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i'd love to know an answer to this one! my mom's in tennessee and her house is overrun by carpenter bees!

i remember when i went to visit one spring, during their mating season, knots of three or four bees were slamming into everything because they fly around wildly, this bundle of bee sex!

Timely question as an article on controlling carpenter bees was recently submitted to my green it! carnival! According to Jamie one needs to "repel them by painting all wood surfaces with oil-based paint. When you observe a bee excavating a new hole, fill it immediately with wood putty to discourage the drilling activity." The catch is that most oil based paints are not very eco friendly; however, you might want to check out Biosheild -- they may have an oil based (linseed vs. petroleum) paint that will work!

Thank you for the comment on the oil based paint. I have heard that one before, too. The only problem is that I absolutly love the look of the natural wood which has weather great over the last 57 years from when the home was built in 1951. The siding in all quarter sawn Redwood which when you look at the grain, it is practically furniture grade. Does anyone think that just applying linseed oil would work? I know that it does wonders for waterproofing wood. I know this is a difficult question though. Thank You for helping me.

Stain OR paint will work to deter bees some (use an oil based stain). Spraying a soapy solution on the wood will also work in the short term. Spraying poison into the holes as they appear is a must (you CAN use Wd40 too). Hiring an exterminator to spray the wood with chemicals works best. The busy wild flying buzzing bees are males, who can't sting, so swatting them to get rid of them helps too. You need to address the problem with vigor because woodpeckers follow the bees.

I have the same problem with carpenter bees. I own a half log sided home (pine) in Michigan and they have made numerous round holes all over, including the sofets. It's really discouraging to find these holes. They bounce all over the windows too. I follow them around with bee spray and spray like crazy when I can reach them. My home is indeed stained with a oil based stain but they still seem to penetrate and attact to it. bumble bee traps don't work and the only solution I have found so far is to spray the inside holes and when flying around. I don't care so much about saving these bees as they are ruining my home. Sorry bee lovers but these guys can do some serious damage. Any other insight from others would be greatly appreciated. To those who experience these suckers I feel your pain.

neem oil