster) to the nest openings
and deep inside the cavities drilled by the
carpenter bees. This will kill any emerging
carpenter bees and larva in the future. Since
the holes can penetrate several feet, you should
use an applicator like the Crusader Duster. This
tool will help you to apply the dust with enough
force to reach deep in the nest where the eggs
and larva will be living.
You should also treat any wood surface that
you wish to protect with Tempo WP or with Cynoff
WP. Wettable powders (Tempo WP and Cynoff WP )
are used extensively by pest control operators
throughout the United States for most of their
monthly, quarterly or once‑a‑year pest control
accounts. These products are active against many
pests including carpenter bees.
If your home has cedar siding or is a log
home:
Wettable powder formulations will leave a
visible residue on dark surfaces which is
undesirable for some people. Cedar and log homes
may also be bombarded with carpenter bees which
requires special attention. Most of our
customers who have these types of homes prefer
to use Demon EC or Cynoff EC for their carpenter
bee elimination. Both of these products contain
Cypermethrin (an active ingredient which gives
excellent knock down of carpenter bees) without
leaving a visible residue.
These products are also much cheaper to use when
treating larger areas or where high volumes of
insecticide spray is required. When treating
these larger areas (on log or cedar homes) use a
hose‑end sprayer for application. This allows
you to treat exterior walls with greater ease
and reach higher areas without having to use a
step ladder. For severe infestations of
carpenter bees on cedar and log, you will need
to spray twice (2 weeks apart) the first month.
After your spray has been allowed to dry, apply
your Drione Dust to all possible carpenter bee
holes or entry points. Repeat spray and dust as
necessary.
Choose the product that best suits your overall
needs for pest control in and around your home
or business. Tempo WP and Cynoff WP are all
wettable powders (powder concentrates that are
mixed with water for spraying for various insect
pests) which are odorless and give at least 90
day residual action indoors. Cynoff EC and Demon
EC are liquid concentrates which give about 30
days residual and no visible residue. Mix 1/2 to
1 ounce of these liquid concentrates per gallon
of water. Mix Cynoff WP or Tempo WP at the rate
of 2 scoops per gallon when controlling
carpenter bee infestations; spray on any wood
surface you wish to protect from carpenter bees
or where they may want to bore holes and create
galleries. One gallon can treat up to 1000
sq./ft. This application rate works well when
treating cedar homes and log cabins. These
structures are particularly subject to carpenter
bees. If you tend to have recurring carpenter
bee problems every Spring or Fall, may have to
do more spraying. This will deter future
infestations of many pests, including carpenter
bees. Apply your wettable powder insecticides
once every 4 weeks in the spring when they are
most active. Once a month applications
throughout the summer will probably provide
protection but do not forget your fall
application. Although rain and humidity will
break down the chemical, it is active enough so
that even trace amounts will help chase
carpenter bees, wasps and hornets away.
Use a pump sprayer to do the treatment. Our
Chapin Sprayer has a life time guarantee. Start
treating high on the siding under the eaves.
Since the product will run down the side of the
home, you will get the best coverage this way.
The most economical way to spray is with a
garden pump sprayer. Our Chapin sprayer is
capable of reaching up to 30 feet high. Product
comes out slowly and it may take a couple of
gallons to treat your home. However, the pump
sprayer avoids excessive waste. If you have a
lot a area to treat and are not concerned about
wasting some product, use a Dial‑A‑Mix hose end
sprayer with a liquid concentrate Cypermethrin
(Demon EC, Cynoff EC, etc.) Carpenter Bee Kit #3
is perfect for larger jobs or homes constructed
with cedar siding or logs. A hose‑end type of
sprayer is used by filling it with the
Cypermethrin product, hooking it to your garden
hose and then depressing the trigger. This
releases the water from your hose which in turn
siphons out the required amount of Cypermethrin
to provide the correct solution. This type of
application is much easier to use than a pump
sprayer. Many times the water pressure is able
to spray higher than the pump sprayer which
could prove important if trying to reach high
places on your home. Expect a small amount of
waste when using the hose end sprayer. On a
special note, do not use a "Miracle Gro" or
other "no‑clog" hose end sprayer which lets
water mix with the concentrate. These sprayers
are designed for water soluble fertilizer and
will not work for this application. When Spring
has sprung, insects will rebound from a long and
cold winter. The carpenter bee is one such pest.
Treat their nests directly with Drione to insure
long term control. Use Cynoff WP or Tempo WP on
decks, overhangs and fence posts in the Spring
to stop further nests from starting. A little
prevention will go a long way in reducing the
amount of unsightly damage caused by carpenter
bees.
|
