The Walden Effect: Farming, simple living, permaculture, and invention.

Carpenter bee destruction

Carpenter bee burrow into lumber.

Is there anything to do to prevent carpenter bees from tunneling into the porch?



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About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.



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They are looking for nesting spots. Do a search on how to build them some " houses ". There are hundreds of possibilities all dependent on your imagination an how much time you want to spend. We have no bees left in our area an the carpenter bees are my only pollinators so we are trying to help them survive and save our wood at the same time. Blessings. Gigi
Comment by Gigi Sat May 27 15:31:52 2017
I saw something for that at southern states, these homemade looking high priced jars they fall into and die. It like has the same kind of hole before a die jar. Maybe you could make one?
Comment by Maggie Sat May 27 16:14:39 2017

Caulk the holes. I've found that if you paint your wood white, it deters carpenter bees. It also helps deter wasps from building nests. I assume it has something to do with reflecting light, but could also have something to do with the fact that you don't have bare wood for them to be attracted to.

Could be a combination with both, but I've battled these guys over the years in different places and have always found painting the wood the brightest white seemed to really make a difference.

Comment by Mike Sat May 27 17:45:13 2017
You can put Vaseline in their holes, but really, they don't do all that much damage unless you have an infestation of them. And they are pollinators.
Comment by Another Julie Sat May 27 18:02:36 2017
I bought two from Best Bee Brothers on Amazon that have taken care of the ones that were getting at my porch this year
Comment by SEHQ Sat May 27 18:49:07 2017
You can cut bamboo into short pieces and wire them together into bundles and put around your place as a prefabbed bee apartment houses. We need to save our pollinators.
Comment by bob Sat May 27 21:48:35 2017

I have several friends who have called in exterminators and all said that there is nothing they can do. I have them both by the cabin and in the tree house. At one time someone suggested putting steel wool into their holes, but that did not last. If you find something that really works, please let us all know!! On the roof overhang by the dining area we have had to nail extra wood to the structure.

Sheila

Comment by Sheila Sat May 27 21:55:07 2017
Had an elderly gentleman tell me once the only way he ever got rid of wood bees was to get a "vianie" can and fix a wire bail through it, fill it with diesel, and hang it near where they're boring. Supposedly the smell of the fuel keeps them away. Haven't tried this however, so I can't personally attest to its effectiveness.
Comment by Marc Sun May 28 13:29:33 2017

You can try wood sealer (like for a deck) or shellac to seal the surface. This can prevent them from tuneup not in the first place. They will re-use old tunnels so you'll need to fill those with putty or something. Greetings from Tom Valente!

Comment by Anonymous Wed May 31 23:12:04 2017

Everybody --- Thanks so much for sharing what has and hasn't worked for you in the past!

Tom --- So cool to see you over here! Given your background with entomology, it sounds like we should definitely give your advice a try first.

Comment by anna Thu Jun 1 11:46:43 2017
Supposedly, hanging a paper bag from your porch rafters makes them think the area is occupied by Vespa nemeses and keeps them away. I haven't tried it, though.
Comment by Jake Sat Jul 1 23:30:14 2017





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