Thoughts on fast trap out. I may have worked out a method - what do you say?

[RobWok]

I have a guy that has a tree in his backyard. About 40' up, he has a hive he wants to get rid of asap. He doesn't want his kids stung, and he's afraid of liabilities. He doesn't seem to be the type to reason with. I explained that if I just seal it up (provided there are no other cracks in the tree) that the hive will basically rot out and turn his tree into one big old stale beer. He kind of thought that was a little funny, but then thought his wife might not share his sense of humor.

I may be able to keep it from being a total loss. I may talk him into a 1 or 2 week trapout. My thoughts are that I get the majority of the workers in the first 3 days. Then at say day 7, I shove a bunch of blocks of dry ice in the hole and seal up the entrance. 2 days later, I reopen it to allow the decoy hive to rob it. Day 11, I empty 3 cans of spray foam into the cavity (hopefully to make it smaller and less likely to have a return and then physically block the hole with screen and tar.

Any thoughts? Suggestions. The idea is that the dry ice kills off any remaining guards as well as the queen - last thing I want is that the decoy wants to move back in. My best case scenario is to have a queen cell that wants to hatch 2 days after I hang the trapout up there. Killing off the old queen and waiting 2 days allows the scent to dissapate.

Last item: I only do a few extractions per year. I know what to charge there because of the construction - and I have a set amount of hours it normally takes. In this case, it's a bunch of little out of the way trips.

[Maddox65804]

There is not need to kill the hive. Below is a part of another thread that I've cut and pasted here for you. Contact Cleo Hogan. He will show you how to get the queen in 1-2 weeks with a trapout

Cut and pasted part of another thread:
Cleo C. Hogan Jr
Join Date
Feb 2010
Location
Park City Ky
Posts
261
Re: Wanting to get the queen from a trap out. HOW?
beeware.... The myth that you cannot get the queen with a trap is just not true. I trap several colonies each year and get the queen on virtuall every one of them. If I only want starts, I put her back in the feral source. If I want to eliminate the colony I move the trap with the queen in it.

Go to the Kelly Bee Company Website and read about the Swarm Harvester. If you don't understand how the system works, contact me at cchoganjr@scrtc and I will send you instructions and photos of actual bee traps in progress.

No charge for this information and service to beekeepers.

Will work every time.

cchoganjr

The dry ice is very extreme and not likely to do the tree any good. The expanding foam is good. The tar is not. Tar will damage the tree. I've been a Certified Arborist for more than 20 years and have seen first hand how much damage is caused to trees by spreading tar and other petroleum based products on them.

Follow Hogan's instructions and this will not be a loss at all. It will be a total win. Especially if he pays for the work.

[RayMarler]

set up a hive box with a frame of honey and a frame of open larva in it with adhering bees. Then get a garden hose up there and turn it on slow. See if you can flood them out!
Just a thought... I've never tried it.

[Maddox65804]

set up a hive box with a frame of honey and a frame of open larva in it with adhering bees. Then get a garden hose up there and turn it on slow. See if you can flood them out!
Just a thought... I've never tried it.

Really, really bad idea. This will accomplish nothing but killing a lot of bees.