There are many pests that can drill into trees. The short list includes BORERS, POWDERPOST BEETLES, WOOD WASPS and CARPENTER BEES. Regardless of what insect drilled the holes, once the tree sustains this type of injury it will become susceptible to all kinds of problems including fungus (wood rot), disease and infestations from other insects.

In fact I’ve seen where Borers have drilled some holes and then the holes are taken over by CARPENTER ANTS. I’ve also seen where Carpenter Bees drill holes which are then taken over by Honey Bees. Most any tree will routinely serve host to a wide range of insects and in some cases this role can prove deadly. Hopefully the infestation you have is not that bad.

To treat the problem, you’ll want to use a dust we sell called DRIONE. Fast working and easy to apply, Drione is ideal for this type of job because it will permeate up and into all the voids this nest may contain. Unlike a liquid or aerosol spray, Drione is more like smoke. When applied using a HAND DUSTER, the Drione will drift all through the nest killing all the adults, eggs and larvae it contacts. Treatments can last many months and if you seal the holes up 2-3 days following the treatment, you can expect the Drione to last a long time.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Carpenter Bee Control:  http://www.carpenterbees.com/carpenter-bee-control

Drione Dust:  http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/dust/drione-dust

Hand Duster:  http://www.bugspraycart.com/equipment/dusters/crusader

If you are 100% sure these are carpenter bees, treating as explained in our article will take care of the problem. But since you say there are “so so many in there”, I’m thinking it must be another species. Is it possible they’re honey bees or even yellow jackets? Typically these “other” bee and wasp nests will have activity pretty much non stop during the day. In other words, if you watch that hole you said you see, you’ll notice a lot of bees or wasps coming in and leaving all the time. This will be happening continuously from the morning till the evening where as carpenter bee nests won’t have nearly as much activity. It just so happens that knowing which you have is very important when it comes to treating. As stated above, if it’s definitely a carpenter bee nest, treating it from the outside using their entrance/exit hole will be fine.

But if it turns out you have one of these other species, you’ll need to treat from inside the home through the wall where you hear them the loudest. Basically you’ll want to get a dust like DRIONE and puff it into the wall from the inside. This process will insure you get good coverage and in case you don’t hit the nest directly, you’ll scare them “out” inside of in.  Use a HAND DUSTER for the application and it will only take small holes to get the dust injected. Whatever you do, don’t make the mistake of treating from the outside. When it comes to honey bees or yellow jackets, this is very much the “wrong” way to treat and almost always creates a mess. In most cases the nest will not be killed by the first treatment and what members live after the initial dusting will attempt to create a new “main” entrance/exit hole. When doing this they will many times create this new hole directly into the home! For obvious reasons, this is bad.

We’ve got more detailed information posted in some articles and I suggest you read through them. After reading them, you’ll be better informed to decide if you want to do the treatment yourself or if you’ll want to get a professional to do the work. The good news is if you can hear them inside the home by listening to a section of the wall, you should be able to directly treat them from that same location. And this is by the best way to handle this kind of nest because the wall will act as your “shield”. This means if the wall is in tact and not soft or weakened by their nest, it will actually protect you from them once the treatment gets into their nest. Here the articles you should review:

Yellow Jacket Control:  http://www.bugspray.com/article/yellowjackets.html

Honey Bee Control:  http://www.bugspray.com/article/honeybees.html

Carpenter Bee Control:  http://www.carpenterbees.com/carpenter-bee-control

When bees start entering the living space of a home there is always an initial feeling of panic. But panic won’t fix anything so first calm down and try to get an understanding of what might be happening so you can address the problem in a logical manner. First and foremost, the big key to solving the problem is trying to locate how they’re entering. The second key is identifying the species and then employing proven methods for keeping them off the home so this doesn’t happen again in future. So for now, lets look what we know.

At this point it’s early winter and when bees are found in the home during this time, they’ll usually be in a semi dormant stage like you’re describing. I would say the word you used – “sluggish” – is right on the mark.  It also sounds like you’ve identified at least one route of entry. I know my attic is accessible through a staircase that drops down from the ceiling and if I pull it down in the winter, I’ll commonly find 1-2 wasps in the area. Most of the time they’re dead but that’s because the stairs fits very tight to the ceiling so they can’t escape. If your attic access point has any cracks they’ll get through. So for starters, you might want to see how you can seal it up better to help keep them out.

But sealing this port isn’t really solving the problem. To do this you need to consider what’s happening and based on the time of year, I’d say you most likely have a nest somewhere on the home. CARPENTER BEES, BUMBLE BEES and HONEY BEES are three common species which nest in homes. All of these will harbor adults throughout the winter and when nests are in wall or ceiling voids, they’ll be so close to the warmth of the living space that many will try to enter. This happens when nests are in attic spaces  as well and the insulation found in most any home is a great location for a nest to form.

Since you suspect these bees are entering from the attic, I’d start by treating the area with some DELTAMETHRIN DUST. This product is like baby powder and when distributed using a DUSTIN MIZER, it will blanket the insulation throughout the space making it tough for any insect to live. Plus it lasts a long time, like 6-12 months, and is ideally suited for this area. If done properly, any activity in the attic will be shut down and if you only have a hibernating bee problem, it will go away and you’ll be done with it. But if you have Honey Bees or Carpenter Bees, you’ll probably have to pay careful attention next spring and summer to the area around the roof line of your house to see if you can locate where they’re nesting. And if you do find activity in these warm months, you’ll need to address what will most likely be a nest using one of the methods listed in our articles.

In summary, you most likely have a hibernating species of bee living in your attic which is seeking the warmth of your living space as the cold of winter sets in. This commonly happens and in some cases it’s just 1-2 but in others I’ve seen 50-100 filter in so there is no telling how many you might have up there. Regardless, a good dusting with the Deltamethrin will take care of the problem and should keep the living space free from bees. Next spring and summer you’ll need to watch the exterior of the home carefully to try and see if there are any active nests on or in the structure which will need a followup treatment. Controlling such a nest will be critical for keeping them out of the living spaces down the road.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Carpenter Bee Article:  http://www.carpenterbees.com/carpenter-bee-control

Bumble Bee Article:  http://www.bugspray.com/articles99/bumblebees.html

Honey Bee Article:  http://www.bugspray.com/article/honeybees.html

Deltamethrin Dust:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page526.html

Dustin Mizer: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page843.html

We appreciate your site and product list and want to see if you have what we need. Last Summer, we had a bee keeper come and remove our honey bees and honey from an eve that extends about one foot out from our house. The bees are gone, but we want to make sure that they don’t come back and have heard that their pheromones will attract more if any of the hive is left behind. What remains of the combs are very much stuck to the eve and we don’t want to have to tear the whole thing down. Could one of your products be used to coat the remaining comb with so it won’t attract any more bees? If not, do you have ant suggestions?

With much appreciation,

G.&W.

Spraying the remaining comb with some CYPERMETHRIN will prevent other bees from finding it interesting. The Cypermethrin is highly repellent to bees and they’ll readily stay away from treated surfaces. We sell a lot of it for Carpenter Bees and it’s fine to apply on the eve or side of your home. You can use a good PUMP SPRAYER or even a HOSE END SPRAYER for the application. And though winter isn’t quite over yet, it soon will be so be sure and treat before the bees arrive!

Here are direct links to all the products listed above:

http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page259.html

http://www.gotosprayer.com/sprayers/pump-sprayers/one-gallon-solo-hd

http://www.gotosprayer.com/sprayers/hose-end-sprayers/gilmour-six-gallon-hose-end-385

Exact bee identification can be tough without seeing a specimen. That being said, what you’re describing sounds like either a bumble bee or a carpenter bee. If you take a little time to review our on line article about CARPENTER BEE CONTROL, you’ll see what they look like and that they are very likely to drill holes in wood like you see in that stud. Before you rip out any wood, I suggest you first try treating the nest with one of the DUSTS we have listed in our article. I think this will quickly control whatever type of bee is active and save you both the time and effort required to remove and replace any part of the shed.

If the bees come back and are hanging around other parts of the shed, consider spraying with some of the CYPERMETHRIN we have listed in our article. It does a great job of repelleing all bees and will force them to forage elsewhere. It’s easy to use and treatments should last 3-6 weeks.