Carpenter Bees?

We have a huge deck- raised so there is storage and what not underneath.

recently these HUGE azz bee's have been lingering on our deck in one area.


Im hearing they could be carpenter bee's and are there due to the wood deck.

Re: Carpenter Bees?

Yup i have them too!! They swarm around like crazy!!! They are in my wood shingles.

Re: Carpenter Bees?

Does that mean there is a possible hive underneath?

how do we get rid of them?

My kids cant even play on deck since they hover low and they are scared.
heck I am too!

lol.

Re: Carpenter Bees?

I am having the same problem on front porch (wood) - there are 2 of them always around, terrorizing us everytime we go in or out of the house. My poor DD is petrified and yesterday she fell on the concrete steps trying to outrun the bee. I have been doing some research - you have to find the hole (hive) and seal it. My DH has found 3 holes so far and covered them temporarily with duct tape, the bees seem to be on my neighbors porch mostly now but they keep zipping over every time someone is in front of our house. I called an exterminator yesterday - they wanted $350 for a 6 week guarantee.

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I have them too! Tis the season. I had to invest in a seasonal contract with an exterminator because they were killing my deck (the seasonal is cheaper and covers all types of bugs - like those darn camel crickets). I already have quite the bee phobia so these things really freak me out although I'm constantly told they do not hurt us.

Re: Carpenter Bees?

Carpenter Bees tend to target the same nesting sites year after year. They prefer bare, unfinished wood, one preventative measure would be to paint and then finish (with varnish or sealant) wood that has been repeatedly infested in years past.

If possible, exterior parts of buildings, decks, outdoor furnishings and other wooden structures should be constructed out of hardwoods.

Fill cracks and depressions in wood surfaces with wood putty so they are less attractive.
Fill vacant holes present in wood with steel-wool or STUF-FIT Copper Mesh to prevent their reuse. Wait until after bees have emerged before filling the tunnels. Once filled, paint or varnish the repaired surfaces.

Source and more info about how to get rid of them

Re: Carpenter Bees?

Yep...here in NC we have them too! I HATE THEM!!!!!!

The males have a spot on it's head & are the ones who swarm around you protecting the nest....but they don't sting, just really alloying (I swat them with a broom & they smash them)

If you locate try hole fill it with wood putty (just insert the tip in & squeeze). The silly things don't know how to get out other than the way they went in. Do it around dusk so you know they are in there. They are habitual, so they will come back year after year if you don't break the cycle.

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we started getting them this week! my bf is out there right now with a personal vendetta against them

Re: Carpenter Bees? yo

I can't stand them We caught 7 of them on Sun.we catch them in a butterfly net and squish them.We have not been able to get rid of them

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OMG I haven't gone out on my deck in 2 days because of these stupid things!

We have one, he just hovers right at my gate, DD1 is PETRIFIED of it (and so am I!!!!)

Thanks for the link to get rid of these guys!

Re: Carpenter Bees?

another thin you can do is throw a small stone about the size of the bee near the bee and it chases it and goes away - they are very territorial

the males don't stng but are annoying - we got rid of all the wood on our house because there were so many nests when we first bought our house

Re: Carpenter Bees?

Re: Carpenter Bees?

We had them in the roof eave a few years in a row. We called an exterminator. So freaking annoying!

I started seeing them again!

Re: Carpenter Bees?

Yes my parents have them too, they are huge but do not sting, when my parents are grilling or outside they have a fly swatter and are able to get them with that.

Re: Carpenter Bees?

I had them, The key is to spray there holes at night while they are sleeping, That HELPS ALOT!!!


I ended up taking my deck down and putting pavers in.

Good Luck!

Re: Carpenter Bees?

I have them in my yard and they drilled holes in my shed! Theres like 7 of them that hover around my yard and make it impossible for me to be out there.

I'm going out there tonight with wood putty and barracading them in!