Last year I got your drione dust and treated several holes in my soffit overhang and facia boards. I sealed them with wood filler good and tight so I know no moisture got inside. I also sprayed with cypermetrin and didn’t see anything till now. Then yesterday I saw a new hole. I don’t know how they drilled it so fast but it’s really deep. I figured I had better spray the area to stop new nests but as I went to start spraying, I could hear a buzzing sound and about a foot over there was another new hole being drilled but this bee was coming out of the wood and not going in? I watched it cut through the wood and then fly off somewhere. I can see some holes from last year are close by about a foot to the other side but I know I treated them good with drione so what’s happening? Are they nesting somewhere else I missed?
I suspect this could be related to the extensive sealing you did. In your message you state you “sealed them with wood filler” which leads me to believe you didn’t use our corks to seal treated nests as recommended. As explained in our CARPENTER BEE ARTICLE, the corks serve two purposes in that they first seal the nest so moisture can’t get inside and secondly they allow the nest corridors to stay open and accessible. This way emerging bees will crawl through the DEMISE DUST and die after they hatch from their protective egg chambers. This is vital to controlling the nests. If you sealed the nest and filled the tunnels with wood filler, the emerging bees this year would be forced to exit elsewhere. The only way they know to do this is to drill new holes which would bypass your Demise treatment. The net result would be a new population with new nests this spring and it sounds like this may be happening already.
This time around I suggest you dust the new holes you see with Demise but this time don’t seal them all with wood filler. Instead use the 1/2″ CORKS we recommend as this will keep the tunnels of the nest open and accessible for any bees hatching from egg chambers later this year or next year depending on their cycle. No doubt the wood filler does a good job of sealing the nest but the reality is that it does too good of a job. Remember, Demise is the dust of choice because it will last 6-12 months. But if you effectively seal off all the tunnels you treated so the bees can’t access the treatment, what’s the point? By doing this you have effectively taken away the very feature which makes the Demise such a good product choice. Instead leave the tunnels open so the Demise can work it’s magic.
At this point I also recommend you treat with MAXXTHOR EC to insure no new holes are being drilled from the outside in. And after dusting the holes you do find, cork them and make sure you inspect daily for the next 4 weeks as this is the prime time for them to emerge and begin their summer patterns. If you see any new holes form, dust them accordingly. Follow this routine throughout the entire spring and I’m sure you’ll be able to break their cycle once and for all.
Here are direct links to the products and information listed above:
Carpenter Bee Article: www.carpenterbees.com
Demise: https://bugspray.com/catalog/insecticide/dust/drione-demise-dust-6-oz
Crusader Duster: bugspray.com/equipment/dusters/crusader
Corks: https://bugspray.com/equipment/equipment-plugs/cork-12
Maxxthor: bugspray.com/catalog/insecticide/liquid/maxxthor-ec
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