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Bees & Beekeeping

use of wd40

19 years ago

We own a summer place in an eastern Ontario farming community and we have heard out there about the use of WD40 to eradicate bees that can't be moved -- I wonder if bees would go back to a hive that was covered with oil? Would oil be helpful as a deterent to subsequent swarms once a hive has been removed (hopefully alive)?

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Comments (3)

ccrb1
19 years ago
an efficient and legal way to kill bees is with water and detergent, real sudsy.

I used to live up there (Toronto, Aurora) but now I'm way to far to come up and do a removal. Check with a local beekeeper association about who can do a removal. Spraying with WD40 which is highly flammable, could be very unwise.

Perhaps you can tell us exactly where the bee hive is. Are you sure they're honeybees? Because if they are, you can't simply spray something... the comb, and the honey have to be removed. And, in my case, I take the bees and the brood out alive too.

The only deterent to a new swarm moving in would be to close up the entrance and/or completely fill the cavity with insulation.
morar
Original Author
19 years ago
I am not having a bee problem at the moment -- I just had two yellow jacket ground nests removed, but I am the author of the 'bee horror stories' thread of a month ago. I just wondered if WD40 would help prevent bees from returning to a hive -- but if it caused a house to burn down that would be 'overkill'! I am also the author of 'beekeeper exterminator false dichotomy' thread this week -- so I did find a beekeeper -- but only after contacting an exterminator and discovering they had one on staff. I sure didn't get help from the Beekeepers' Association of Ontario person I contacted.
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It took me a second to figure out why this post was familiar: Look at the dates! It's been resurrected from last year! Toad08, I've heard people talk about using WD-40 for joint pain. While I won't refute your own personal experience, most of what I've heard on the subject is summed up in this article. (Your mileage may vary.) ...all of which got me thinking: Is there anything WD-40 can't (or shouldn't) be used for? Let's make a list! I'll start: 1.) Ice cream flavorant 2.) Lip gloss 3.) "Personal" lubricant 4.) Bratwurst condiment 5.) Eye-makeup remover 6.) Suntan oil 7.) Topical application to mice to make it easier for hungry snakes to swallow them quickly... 8.) Floor wax additive at a roller rink 9.) Mix with bleach for a daily gargling fluid to give you whiter, shinier teeth (plus, it'd kill all the germs in your mouth, and those that didn't die couldn't stick to anything anyway!) 10.) Frying pan lubricant for omelet-making
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Does anyone have any evidence at all, either anecdotal or scientific that this works? Even if it does, do you know what it does to your garden? Whether or not you spray this stuff on plants you are putting cleaning fluid solvent, mineral oil and liquified petroleum gas (those are the ingredients) into the ground. This is probably a worse idea than putting corn meal on everything. Another example of voodoo gardening. Steve
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Make sure you put down newspaper or other to prevent WD40 from spraying or dripping onto the floor or other items. If possible take items outside to apply WD40. A degreaser should work to clean up WD40.
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ccrb1
19 years ago
Well, associations can be disappointing. I'm sorry you didn't get help. Although I used to live there, I only started keeping bees down here in Indiana. I try to help anyone who calls and I often end up driving miles and miles to find a paper wasp nest.

Honestly, the best repellent is to seal the area. And fill the cavity with an immovable solid - such as cellulose or foam. Fibreglas would probably not be as good.

Any repellent would either be toxic in its own right, or smell awful -- or both.

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