Bees in the coop!

[Loghousemom]

I've done some searching on the threads, and am trying to find a way to remove bees from the coop without harming the chickens. I am pretty certain that they are carpenter bees, they keep flying in and out of the cracks in the wood in the ceiling and the old nail holes and whatnot. They don't seem to bother anyone, but I have three small daughters, one of whom is highly allergic and I don't want to take the chance she might get stung, however unlikely....

I am just unsure of how to proceed since they are in the ceiling and the chickens are in there! I don't want to hurt the ladies! I would prefer not to hurt the bees too, but I think in this case I may need to. Should I put out some sort of bait for them and try to bait them away? I am just unsure if I go in with a spray, how long do I have to keep the chickens out?

I have a second unused portion of the coop that I could possibly move the chickens into for a time, but it has no windows and the outside door doesn't latch properly (easy enough to fix).

If I placed plastic on the floor and went in and sprayed then cleaned up do you think it would be safe for the chickens within 24 hours?

What would you try?

 

[Ted n Ms]

Carpenter bees can be destructive insects that tunnel into wood so the queen can lay her eggs. Each year carpenter bees will return to the same holes they were born in to tunnel deeper. As a result, even greater amounts of eggs are laid while greater damage is done to the wood structure. If left unchecked, this tunneling can weaken the structure of a building. Does this Spark an idea?
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1. How to Identify a Carpenter Bee Infestation
   
   • Carpenter bees have large bluish-black bellies. You will notice them loitering against wood structures constructed of unpainted soft woods like pine and cedar. You will also see small bee sized holes in the boards on the building and may be able to observe them crawling into a hole while other's are exiting from it. In addition, when the larvae begin hatching out, they make a lot of noise. Unfortunately, this will often attract woodpeckers, who eat them. The woodpecker will peck at the bee hole opening to feast on these delicacies. In the process, the birds cause even more damage to your structure by enlarging the holes.

 

[zazouse]

I spray "off" mosquitoe spray on the wood and they did not come back till the next year, it did not kill them just ran them off, bee like this are very beneficial in pollination , i also have honey bees so i kinda like all bees

 

[Ted n Ms]

I have 36 hives of honey bees , but i hate these Carpenter bees they riddle holes all in the wood until it affects the integrity of the wooden structure.Making it very weak. I built the traps and they work very well.

 

[littleoak]

I had carpenter bees and found their holes and filled them with axle grease. It sealed them inside and that was the end of that. If you watch for new holes you can eliminate them pretty fast.

 

[zazouse]

I agree i spray the boards on my carport as soon as i see the first one, they go else where after that