When it comes to Hive Bees (Hornets, Yellow Jackets), Wasps, or Carpenter Bees there are several ways you can get rid of them. Some require different techniques than others but there are ways to minimize what all you would have to purchase to take care of them all.
If you read to the bottom I will list the methods I suggest for each treatment.
Let’s get started.
For the Hive Bees and Carpenter Bees:
The product I recommend is Tempo 1% Dust (see the current price on DoMyOwn.com) This dust should not be applied to the nest directly out of the bottle you will want to use a bellows duster (check this one out on Amazon.com).
I recommend a Dustick (see the current price here on DoMyOwn.com). The dustick is a bit pricy but it has a reach of over 60 feet and you can treat any nest from far away.
By the time you have hired an exterminator to come out 2 times to take care of a bee problem, you will have paid for the dustick.
Yellow Jackets and Hornets you should puff the dust in the entry hole of the hive, after a few hours up to a full day tops it will be good to go.
Carpenter Bees you will need to put dust in every single hole to get rid of all the ladies and the drones. If the holes are out of reach you may need to use a Dustick, and after they are gone it is always good to fill the holes with dowels or silicone. If you have a ladder that can reach and you don’t want to put the money out for a dustick, your chances of getting stung with a carpenter bee are very very slim.
Wasps are a pretty easy thing to take care of. In my opinion, you don’t need to get a commercial chemical to take them out.
I recommend getting a foaming wasp and hornet spray, the reason for this is you can cake up the entire nest with the foam in one shot and you are far less likely to be stung.
I recommend going to your local big-box store and getting a can of UltraKill Wasp and Hornet Killer. For just a few dollars this works just as good as anything you can buy commercially. Don’t waste your money going big on this. Ultrakill needs to hit the wasps directly in order to take them out.
If you are feeling brave you can go after the nest at any time you would desire, however, I need to say that it is much safer to wait till the stinging insects have shacked up for the night back in their nest.
Also, you don’t have to worry about foragers that are out coming back and seeing you in the act and wanting to chase you down.
If you want to gear all the way up and know that you won’t be stung there is a bee suit you can get that I recommend (see the price on DoMyOwn.com).
I usually don’t wear a bee suit but I want to tell you a story. I went to a customer home and they had Bald Faced Hornets, after treating the nest the customer wanted the nest down immediately When you use the Tempo Dust it does take a few hours for it to eliminate the hornets in the nest. I was told to wear my recently issued bee suit. This was my first time ever wearing a bee suit in the several years I have been doing pest control. In a bald-faced hornet nest, the larvae usually sit in the bottom of the nest.
I took my cobweb duster and smacked the nest right where I thought the larvae would be. The hornets swarmed me and tried to sting me, I could smell their venom, I missed the larvae. The larvae were at the top of the nest which I have never seen before.
My advice is that if you decide not to wear a bee suit then you should treat them at night and leave the nest till morning before you knock them down. Make sure when you are inspecting the nest the next day that there is no activity. If you see some activity put more Tempo 1% powder in the entry hole of the nest.
Summary
This is a very doable job I have done stinging insect jobs for years now and have only been stung a couple of times. Keep in mind I never used a bee suit till recently. Waiting untill dusk when the foragers are all in the nest but you still have enough light to do the job is the best timing to get rid of these pesky insects safely.
Thanks for reading and bee safe.
Please make sure to read all product labels of chemicals you will be using. It is important to follow all safety recommendations and laws for all pesticides.
