How to Get Rid Of Bees

51 min read| Updated for November, 2019

There is no question that bees play an essential role in the way our world works. Honey bees alone are responsible for pollinating up to one-third of the plants we eat. While we owe them a great deal of gratitude, we don’t necessarily want them sharing our front porch with us.

Bees can be more than just a nuisance. The thought of being stung can induce a significant amount of fear for some. But if you are allergic to their sting, that can add a whole extra level of panic. It’s vital that we allow bees to do their work, but there are ways that you can discourage them from damaging your home while they do it.

51 min read| Updated for November, 2019

HIVE ACTIVITY
The queen bee can lay up to 2500 eggs per day during the summer.
HABITAT
many bees nest underground or in old hollow trees, while honeybees live in hives
FOOD
pollen from wildflowers, flowering shrubs and fruit trees
SIZE
2-39 mm
THREAT
All native U.S. bees are passive, and will ignore people unless provoked, making them little threat to humans.

Bee Sounds

The buzzing sound associated with bees is due to their wings and are actually a vibration. The buzzing may increase if they are aggravated or threatened, thus the wings moving more rapidly or aggressively, but generally bees are happy to be busy buzzing flowers. Honey bees are also known for emitting a ‘piping’ sound, a particular type of high pitched buzzing.

Identifying Animal Sound

Bee Poop

If you live close to a bee hive, or close to its food source, you may have noticed a build up of sticky, yellow clumps. And since bees keep their hives immaculate, business is done back and forth from the food source. Keep an eye out for the increase of sticky, yellow clumps (on the ground, on a tree, on your car), specifically from spring to summer when bee numbers are at their highest. The dropping are hard to remove, but if on a building, car, or clothing you can try a lengthy soaking before a thorough washing.

Identifying Animal Poop

Identify


Common Species

Bumble Bee

There are more than 250 types of bumblebees around the world, and while they can be annoying, frightening and dangerous because of their painful sting, they are essential to the world’s food supply.

Appearance:

  • Between one-quarter of an inch to one inch in size and weigh less than a gram
  • Large, fuzzy bodies with four short, stubby wings and black and yellow markings
  • Female bumblebees have a pointed abdomen and a stinger, males have a rounded abdomen and no stinger

Behavior:

  • Bumblebees hibernate in winter in dry, protected areas like loose bark
  • Queen bumblebees emerge in spring to build a new, underground nest and start a new colony
  • Females sting only when threatened, but can use their stinger multiple times

Carpenter Bees

As the name implies, carpenter bees are industrious. They are less social than many other types of bees but can do the most damage to your property, since they burrow into wood to build galleries for their young. There are more than 100 types of them across the world, but only seven species of carpenter bees exist in the United States.

Appearance:

  • Between one-quarter of an inch to one inch in size and weigh less than a gram
  • Oval-shaped, black and yellow insects with smooth, shiny black abdomens
  • Male bees have a yellow face, and females have a black face

Behavior:

  • Construct nests in trees and wood structures
  • Hibernate in winter, emerge in late April or early May. Mate a few weeks later and build galleries for eggs
  • Male bees protect the nest but cannot sting. Females can sting, but rarely do

Honey Bees

When ranking bees in importance, honey bees are at the top. They are the only bee that produces food for humans and is responsible for pollinating 80 percent of all fruit, vegetables and seed crops in the United States.

Appearance:

  • Between one-quarter to three-quarters of an inch in length and weigh less than a gram
  • Fuzzy, oval-shaped, orange-yellow, gray or brown bodies with black bands
  • Have five eyes, three small ones on top of the head and two big ones in the front

Behavior:

  • Live in large colonies above ground, typically in a cavity of a tree or the wall of a house
  • Ability to fly up to 15 miles per hour and never sleeps. The distinctive buzzing sound comes from the rapid movement of the bee’s wings
  • Dies after it stings

Sweat Bee

These kinds of bees are some of the most common bees around. There are about 1,000 species in the United States, Canada and Central America alone. Because they are so small, you don’t often notice them, but they are significant to the ecosystem. According to the United States Agricultural Department, sweat bees have more complicated digestive and detoxification systems than other bees, so they can pollinate any type of flower that’s available.

Appearance:

  • Between one-quarter to three-quarters of an inch in length and weigh less than a gram
  • Are bright, dark or metallic in color, and their markings vary from green to red to yellow
  • Most common sweat bee has a green metallic coloring

Behavior:

  • Most often nest in the ground, can be found in city sidewalk cracks or soil
  • Feed on pollen and nectar, but are attracted to human sweat to supplement their diet with salt and moisture
  • Can brush against you and often get the moisture and salt they need, but females will sting if pressed against the skin

Africanized Honey Bee/Killer Bee

Africanized Honey Bees—or killer bees as they are more commonly known—have only been around since the mid-1950s. Researchers in Brazil cross-bred European honey bees with African honey bees in hopes of increasing the local honey production. They ended up creating the killer bee, which is more aggressive and less productive. In 1957, swarms of them were accidentally released, and they’ve been buzzing their way across North and South America ever since.

Appearance:

  • About three-quarters of an inch in length and weigh less than a gram
  • Have brownish, fuzzy bodies with black stripes
  • Have four wings, six legs and two large eyes that allow them to fly at night

Behavior:

  • Prefer warmer climates and are mostly found in the southwest part of the United States
  • Are easily agitated, more aggressive and will attack in large numbers. Die after stinging
  • Live in small colonies and build nests in unusual places like tires, crates, water meter boxes, tree limbs, mailboxes, overturned flower pots, and junk piles

Treating Your Property For Bees

If you have an existing bee problem and it’s not going away, there are products you can buy that will help you trap, deter or get rid of them from your home and property.

Bee Problem?

Find a Local Wildlife
Expert Near You

 

Find a Local Experts

Honey bees prefer to stay above ground and often use hollowed out trees for nests.

Common Locations

You can find bees everywhere. Unlike most pesky animals, they serve a unique and vital role in our environment. But unless you’re an avid gardener or a farmer, you may not want them around your property and if you’re allergic to their sting, having them nearby can become even more concerning. Where they live typically depends on the type of bee.

The most common types of bees, except for the Africanized honey bee, can be found all across the United States. The Africanized honey bee is typically only found in Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, western Louisiana and the southern parts of Arkansas, California, Florida, and Nevada.

Bumblebees and sweat bees live in colonies, and you can typically find their nests in the ground. They hibernate throughout winter and emerge in spring to build nests by using either old holes already dug out by other animals or by burrowing their own in bare patches of the yard, all to lay eggs.

Sweat bees dig into dry soil and loosely pile dirt around the entrance. Their nests look like ant hills but with larger openings and you may see them hovering over the ground near their burrows.

bees flying around

Bumblebees rarely use the same nest twice and usually dig in the ground under a flat object like a tarp, rock or something man made like a deck. Bumblebees like to pad the holes with things like dry grass or moss and like bumblebees—if you see some sweat bees hovering near the ground you probably have a nest.

When it comes to drilling holes in wood, carpenter bees may be as good at it as any tool in your toolbox. The female bees begin by chewing small circular holes through the wood to make galleries for their eggs. Carpenter bees prefer soft, unpainted or weathered wood that’s at least two inches thick, but any piece of wood on your property may be a target for them. You may find them in decks, fences, doors, window sills, roof eaves, telephone poles or wooden porch posts.

Carpenter bees don’t mind using old nests, which can become a problem for property owners. A fresh, new gallery from a single bee drilling may not be a big deal, but if bees keep returning the continued drilling and tunneling to lay eggs can cause extensive damage.

Honey bees prefer to stay above ground and often use hollowed out trees for nests, but they will set up in walls or chimneys of homes, barns or other structures. They typically pick places within a few miles of a strong feeding area. Unlike carpenter bees, honey bees don’t burrow into surfaces; they look for cracks or other openings instead to gain entrance. When nests get too full, the queen splits the hive and takes off with worker bees to find a new home. If you see a swarm of bees together—they’re waiting for a new home to be found. They will often wait in a tree branch while the scout bees find a suitable place to nest.

Africanized honey bees aren’t as selective as other honey bees when it comes to setting up a nest. They will colonize in smaller numbers and have been known to live in water meter boxes, cement blocks, old tires, house eaves, barbecue grills, cavities in the ground, and hanging exposed from tree limbs, among other places. They thrive in warmer climates and have, for the most part, remained primarily in the southwestern portion of the United States.

bee covered in pollen

It can take up to three days, but the bees will eventually leave and head to their new home.

Why They’re Here

Bees end up at your home or business because there aren’t as many natural nesting sites. But bees don’t necessarily need widespread green space and do well in urban environments. Homes become easy targets because they are typically built with so much exposed wood that it makes them well suited for beehives, colonies, and nests.

As hives grow, bees look for new places to establish nests. If you see a swarm of bees about the size of a soccer ball hanging around in your yard, you shouldn’t become too concerned. They are more than likely waiting for a new nesting site to be chosen. It can take up to three days, but the bees will eventually leave and head to their new home.

Their primary objective in making your house their home is to find a safe place to lay their eggs. Mid-March until the beginning of July is the typical bee-swarming season in the United States. This nearly five-month span is when bees begin to collect pollen to feed on and store up for hibernation in winter.

Bee Sounds

The buzzing sound associated with bees is due to their wings and are actually a vibration. The buzzing may increase if they are aggravated or threatened, thus the wings moving more rapidly or aggressively, but generally bees are happy to be busy buzzing flowers. Honey bees are also known for emitting a ‘piping’ sound, a particular type of high pitched buzzing.

Identifying Animal Sound

Bee Poop

If you live close to a bee hive, or close to its food source, you may have noticed a build up of sticky, yellow clumps. And since bees keep their hives immaculate, business is done back and forth from the food source. Keep an eye out for the increase of sticky, yellow clumps (on the ground, on a tree, on your car), specifically from spring to summer when bee numbers are at their highest. The dropping are hard to remove, but if on a building, car, or clothing you can try a lengthy soaking before a thorough washing.

Identifying Animal Poop

Inspect


bees around a wooden hive

Should I Relocate Bees?

Bees can be annoying and a danger—if you or someone you live with is allergic to their sting. But they also play an incredibly important role in our world. Bees are pollinators and help keep plants and crops alive. They’re responsible for pollinating one-third of our global food supply, so it’s wise, if at all possible, to relocate any colony or hive of bees you may have on your property.

Gather the Tools You’ll Need

Protective Clothing

Before attempting to deal with bees, you should cover yourself from head to toe

Gloves

Leather gloves are best to keep your hands from getting stung

Netting

See through netting should be worn over your face and neck to protect from stings

Treating Your Property For Bees

If you have an existing bee problem and it’s not going away, there are products you can buy that will help you trap, deter or get rid of them from your home and property.

Bee Problem?

Find a Local Wildlife
Expert Near You

 

Find a Local Experts

Wear dark clothes and have someone help you so you can work as quickly as possible.

hornets on tree bark

How-To Steps for DIY Removal

Pestwiki.com offers several options for do-it-yourself removal:

Tarp The Nest

Placing a tarp over the nest is an environmentally friendly way to rid yourself of ground bees. It must be done at night when the bees are in their nest, but because they are in the nest, you run the risk of making them mad and getting stung. Wear dark clothes and have someone help you so you can work as quickly as possible. When you’re ready, place a tarp over the nest and use rocks or bricks to hold the tarp in place.

Soapy Boiling Mint Water

Mix two cups of water with two cups of peppermint castile soap and boil a pot of water. Put on as much protective clothing as you can and put your soapy water and boiling water in separate containers with long pour necks. You want to be as far away as possible from the nest hole in the ground. Pour the soapy water in the hole first, then the hot water and then run into the house. This mixture should kill all the bees and their eggs.

Screen Wire Traps

This process will keep most of the bees alive, but it is time-consuming. Make a cone with screen wire and make an exit hole on the small end of the cone. Place the wide end of the cone over the entrance to the hive and put a small replacement hive near the exit hole. The exit hole allows bees to go out, but not come back in. Depending on the hive’s size, it could take an extended period to remove all the bees from the hive. The queen though will not exit the hive, so you will have to spray a pesticide inside the hive to kill her.

Soda Bottle Traps

Cut a soda bottle in half and fill the bottom with some type of sweet soda. Place it in the area were the bees are most active. The sweet smell will attract the bees and cause them to dive in. They won’t be able to get out and will drown in the liquid.

Vinegar Spray

Mix equal parts vinegar and water and put it in a spray bottle. Spray the mixture on the nest at night, but make sure to be careful and wear protective clothing (including netting over your face and neck) to keep yourself from getting stung. Use the mixture as often as necessary and be sure to remove the dead bees.

Insecticide

You can find insecticide at any home improvement store, be sure you buy the can that says it’s for use on bees. Spray the problem areas at night when the bees are dormant. Be sure to wear protective clothing to avoid being stung.

Bees don’t like the smell and will most likely relocate their hive.

hornets around a hive

Risks of Disease

There are several diseases that bees can get that are harmful to the bee population, but none are harmful to humans. The biggest threat of a bee is their sting—which can range from painful to deadly. There are three types of reactions that happen because of bee stings—normal, localized, and allergic.

  1. A normal reaction causes pain, swelling, and redness in the area where you got stung. In most cases, the pain and redness will go away within a few hours.
  2. A large, local reaction swells beyond the place where you were stung. For example, a sting on the hand may result in the swelling of your arm. It can look serious and scary, but it’s often not. It can take up to 10 days for it to get back to normal.
  3. The most severe reaction is an allergic one or anaphylaxis. If you’re allergic to bee stings, you will need to use an epinephrine pen immediately or seek emergency medical treatment. Health experts say if you have a severe allergic reaction to a bee sting, your chance of anaphylaxis is between 30 and 60 percent the next time you get stung.

Mayo Clinic says to look for these signs of anaphylaxis after a sting:

  • Hives, itching, flushed or pale skin
  • Difficulty breathing
  • Swelling of the throat and tongue
  • Weak, rapid pulse
  • Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
  • Dizziness, fainting
  • Loss of consciousness

In most cases, you will only receive one bee sting, but Africanized honey bees sting in a group. You should seek immediate medical attention if you are stung multiple times. If you get more than a dozen stings, the build-up of venom in your body can cause a toxic reaction that can make you very sick.

Symptoms to look for include:

  • Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
  • Headache
  • Vertigo
  • Convulsions
  • Fever
  • Dizziness, fainting

When a honey bee stings you, it leaves its stinger behind. You need to get it out immediately to reduce the amount of venom that gets into your body. An easy, at home way is to put table salt on the sting site and wet it. The salt will pull most of the venom out.

Bee Sounds

The buzzing sound associated with bees is due to their wings and are actually a vibration. The buzzing may increase if they are aggravated or threatened, thus the wings moving more rapidly or aggressively, but generally bees are happy to be busy buzzing flowers. Honey bees are also known for emitting a ‘piping’ sound, a particular type of high pitched buzzing.

Identifying Animal Sound

Bee Poop

If you live close to a bee hive, or close to its food source, you may have noticed a build up of sticky, yellow clumps. And since bees keep their hives immaculate, business is done back and forth from the food source. Keep an eye out for the increase of sticky, yellow clumps (on the ground, on a tree, on your car), specifically from spring to summer when bee numbers are at their highest. The dropping are hard to remove, but if on a building, car, or clothing you can try a lengthy soaking before a thorough washing.

Identifying Animal Poop

Prevent


The best way to avoid trouble with bees on your property is to prevent them. Nesting doesn’t happen overnight, so it’s important to do regular upkeep and maintenance in and around your property.

Prevention Methods

A thorough inspection can identify places bees may want to set up their hives. Carpenter bees look for untreated, unpainted, weathered or rotting wood to make their holes. Keep any wood well painted, sealed and repaired. Severe weather like thunderstorms and high winds can lead to home damage that can create holes and cracks for honey bees to enter and build hives. If you see any possible places for bees to fly in, seal them up with a durable material like a metal screen or caulk.

bees flying around entry to house

Another reason to get rid of the clutter—it keeps bees from nesting in your yard. Unused appliances or lawn equipment sitting in your yard can attract honey bees in particular since they provide excellent shelter for hives. So be sure and keep your yard and property clutter-free and fill in holes in the lawn or ground. Ground bees like already established holes—so if your dogs are diggers, or you have moles burrowing through the backyard—fill those holes with dirt. That will keep ground bees from setting up homes.

Treating Your Property For Bees

If you have an existing bee problem and it’s not going away, there are products you can buy that will help you trap, deter or get rid of them from your home and property.

Bee Problem?

Find a Local Wildlife
Expert Near You

 

Find a Local Experts

Ground bees like already established holes—so if your dogs are diggers, or you have moles burrowing through the backyard—fill those holes with dirt.

What you plant can be just as important as what you don’t plant in deterring bees. Poppies, canna lilies, zinnias, celosias, and peonies are good options because they all have red blooms. Red to bees looks black, so they usually buzz right over these flowers. Don’t plant anything that is blue, violet and yellow. Those colors are like hanging out a welcome or vacancy sign. Stay away from sunflowers, violets, lavender, foxglove, and crocuses.

Having sweet smelling flowers is nice and appealing—but not if you are trying to keep bees away. They like the smell just as much as we humans do, and it attracts them. So, steer clear of the most fragrant flowers. You can also opt for trumpet-shaped flowers. The trumpet shape makes it harder for bees to get to the nectar, and they usually aren’t very appealing.

Consider peppermint plants. Bees don’t like the minty smell, and they will stay away from an area that has peppermint around.

The acid in cucumbers is also a deterrent for bees. If you don’t want to plant cucumbers, then you can put cucumber peels in and around your flower beds to keep bees away.

Ground bees like dry, sandy soil to build nests in, so if you water your yard frequently, it can help drive out the bees and keep them away.

carpenter bee on a flower

Bees contribute $15 billion to U.S. crop production.

You can make your own bee repellant spray by mixing one drop of peppermint oil, tea tree oil or cinnamon oil with one cup of unscented baby shampoo. Put the mixture in a spray bottle and spray areas you want to keep bees away from.

Head to the spice cabinet and grab your ground cinnamon. Sprinkle it around the hive for at least a week. Bees don’t like the smell and will most likely relocate their hive. Most people don’t like the smell of mothballs, and bees are no different. Placing mothballs around the yard will equally deter bees.

If you have had a honey bee infestation removed, make sure you remove the honeycomb – otherwise, the bees will come back. Pest control companies don’t generally remove the honeycomb. So, make sure you do, if you’ve used a pest control company to get rid of the bees.

Bee Sounds

The buzzing sound associated with bees is due to their wings and are actually a vibration. The buzzing may increase if they are aggravated or threatened, thus the wings moving more rapidly or aggressively, but generally bees are happy to be busy buzzing flowers. Honey bees are also known for emitting a ‘piping’ sound, a particular type of high pitched buzzing.

Identifying Animal Sound

Bee Poop

If you live close to a bee hive, or close to its food source, you may have noticed a build up of sticky, yellow clumps. And since bees keep their hives immaculate, business is done back and forth from the food source. Keep an eye out for the increase of sticky, yellow clumps (on the ground, on a tree, on your car), specifically from spring to summer when bee numbers are at their highest. The dropping are hard to remove, but if on a building, car, or clothing you can try a lengthy soaking before a thorough washing.

Identifying Animal Poop

When to Call a Professional


Plenty of people like to be able to take care of pesky problems like bees themselves, and there are plenty of ways to do that. But if you have a honey bee or Africanized honey bee colony, the best course of action is to call in a professional. It’s best not to attempt to remove an established honeycomb hive by yourself. You can contact your local agricultural extension office for a list of local beekeepers who will probably be more than happy to take a colony of honey bees off your hands. Some pest control companies have employees who are trained to remove bees, as well. Call a licensed, pest control professional if you have Africanized honey bees.

In order to extract established honey bee combs, you will have to neutralize the area. That means all of the bees—dead or alive—will have to be removed, as well as the comb and the honey. Beekeepers will usually remove the honeycomb for you, but exterminators typically will not. So, if they don’t remove it, you will have to in order to prevent new hives.

Once the honey and the comb are both removed, the entire cavity will have to be washed down with soapy water to get rid of the smell and then allowed to dry. Once it’s dry, you’ll want to seal the cavity with spray foam insulation or fiberglass batting and then repair the opening to prevent re-colonization.

dead bee on a leaf

Sources

https://www.pestwiki.com/bee-identification/
http://www.pestproducts.com/bumble-bees.htm
https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/stinging-insects/carpenter-bees/
http://pods.dasnr.okstate.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-2292/EPP-7317web%20color.pdf
https://beeinformed.org/2012/10/01/sweat-bees/
https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/sweat-bees
http://www.utahcountybeekeepers.org/fun_facts.html
http://agriculture.vermont.gov/sites/ag/files/pdf/apiary/Honey%20Bee%20or%20Yellowjacket%20Wasp.pdf
https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/stinging-insects/africanized-killer-bees/
http://www.gardening-for-wildlife.com/ground-bees.html
https://ento.psu.edu/extension/factsheets/carpenter-bees
https://www.doityourself.com/stry/preventing-bees-from-nesting-under-and-around-your-shed
https://www.clemson.edu/extension/beekeepers/fact-sheets-publications/honey-bee-colony-removal.html
https://entomologytoday.org/2014/05/28/how-to-keep-honey-bees-from-nesting-in-your-home/
https://www.simplemost.com/plants-that-will-keep-bees-away-from-yard/

Treating Your Property For Bees

If you have an existing bee problem and it’s not going away, there are products you can buy that will help you trap, deter or get rid of them from your home and property.

Bee Problem?

Find a Local Wildlife
Expert Near You

 

Find a Local Experts

Sources

https://www.buzzaboutbees.net/why-do-bees-buzz.html
https://www.businessofbees.com/blog/2016/9/22/bee-poop

Bee Sounds

The buzzing sound associated with bees is due to their wings and are actually a vibration. The buzzing may increase if they are aggravated or threatened, thus the wings moving more rapidly or aggressively, but generally bees are happy to be busy buzzing flowers. Honey bees are also known for emitting a ‘piping’ sound, a particular type of high pitched buzzing.

Identifying Animal Sound

Bee Poop

If you live close to a bee hive, or close to its food source, you may have noticed a build up of sticky, yellow clumps. And since bees keep their hives immaculate, business is done back and forth from the food source. Keep an eye out for the increase of sticky, yellow clumps (on the ground, on a tree, on your car), specifically from spring to summer when bee numbers are at their highest. The dropping are hard to remove, but if on a building, car, or clothing you can try a lengthy soaking before a thorough washing.

Identifying Animal Poop

Bee Problem?

Find a Local Wildlife
Expert Near You

 

Find a Local Experts