Bees and similar insects can be very painful when they sting you. If you or someone else has allergies, they can also be potentially fatal. Even people who aren't allergic and have survived stings before can experience massive illness if they receive too many stings. Furthermore, carpenter bees can damage your property by literally eating holes in wood.
Getting rid of bees and preventing them from returning is critical for your health and your loved ones. If you find a hive, getting rid of it as soon as possible is important because bees love to expand. It starts out with one hive, and then another, and another, so on and so forth.
Please note though: a couple of bees in your garden or buzzing around is NOT a problem. If you find a hive inside your home or on your property, have an excessive amount of bees, etc. then you may have a problem.
Signs of a Bee Problem
Some signs of a bee problem include seeing a hive (bees will be more aggressive near it too), an excessive amount of bees in the garden or around the house, buzzing in the walls or in the attic, and aggressive bee behavior. Bees get very aggressive when you get near their hive, so if bees are aggressive for no reason, you may have a hive nearby!
Holes in the wall accompanied with any of the above signs is a huge sign of "carpenter bees," which eat wood.
How To Get Rid of the Bees- Professionally
There are several ways to get rid of the bees. Before taking action yourself, you may want to check with the local bee-keeper. Some bee-keepers will relocate the bees free-of-charge because of the value it provides them. Some bees are becoming endangered, and so the bee-keeper will relocate the bees in a way that's better for the economy AND you. If you don't want to do anything yourself, you could also call up a pest removal company, like Pest X Team / Wildlife X Team.
Wear Protection
For all of the strategies we mention, you MUST wear lots of protective clothing. Cover up all of your skin otherwise you may find yourself getting stun. The clothing should be very thick as well, otherwise the bee stingers may make it through the clothing.
Also do these strategies at NIGHT. Bees are more likely to be dormant at night and so you will have less issues with the bees. Attack when they're least active and you will have the least amount of problems!
Home Removal Strategies
First locate the hive. Put half vinegar and half water into a spray bottle, and spray the hive and areas the bees like to go. Repeat this a few times per day (if possible) every single day until you can safely remove the hive. Be careful with touching the hive- this really aggravates the bees and even with thick protective clothing bees can bite their way through when going for the hive!
Another strategy is to get a "bug zapper strip." These can be purchased at any big store (such as Walmart). Place the bug zapper strip as close to the hive as possible and over time bees will zap and die. You can use this strategy with any of the others as well.
Boiling water + soap is another great strategy. The boiling water alone will annihilate the hive, and soap will do the rest! Be careful to not hurt yourself though when tossing the boiling water at the hive. As with the first method, do this every single day, and you can also use the other methods while doing this.
Pesticides & Insecticides
Pesticides & insecticides are available too if you wish to use them. We find that the "natural" methods almost always do the trick, and there are lots of potentially dangerous side-effects of using chemicals in your yard. If you have a severe problem and don't have the budget for an expert, pesticides & insecticides might be the thing for you. Just be careful to understand the chemical fully so you don't cause unintentional damage to yourself, your pets, or your property!
Bee Prevention
Bee prevention can also be done while removing a hive. If you live in a high-bee-activity area, or just recently got rid of a bee hive, you should also use these bee prevention tricks to keep them away once they're gone.
The best bee prevention trick is to place and hang mothballs around your property and where the bees go. This will in fact keep almost ALL insects away- insects HATE mothballs.
Cinnamon and mint-flavored plants will also discourage bees and other insects from being near your property. The mothballs will be the most effective, and if you tend to have big bee problems then placing cinnamon around the house and planting mint-smelling plants should do the trick.
Conclusion
Bees are a huge pain and can be a greater problem. Exercise these tactics to get rid of hives, and keep bees away from your property once they're gone.
We hope this has helped you and look forward to hearing great results!
Thanks!!
-Wildlife X Team International