SUCCESSFULLY DEVELOPING CARPENTER BEE TRAPS
Carpenter bees are known for their habit of making holes in wood. Their hard work in creating habitable homes in the wood has earned them their name. They nest in homes seasonally, with spring being their most active period. Once they nest in a place they will keep on returning to. For those who do not wish to see the bees at home, the best option is using bee traps.
While carpenter bees are loved by some for their positives such as chasing away wasps, they are also hated in equal measure. Thankfully, their traps can be prepared from reclaimed lumber in a few steps. With the trap in place, the bees will be kept away from damaging the roof and other parts of the house where they hide.
Read on to get the full steps for successfully developing a carpenter bee trap.
WHAT WILL ATTRACT CARPENTER BEES TO A TRAP?
Carpenter bees closely resemble bumble bees except they do not have the fuzz on their abdomen. For the most part they are solitary wood boring bees who are most active in the spring. These bees do not eat the wood, but they use the wood for their nesting. One great thing that carpenter bees do is that the chase off wasps that are in that builds nests nearby. These bees typically return to the same spot year after year. This article is designed to help you successfully develop your own carpenter bee traps.
THESE BEES CAN BE A NUISANCE TO SOME PEOPLE.
As their name suggests, they are carpenters and like wood. They are able to create half-inch holes into wood. Female carpenter bees are able to tunnel themselves up to four inches inside wood structures. This can become a problem if this happens in your doors, doorways, or walls on any part of your property. This can be a significant problem if those female carpenter bees lay eggs and raise their young in the mess they created.
Obviously the longer the bees stay in their wooded home, the worse it gets for the property. One way to not harm the carpenter bees but keep them from destroying your property is to create carpenter bee traps. These should be placed in an area where the bees typical swarm or drill. A good spot can be an overhang or ledge where there is plenty of sunshine.
YOUR TRAP CAN BE MADE OF SCRAP LUMBER MATERIAL.
If you do not have any scraps on hand, you can use an eight-foot-long wooden board that is approximately four inches wide to help build the trap. Another piece of your trap will be emptied two-liter soft drink bottles. You will need to cut your lumber so you are able to have a box. This wooden box should have four equal sides along with a roof and a bottom floor piece all held together by nails. There should not be any large gaps between the wood panels. On the sides, you will drill a half-inch hole. This will be where the bees will enter.
In the bottom board, you will drill a hole approximately one inch to one and a quarter-inch wide. Using your empty soft drink bottle, create a funnel from the top of it and place it inside that drilled hole on the bottom of your trap. You can staple your funnel so it stays in place and removes the bottle cap. Using another empty soda bottle, you will cut the bottle and only use the bottom portion then attached it the funnel created from the first bottle. Your trap is almost complete. You can use a hook or an eye screw at the top of your trap so it can be suspended. This trap can also be created by using a jar with a twist-off lid or cap as well.
