Carpenter bees
#1
04-23-17, 12:27 PM
Carpenter bees
What kills those pesky wood eating carpenter bees on THEN on contact.Also what method works best to keep on killing ...the store spray is a joke!
I've heard of many things wd40 to boric acid to petro,moth balls, or carbcleaner,an termite spray on wood too.
Just looking for best methods an fastest..
I also read i can fill holes w powfered boric acid ,steel wool,caulk. or cotton balls soaked in wd40 ..
Any info is appreciated .theres a swarm of em an OTC doesn't work
I've heard of many things wd40 to boric acid to petro,moth balls, or carbcleaner,an termite spray on wood too.
Just looking for best methods an fastest..
I also read i can fill holes w powfered boric acid ,steel wool,caulk. or cotton balls soaked in wd40 ..
Any info is appreciated .theres a swarm of em an OTC doesn't work
#2
04-23-17, 01:07 PM
Member
I discovered them drilling holes into my PT deck structure last year. I applied a dose of Seven to the deck and didn't really see any again. However just today I saw one in the garage so they are back and need to spray again.
#3
04-23-17, 01:17 PM
They keep coming back, year after year 
I use a duster to put sevin dust in the holes they drill, that keeps them out and kills their offspring. Most any bug spray will kill them on contact if you spray them good enough, carb cleaner works too.
I use a duster to put sevin dust in the holes they drill, that keeps them out and kills their offspring. Most any bug spray will kill them on contact if you spray them good enough, carb cleaner works too.
#4
04-23-17, 01:24 PM
Member
They drill a hole several inches in length and lay eggs in little chambers, wall off the chambers and then lay another backing toward the entrance they made. You can kill the female, but the offspring will still hatch. If you simply plug the hole, they will drill themselves a new hole to escape. From what I have read, you need to get a powder into the main hole so that when they hatch, they drag themselves through the dust and it kills them that way. They themselves are relatively harmless. It is woodpeckers that you need to worry about. They will attack your wood to get to the larve and make a complete mess. I recommend to my clients that you pull and replace the wood with PVC trim which they will not bother with. Take the boards containing the larve to the dump and away from your house.
The males, who you see flying about are harmless. They simply fight among themselves for rights to the females. Males do not have stingers, they are identified by a yellow dot on the front of their heads. I swat them with a putty knife. The females on the other hand DO have stingers and are identified by a complete black head (no yellow dot). Females will defend their nests.
The males, who you see flying about are harmless. They simply fight among themselves for rights to the females. Males do not have stingers, they are identified by a yellow dot on the front of their heads. I swat them with a putty knife. The females on the other hand DO have stingers and are identified by a complete black head (no yellow dot). Females will defend their nests.
#5
04-23-17, 04:31 PM
And the gestation period is reversed so the last one laid is the first one to leave the chambers. I have a friend who has "patented" (not sure of this) a liquid that he sells in irrigation syringes and you just have to put a couple of drops at the entrance of the hole. It kills the female, and all the young as they exit. Cue here is what Chris said. It ain't the bees, but the woodpeckers, and by the time the gestation period is over, woodpeckers have already made a mess of things.
#6
04-24-17, 03:21 AM
I have been fighting borer bees for 25+ yrs and I often hear woodpeckers in the woods surrounding my house but I have yet to sustain any woodpecker damage to any of my structures - maybe I've just been lucky ?? I know woodpeckers go after bugs in wood.
#7
04-24-17, 05:58 AM
So the seven dust is one of the best to use in there?
Does that work right on contact?
Maybe throw in some boric acid with it..
What can I spray directly on them also?
I'll have to fill holes after killed too..is caulk or wood putty going to be best..i hear steel wool can't be torn apart by them at all either.
Does that work right on contact?
Maybe throw in some boric acid with it..
What can I spray directly on them also?
I'll have to fill holes after killed too..is caulk or wood putty going to be best..i hear steel wool can't be torn apart by them at all either.
#8
04-24-17, 06:27 AM
Member
Fill in the holes with bondo and sand smooth after your are sure they are dead, maybe wait a season to be sure.
#9
04-24-17, 08:23 AM
They sell a powder that is tailor made for borer bees but it's expensive, sevin dust works and is a whole lot cheaper 
The main thing is to get the dust into the holes.
I've heard that 1/4" [?] dowel rods are good to patch the holes. I generally don't bother as they for the most part leave my house alone but they sure do like my barn/shop Do make sure they are dead before you plug the hole! I puttied up one of their holes on a new construction paint job and came back the next day to find a new hole the bee drilled to get out 
The main thing is to get the dust into the holes.I've heard that 1/4" [?] dowel rods are good to patch the holes. I generally don't bother as they for the most part leave my house alone but they sure do like my barn/shop
Do make sure they are dead before you plug the hole! I puttied up one of their holes on a new construction paint job and came back the next day to find a new hole the bee drilled to get out 
#10
04-24-17, 01:02 PM
Thanks f For all the info.
I'll spray liquid foam killer in an later use seven dust an some crushed up moth balls..No way they could be in there a day later..ill hit em with wd40 if I catch em flying away..
I'll bondo over it after a few days ..
Later on I'll have siding over it too so I'm sure that will help.
Thanks again.
I'll spray liquid foam killer in an later use seven dust an some crushed up moth balls..No way they could be in there a day later..ill hit em with wd40 if I catch em flying away..
I'll bondo over it after a few days ..
Later on I'll have siding over it too so I'm sure that will help.
Thanks again.
