Honeybee Removal from a House
Pun intended, there has been a particular buzz for honeybee removal lately, as swarms of bees have been popping up throughout the Akron / Canton / Kent area.
Additionally, when honeybees make hives inside of the walls and other cavities of a structure, honeybee removal is necessary.
May, June, and July are months when a new queen says goodbye to her queen mother, leaves the hive of her birth, and strikes out to make a hive of her own, taking some of the worker bees with her.
It is nature’s way of expanding the honeybee population, which has been in troublesome decline lately.
Too often though, when many people find a large ball of bees on their property or realize that bees are living in their structures, fear wins the day. And, fearful responses from us towards honeybees most always end badly for the bees.
We at Frontline Animal Removal are advocates of honeybees. We collect swarms, remove colonies from structures, keep bees ourselves, and connect surplus bees with dedicated beekeepers.
If you have honeybees living in your house or find a swarm of honeybees on your property, please keep the pesticides at bay! Call us or another honeybee removal company to help.
Honeybees Removed from Home
In the wild, honeybees often make hives in hollow cavities of trees. When they find a hole leading into a cavity in someone’s house, they don’t know the difference.
As a hive develops, there is much work to be done. (Busy as a bee is accurate) Wax honeycomb is made, larvae are born and cared for, and, of course, honey is made and stored.
Honey-filled comb in the attic or wall space of a home is not good for it and can lead to numerous problems as it is relatively heavy and moist.
Here is a picture of a honeybee hive entrance.
This hive is problematic because:
- It is in someone’s home
- It is about 25 feet in the air on the side of a house
- The honeycombs are poised above 2nd story rooms
The red circle marks the spot.
As you can see, this is not going to be a simple honeybee swarm removal.
Scaffolding and repair work are both necessary.
Pictorial: How to Get Honeybees Out of the House
Safe access is important. In this case, scaffolding was erected (instead of using ladders only) to ensure a stable work platform.
Then, the damaged siding that the bees’ entrance was in is removed so the combs and queen are accessible.
Then the bees (most importantly the queen) are collected with a special vacuum.
The collected bees are placed in a specialized bee box that provides a homey environment for the bees.
The bee box is left at the home in close proximity to the old entrance for a few days and the boards that were removed are put back in place.
With the new box next to the old hive, the workers will exit the new box and collect all the honey from the old hive, transferring it to their new digs. This honey clean-out by the bees is advantageous for the bees and the removers. Leaving the honey in the structure would be bad for the bees and the structure. The bees do a great job with the honey transfer; a job not easily accomplished by humans.
Finally, once the honey has been transferred, the empty comb is removed and the entrance is repaired. There are no holes left for new bees to explore.
The new hive is taken to a new location and given TLC.
Good for People and Honeybees
Professional removal of honeybees with the bees’ best interest in mind is good for the bees and all of us.
We all need to eat, right? And, often, we overlook the impact honeybees and other pollinators have on our food supply.
If you find a honeybee swarm, don’t panic. Be a hero and help them find a good home by giving us or a honeybee removal specialist in your area a call.
For honeybee removal in the Akron / Canton / Kent, Ohio area give us a call today!
