dumb home people, swarms in a house wall!!!!!

**paulnewbee1** · 07-10-2009, 05:32 PM

I was out a place today they had a swarm at 11:30 am guy would not give me his phone or address he called at 3 pm.

So I went out I told him in mail that the bees were going to make a home in his house or fly away this was at noon he of course took his time anybodey guess what happened???

The went into the house about 15 feet up there was a gutter and three holes in a brick wall.

1) my question is this how do you get them out of a wall without cutting the wall in the house open most don't want that. . I have tried trapping did not work Evan with lure(lemongrass with frames) . The good stuff paid 12 bucks at health food store

2) could I make a screen frame to put in the back of my car? it would be about two feet with a top or should I extend a deep with screen around the bottom and 2 inches on the bottom sides?

they told me to block off the holes with can foam and kill the rest. this is the 2nd one I lost.

any help anyone. But I got 20 buck for the trip out
Paul

**Countryboy** · 07-10-2009, 10:09 PM

1) my question is this how do you get them out of a wall without cutting the wall in the house open most don't want that.

Offer the alternative of busting a hole in the wall with a sledgehammer. A crowbar to pry off boars is another alternative to cutting a hole in a wall.

You could try soaking a cottonball with Bee Go and using a coat hanger to push the cotton ball as far in as you can. You may be able to get the bees to abscond.

they told me to block off the holes with can foam and kill the rest.

That is a lot cheaper for a homeowner than paying for the removal and repairs - and money talks. A homeowner can buy a lot of $5 cans of foam for the cost of one $1000 bee removal.

**bigbore** · 07-11-2009, 05:28 AM

did they go into the wall, or the soffet? most brick houses I have seen have a soffet about 12 in wide with the gutter on the outside of it. they may be using the holes in the brick and going up into the soffet from the inside. ask if you can open the soffit and check first. if they are there, you are ahead, soffets are fairely easy to put back. close the holes and get to work. if not, sorry for their dumb luck. "walk away and don't look back"

**DiverDog** · 07-11-2009, 07:13 AM

I would let them deal with it on their own. You gave them the chance to come get them and they didnt want you too so sorry bout' their luck...

**paulnewbee1** · 07-14-2009, 07:36 AM

They where all in the brick wall had not much to do but to close them off.

**alpha6** · 07-14-2009, 07:43 AM

Good luck closing them off. Tell them congratulations they are the proud owners of a hive of bees and that in three years will have honey dripping through their walls into their house. Advise them that next time they get a swarm to be more straight forward. What was a free job will now cost them hundreds if not thousands to get them out of the walls...if you can't kill them.

**franktrujillo** · 07-14-2009, 07:55 AM

hello, as far as trapping it takes up to 6 weeks to get them out first you need a queen in a cage, place on some drawn comb for trap to work place near bee hole entrancem,also make sure they can't re-enter wall, but able to get out//eventually they'll move over...into new hive,, also smoke heavy will make abscond out of wall put frames of honey as before no queen is needed
when all bees gather near by knock some bees into box and place near old hole.....once bees start fanning your done leave till night then move at least 5 miles away....

**BRescue** · 07-14-2009, 02:32 PM

Frank, I'm about ready to do a trap with a 5 frame deep nuc with a young queen. You mention caging a queen. What if I don't and just put the young nuc near the walled colony. I would of course set up a one way so they cannot return to the wall. What are thoughts about the safety of the queen. All the bees that would be leaving would be foragers and not nurse bees and I am not sure what effect on the behavior would be. Have you ever made a home made bee escape? Any simple plans around? Thanks.
Richard

**Adrian Quiney WI** · 07-14-2009, 08:43 PM

Richard, I recall last year that someone on here was successful with a similar plan, but instead of risking a queen he put a frame of eggs in the nuc nearby. The foragers from the wall could not get back in because of a wire-mesh cone. They went to the nuc, after a few weeks the bees made a new queen from the eggs. The hive in the wall starved out because of the lack of returning foragers, and then he removed the cone from the wall let the nuc. rob the wall out and then sealed the wall. An elegant solution, cheap in equipment and resources but costly in time; However, to me it sounds like a lot of fun, Adrian.