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bee in posts what are they?

JimVT

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
on my carport posts i have a tiny bee the is making holes. what is it?
it is about 1/8th inch long and looks like a bee.
jim
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bczoom

Super Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Can's see the bee but around here, they're called carpenter bees. Bigger than most other types of bees you see.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
They are called Boring bees. They bore a very nearly perfect 3/8"hole in softer woods to make a nest for one egg. They love Western cedar and, amazingly, treated wood. Even creosoted RR ties.

Generally benign creatures who seldom sting. But they leave a small hole other creatures repurpose and often leads to serious damage. Once an infestation settles in it is very hard to eradicate. I spray the hole with Hornet spray and plug it with caulk or a 3/8" hardwood dowel.


They mate in flight which is sometimes fun to watch.
 

road squawker

Active member
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JimVT

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
i'll try to get a picture of one but i think that is what they are. i shoved a toothpick all the way in on one hole. i'm replacing the posts with treated fir. heavy dry paint doesn't even stop them
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
i'll try to get a picture of one but i think that is what they are. i shoved a toothpick all the way in on one hole. i'm replacing the posts with treated fir. heavy dry paint doesn't even stop them
As for the term benign, they are far more docile neighbors than hornets and wasps who will chase you for 100's of yards if you mess with them. These guys won't bother. So yes, that is a relative description.

Treated fir may stop them for you but, I haven't had success with it.

I also have not as yet been stung by one. And I battle them most any time I am out on my back porch. So my comment is based on experience. And that experience is done with great caution because I am violently allergic. EPI pen in hand before I go into battle. Weapons of choice, Fly swatter will knock males out of the air. Females get AA,; anti aircraft from a can of Hornet spray.

My Back porch has a 24 foot span triple 2X12's treated fir with CDX plywood spacers, I would hate to have to rebuild it. The eaves and rake boards on my house are all 2" X 8" Western Cedar. They love it.

I feel like Berlin Germany at the end of WWII. What little ammo I got to stop the air raid bombing ain't enough.

All that said, the size you stated 1/4" is for a smaller bee. I'm talking about what is known as Bumble bees in size.

The smaller wood bee looks like a small housefly but stings like a wasp. In hordes. Mean little Bastards, tough to mess with so avoid the encounter. Spray from a distance with any Hornet spray. And plan to run like hell.

When you remove to replace the post, if they are still alive, you'll understand why I said run.
 
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tiredretired

The Old Salt
SUPER Site Supporter
I have never seen them around here, prolly too cold in the winter. I am guessing that pressure treated lumber using Chromated Copper Arsenate will stop them. From what I understand not all pressure treated is the same. Arsenic should put a bigly crimp in their colon. (Do bees have colons? I dunno.)

Arsenic is a known carcinogen so avoid eating large amounts of pressure treated wood, just to be safe.
 

road squawker

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
They don't actually eat the wood, they just rip it out. usually there is a lot of wood debris under the hole.

There is a powder you can spray into the hole that will kill the current bee and the NEXT years bee after it hatches.

pressure treated lumber using Chromated Copper Arsenate was banned for residential usage by the EPA in 2003.
 

tiredretired

The Old Salt
SUPER Site Supporter
They don't actually eat the wood, they just rip it out. usually there is a lot of wood debris under the hole.

There is a powder you can spray into the hole that will kill the current bee and the NEXT years bee after it hatches.

pressure treated lumber using Chromated Copper Arsenate was banned for residential usage by the EPA in 2003.

Of course. It worked.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
Of course. It worked.

Yes it dfid. Very well.

I have a floating deck which used the old treated wood ( fence posts) as joists directly on the ground. I actually used 10 year old fence posts I salvaged. I have decked them twice in the last 12 years with treated 2X4"s and am about to do it again. This time with Trex.
 

road squawker

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
You can still buy and use it, but, you have to say that it is for Industrial, Farm, or Agricultural use
 

tiredretired

The Old Salt
SUPER Site Supporter
You can still buy and use it, but, you have to say that it is for Industrial, Farm, or Agricultural use

Good to know. If you grow things on your property, then you have a farm of sorts. Right? If liberals can twist any law around to make it fit their narrative, then I guess old TR can too. I have the technology. :yum:

Thanx for that.
 

JimVT

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
i been replacing the painted posts with treated ones but it's the copper azole treatment on the new posts. i haven't tried looking for a spray with the stuff in it that kills them yet . one out of focus picture . it looks big but is small and don't seem mean.
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pirate_girl

legendary ⚓
GOLD Site Supporter
Yikes, we had carpenter ants for a while and found that placing stakes in the ground with liquid killer got rid of them.
All around the outside of the house.
 
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