We also remove wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets.
Below I have a collection of honey bee removals that I have done in the past year.
Removing unwanted and pest bees is our business!
We are Licensed and Insured!
Bill Owens
404-516-1807
After the bees are removed we repair the damage caused by gaining access to the hive, and seal the hive entrance. The only thing we do not do is (sheetrock) mud work and painting. We GUARANTEE* for one year that no bees will return to the location where we removed them.
Our base price for removing a honey bee colony is $600.00. Additional charges will apply if our travel distance is more than 50 miles and/or if the colony is above 30 ft. Our base price on yellow jacket, hornet, or wasp removal is $150.00.
Updated December 2007
Each year I try to add any colonies that people either killed or allowed to die on their own. This colony wasn't dead but didn't have far to go. Honey had just started to seep into the house when the owner called.
I'll be nice and not name names but this jack leg want to be bee remover really did a job on this house and the home owner. What he didn't cut through with a chainsaw he tore and ripped off the house. The house is just at 100 years old and lets face it you can't buy heart pine siding any more. This bozo left busted and broken siding all over the yard along with huge chunks of honey comb. Not only did he destroy the siding and reduce the value of this historic home, he didn't even get all of the bees or the honey comb.
We could have easily removed the siding, the bees, honey comb, and then put the siding back the way it was before. Even if one or two of the boards had broken it would have been better than this mess.
These pics are from a hive that did not get removed before it died out. You can see the damage that followed. Once the bees are gone and can no longer defend or take care of the hive area, other critters will soon locate all the honey and wax that was left behind. The honey and wax is destroyed and turns into a goo that will cause wood rot and stain sheetrock. The sheetrock and wood that becomes contaminated will require replacing. You can see where it even oozed down the brick wall.
Here's another hive that died out in the past only to be re-infested by another swarm. Like the pictures above you can see where the colony was located by the black mold that is growing on the plywood. A swarm of honey bees will start a colony where other colonies were once established. It's easier for a swarm to use the old comb that was left behind by the previous colony than to start from scratch.
Some jobs are just harder than others. This removal was difficult because of the type of construction. This was one cute little cabin, but a real pain in the neck to work on. We managed to get the bees out and put the cabin back together.
This is another "you think you've seen it all" jobs. Generally there isn't enough room in a block wall for a colony of honey bees but like I often say honey bees don't read the text books. Basically, I knocked out the blocks with a hammer (no the bees weren't happy...I wasn't happy either). Once I got the bees out I shored up some hardy plank over the opening and filled the cavity with mortar mix.
These ladies moved into this vaulted ceiling about two weeks before we were able to do the removal. What really amased me the most was the sheer number of bees in the colony. We did this removal in late March.
This is by far the largest removal I have done in the last 7 years and it's the largest removal that my father has done as well (he has done this allot longer than me). This colony swarmed about 3 weeks prior to the removal and we still removed app. 25-30lbs of bees (about 135,000 bees) We also salvaged about 10 gallons of honey (there was still 4 weeks of the honey flow left).
I started the removal by myself then called my father in for back up after I spent the first two hours vacuuming bees with little result. The entire removal took 9-1/2 hours and that doesn't count processing the honey or cleaning all of my tools and truck! The colony was located between the second and third floor of an apartment building. Most new apartment buildings are constructed with a silent floor system. These open areas allow honey bee colonies to grow with little or no restriction of space!
I guess 2007 was the year for large swarms. The early Easter freeze brought our swarm season to a quick end the swarms that came before the freeze were all very large.
Right after this colony moved into this hollow tree the owner stuffed a blue rag covered with gas into the knot hole. The bees didn't like the smell but had already committed to the location. After a day or so the owner figured out that the bees were not going to leave and called me. The swarm/colony was about 2 inches think and hmmmm I'm guessing about four feet long.
Honey bees will always take advantage of an open cavity. One common cavity in a house is above the fire place. Just feel above the mantle and you'll feel the bees happy and warm in their new home.
Yellow Jackets, Hornets, Wasps...and in this case European Hornets are semi-social insects. Their colonies live for one season then die out in the winter. Honey Bees on the other hand are true social insects that live from season to season. They collect honey in the spring and summer to eat during the winter. This colony moved into this void in the roof above the porch, right beside an old European Hornet nest, if left alone the Honey Bee colony would have expanded and removed the old paper nest.
OK, sometimes even I mess up. A least once (and often more) a year I'll open a wall to find your standard colony. About a minute later huge chunks of comb come crashing down, bees and all! It really makes a mess and almost makes it impossible to find the queen. It also makes the job go much longer since all the bees took to the air when the comb started falling.
I do love historic houses. If you look at this newly established colony you can see where Honey Bees have lived in this old house before. Workers were doing major renovations to the base of the columns. They had to jack the columns up which opened cracks between the roof of the porch and the house. This is all this swarm needed to move into this void.
Owens Apiaries guarantees for one year (12 months) from the time we remove a honey bee colony that a new honey bee colony will not return to the exact location from where we removed the colony. Owens Apiaries reserves the right to withhold this guarantee if preventing bees from returning is impossible or impractical. If this situation should arise, Owens Apiaries shall inform the customer prior to beginning the removal, and the withholding of any guarantee shall be noted in writing on the invoice.