Discourage Carpenter Bees with These Home Improvements

If you’re a homeowner, then you understand the serious problems that wood-destroying insects pose on the wood around the exterior of your house. Wood bore bees, also known as carpenter bees, can be a huge problem for homeowners. 

Before you pull out the big guns, (bug spray, box traps, and sticky traps), let’s first take a look at what carpenter bees are, and why they want to move into your home.

What is a Wood Bore Bee? And Why My Home? 

Carpenter bees look pretty similar to other bee species, except that they aren’t quite as yellow on the abdomen. They also aren’t as social as other bees, but that’s not as easy to tell—unless you live in a beehive! What is obvious is that unlike bumblebees, the carpenter bee species will congregate under eaves and around the wooden exterior of a home. 

These bees don’t actually eat wood, so why are they boring through your wood and destroying the exterior of your home? Because they, like you, want to use your house as a home. Carpenter bees carve tunnels into trees and the framework of buildings for their nests–– where they store food and raise their young. 

Still, as docile and mild as these bees may seem, they can cause an incredible amount of damage to the exterior of your home. 

Home Improvements to Keep Carpenter Bees Away

There are a few home improvements that you can make to keep carpenter bees away from your home. To begin with, carpenter bees prefer unpainted wood that’s two or more inches deep. Common hotspots include roof eaves, decks, windowsills, doors, and railings. 

A small hole in the exterior wood of your home is not necessarily cause for concern. However, what begins as a single tunnel can quickly turn into a massive issue, as baby bees grow into adults and the hive gets larger. It’s these more extensive tunnels that lead to expensive structural damage. 

Below is a list of home improvements that you can make to ensure that carpenter bees don’t damage your property.

Pest Control Treatments––Your first course of action is to evict the unwanted insects. An insecticide should be dusted into the excavated holes to coat all the tunnels inside. Make sure you keep the holes open––the point is to have the bees travel through the tunnels so that they come into contact with the insecticide. Multiple treatments may be needed to get all of the bees. 

Paint and Varnish––Carpenter bees seek out untreated wood, so a simple way to prevent them from moving in is to paint or varnish susceptible wood surfaces.

Flashing and Screening Wood––Putting flashing and screening over wood is another way to deter carpenter bees.

Unlike docile honey bees, carpenter bees can be a huge nuisance and cause a lot of damage to the outside of your home. If you need help getting rid of carpenter bees, give Vulcan Termite & Pest Control a call.