A bumble bee, honey bee, carpenter bee, or some other type of bee will at least once be an uninvited guest at your home. If you do not want to kill it but still want to get rid of it, you will ask yourself how to get the bee out of the house.
That is the case where this article will come in handy since, in it, we will discuss two active and two passive bee removal tricks that you, as a homeowner, can do to remove this beneficial insect easily and safely.
However, before delving into them, we must note that in case of a large bee infestation, i.e., a swarm of bees, it is better to seek the professional help of a pest control company.
4 Ways to Get a Bee out of the House
Tools
- Plastic container
- Newspaper or book
- Spray bottle
Materials
- Sugar
- Water
- Citronella
- Cinnamon
- Mint
- Vinegar
- Garlic
1. Trap the bee inside a container
Let’s start with the most often-used cure: utilizing a container to trap the bee. Here are the steps.
Step 1. Safety first
Like most animals, bees will not attack us first unless we provoke them in some way. Since you are about to do this, it would be wise to wear long pants and a shirt with long sleeves. If you want to get extra careful protective glasses and gloves are the way to go.
Step 2. Find a container
Find a container in which you will trap the bee. A plastic jar or pot is your best choice. A glass container could break if you slam it too hard against a surface, while a metal one could leave a mark on your wall or table, for example.
Step 3. Locate the bee
Locating the bee can be a bit tricky at times because when you need something, it is usually not there. But fortunately for you, bees are easier to spot than flies due to their size and color. And you will also hear their buzzing, sooner or later.
Step 4. Wait for the bee to land on a flat surface
Follow and wait for the bee to land on a flat surface so that it can not escape when you try to cover it with the container.
Step 5. Trap the bee with a container
When the bee comes to a flat surface, trap it by quickly bringing the container over it.
Step 6. Prepare a lid to cover the other side of the container
Since the container is hollow on one side, you will have to cover it with a lid, for which you can use some newspaper or book whose surface area is larger than the surface area of the container.
Slowly move the container toward the edge of the table or wall. When you reach the edge, place the lid next to it and slowly slide the container over the book or newspaper so you do not give the bee a chance to escape but also do not hurt it.
Step 7. Release the bee into the wilderness
All that is left is to go outside and let the bee return to its hive by slowly lifting the container.
2. Attract the bee with something sugary
Bees are known as animals that have sweet teeth. Although their primary choice is flower nectar and pollen, they will not resist other sugary stuff, which is why they will annoy you at a picnic by trying to take a piece of your cake or drink some fruit juice. So let’s use this against them. Follow these steps.
Step 1. Mix water and sugar
When beekeepers make sugar syrup to feed their bees, they usually use a two or three-to-one ratio of water and sugar, so you should do the same when making your sugar-water mixture. Mix the sugar and water until the sugar dissolves in the water.
Step 2. Place the mixture near the bee
Now that the bee-attracting mixture is ready, it is time to place it near the bee. If you do not know where the bee is at that moment, put it somewhere you have seen it before and wait.
Step 3. Find a lid for the container
Two approaches are possible here.
One is to use any lid with which you will be able to cover the container when the bee enters it and starts slurping on sugary water.
The other one is to make a small hole in the middle of the lid, which will be large enough for the bee to enter through. This approach has the advantage that it will be pretty difficult for the bee to escape when you take the container outside to release the bee.
Step 4. Release the bee
Once the bee is caught, that is, once it has started sucking the sugar, take the container outside. Pour the mixture slowly so the bee can exit the container safely., without getting buried under the sugary water.
Step 5. Clean the container and the spot
Wash the jar. Also, clean and wash the spot where you spilled the mixture so that the bee that has just been released or others do not get attracted to it.
3. Kick the bee out of the house with a repulsive smell
In case you don’t like the two active approaches, do not worry; we have you covered. Bees are attracted to certain scents (sugar) but are repelled by some, which we will discuss in the following lines.
The advantage of going this route is that you will not come in close contact with the bee, so the risk of a bee sting is minimal. The disadvantage is that it can take longer for the bee to get irritated by the odor and leave your house.
- Citronella
You can use several things to drive bees away from your house, the first of them being citronella.
Even though the citronella plant (Cymbopogon nardus) will also repel bees, the quickest solution is to go to the nearest convenience store and buy a citronella candle. When you get home, light the candle and let it do its magic. Not only will it drive away the bee, but it will also scent your house with a pleasant fragrance.
- Cinnamon
Another smell that bees do not like is cinnamon. To make use of this information, simply sprinkle a little bit of cinnamon around the places where you noticed the bee staying and where you suspect the bee entered your house (main house entrance, porch, patio attic, windows, etc.).
- Mint
It is funny how yet another smell that (most) humans find beautiful repels bees (and also wasps). If you want the bee to leave your house, stop by the closest supermarket and buy a bundle of mint. After returning home, spread the mint leaves around problematic spots and just wait for the bee to get annoyed.
If bees often stray into your home, having a mint plant around can be a good prevention method to keep the bees away. Besides peppermint, citronella, neem, eucalyptus, basil and marigolds are some of the other plants that will do the same.
- Vinegar or garlic spray
The last two natural repellants that we will mention are vinegar and garlic. You have one, if not both, at home, so you will not have to leave the house to get rid of the bee.
To make a bee repellent out of one of them, mix equal amounts of vinegar and water or a couple of crushed cloves of garlic and water in a spray bottle. Then, spray the liquid around the bee or the places you have seen it frequently.
The disadvantage of using these mixtures is that your house will smell like garlic or vinegar for a couple of hours.
4. Let the bee go out on its own
The second peaceful method we will talk about is the one in which you basically do nothing. Although most species of bees are actually solitary animals, it is rare for a bee to move into someone’s house and make it their home.
Yes, maybe they wandered into your house once or twice by mistake, or something attracted them, but it is unlikely that they will decide to live there for a long period of time. Because of this, sometimes it is best to do nothing and just let the bee go out on its own.
Open the windows and doors and let the problem solve itself. Do this if you are patient or afraid of a close encounter with the bee’s stinger.
Conclusion
If you want to get rid of a bee inside your house, you can trap it or attract it to the container with something sweet, after which you will throw it out.
Also, you can use some scents that bees find repulsive, such as citronella, cinnamon, mint, vinegar, or garlic, to drive it out of your home.
Finally, you can elect to do nothing and wait for the bee to leave the house when it gets boring.
Do not forget to use the comment section for questions about this topic!