Get Rid Of Carpenter Bees

Carpenter bees get their common name from their habit of boring into wood to make galleries for the rearing of young. These are worldwide in distribution with 7 species occurring in the United States. They don't have a hive as honey bees, but are solitary bees.The female Carpenter bee can get into small areas,boring holes.

They are perfectly round, about 3/8 " in diameter.

The female carpenter bee will bore a channel or main corridor in the wood from 6 " to as long as 4 feet to lay their eggs in "galleries". 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.

Although, they are a wood boring insect, they are not considered a true structural pest. They do not spread through out the entire structure, but prefer unpainted or finished wood.

CARPENTER BEE IDENTIFICATION

Picture courtesy : Kansas State University Research and Extension

Adult body length is about 1/2 to1 inch (12.5 to 25 mm). They are robust, resembling bumble bees, but larger, with the top surface of abdomen mostly bare and shiny. 

The male has a yellow face. The female's is black.

They can resemble bumble bees, but the upper surface of their abdomen is bare and shiny black, while bumble bees have a hairy abdomen with at least some yellow markings.

Bumble bees don't nest in the wood, but rather on the ground.

To see pictures of both, click here:  Pictures of carpenter bees and bumble bees

SIGNS OF CARPENTER BEE INFESTATIONS

You will see round holes and a coarse sawdust-like substance called frass underneath the holes. The holes are perfectly round and are about 3/8 inch in diameter. You may find old holes near the newer ones. Old nests can be used year after year by the carpenter bee. Their holes are usually located on the underside of any wood surface including siding, soffits, overhangs, decks, fence posts, fascia boards and window frames.

HABITS

During the spring, the males seek out the females, hovering around females that found some unfinished wood, such as under eaves, railings, etc. The males are territorial and will confront you if you enter their territory, but they are incapable of stinging. Females have a stinger, but are very docile. Females will nest in a all types of wood, but prefer weathered and unpainted wood.

Male carpenter bees tend to be territorial and can buzz around you if you approach closely, sometimes hovering a short distance in front of your face or buzzing around your head. Since males have no stinger, these actions are just for show and intimidation.

The female bee can squeeze through incredibly tiny places to bore into untreated wood.

RECOMMENDED MEASURES OF CONTROL

Prevention and Current Infestations

Prevention is the operative word. In the early spring, before the carpenter bees can begin to bore into the wood an once of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Treatment is usually best done before nesting activity gets started. Nesting and the rearing of young carpenter bees occur in the late spring or early summer . Treat when the bees are seen early in the spring. for best results. Treat with the residual insecticides shown below.

If you have a current infestation , you may not only want to spray with a residual insecticide or aerosol as seen in the table below, but dust a residual dust such as  Delta Dust  in all the new openings.

Table of Recommended Products for Carpenter Bee Control
Demon WP		Cyper WP
Tempo WP		250 Propoxur Residual Insecticide Aerosol
Demand CS		Suspend SC
The Demon WP, Cyper WP, Tempo WP, Demand CS and Suspend SC have a 3 month residue. The 250 Propopoxur Residual Aerosol would not require a sprayer, but would only last 4 weeks.

Delta Dust	The Delta Dust and Drione Dust both last about 6 months and both work equally effective	Drione Dust
Save money by this Carpenter Bee Kits
Carpenter Bee Control Kit with Cyper WP Contains: 1 1lb of Cyper WP(makes 24-48 gallons), 14 oz. CentroBulb Duster with extension, 1- 1 lb. of Delta Dust and 20 1/2" Tapered Corks 1 lb of Cyper WP (33.50) 1 lb of Delta Dust (13.90) Centrobulb Duster 14 oz. /with curved Tip and extension (33.50) 20- 1/2" Tapered Corks (valued at 4.00) Kit is for 72.50 Individually priced at 84.90 Carpenter Bee Control Kit with Cyonara 9.7 Contains: 8 oz. of Cyonara 9.7 (makes 10-40 gallons), 14 oz. CentroBulb Duster with extension, 1- 1 lb. of Delta Dust and 20 1/2" Tapered Corks 8 oz. Cyonara 9.7 Cyonara 9.7 (36.75) 1 lb of Delta Dust (13.90) Centrobulb Duster 14 oz. /with curved Tip and extension (33.50) 20- 1/2" Tapered Corks (valued at 4.00) Kit is for 72.50 Individually priced at 88.15

Spray the areas where they are boring in any unpainted or unvarnished wood. Sometimes they may be boring in painted or varnished wood.

The WP (wettable powder formulations) such as Demon WP, Cyper WP or Tempo Tub will leave a film residue visible on medium to dark wood, in that case use Suspend SC or Demand CS that will dry clear.

Demon WP, Cyper WP, Tempo WP, Demand CS and Suspend SC will last 2 to 3 months, leaving a residual for that long, taking it through most of their season. Cynoff EC , Viper and Demon EC have a four week residue.

It is very difficult to treat each individual gallery with a dust , aerosol or liquid residual insecticide, as you can see by the
Picture, but may be important if you have a current infestation.

The difficulty lies in the dust aerosol or liquid residual insecticide flowing through the entire chamber. With the Centrol Bulb Duster and it's curved tip,it would be easier to "hook" into the carpenter bee holes as the holes go in a horizontal direction.

We would suggest treating each entrance hole with Delta Dust or Drione Dust with a duster such as a Centro Bulb Duster

Centro Bulb Duster

You can plug up the entrances with 1/2"cork , putty or caulking compound after all the bees are killed.
If you plug up the entrances too early, you would not allow the carpenter bees to pass thru the insecticide dust to pass freely and they may chew new openings in other locations.

For severe infestations of carpenter bees on cedar and log structures, you may need to repeat the treatments. We suggest a interval of two weeks .After each spray treatment , apply Delta Dust or Drione Dust to all possible carpenter bee holes or entry points.

You can kill the hovering males with a contact aerosol such as:  Stinger Wasp Freeze. The only reason for killing the males is their nuisance factor, since they can't sting.

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Using a pump garden type of sprayer like:  Chapin one gallon pump sprayer or Chapin two gallon pump sprayer can spray up to 20 to reach any hard to reach areas.

Or you can use a Gilmour hose end sprayers if you are using the non wettable powder (wp) formulations such as Demand CS or Suspend SC. The WP formulations will clog up the hose end sprayers, and you would need the pump type of sprayer such as the Chapin Pump Sprayers.

If you are using liquid residual insecticides such Suspend SC or Demand CS , you will have a run-off of liquid if using a hose end sprayer.

The Demon WP, Cyper WP, Tempo WP , Demand CS or Suspend SC would work in a garden type of pump sprayer.

The following year, by all means, spray early to prevent further boring.