Possible bee hive

[mizfiesta]

Over the past few days my family and I have noticed bees crawling in and out of behind a gas meter box that sits just outside my front door. There obviously has been drilling done to the wall behind the gas box to allow for pipes etc and it's probably not been sealed up 100%, so my guess is the bees will be making a hive in the wall cavity. I don't know that much about bees, or indeed any insects, but I do know that they are endangered, and after a call to my local authority pest control department they confirmed what I thought. They also advised me that they cannot do anything about my situation and if I wanted it resolved I would have to contact a local pest control company myself. I need advice as to what I should do? How much at risk are me and my family at of being stung or attacked by these bees? I also know that the wall they are going through is adjacent to my hall cupboard which is very poorly sealed from the outside and has many, many gaps and holes from which an insect could crawl from the wall cavity from. I'm feeling really nervous about it all but I don't want to panic and go in all heavy handed either. Advice please.

[tamborine]

squirt in surplus paint/remover anything with toxic fumes that evaporate.....they'll soon fly elsewhere to nest.

seal so the fumes dont permeate indoors.

[Clanad]

Firstly, this likely not a swarm of honey bees. Honey bees do swarm in late spring and th emiddle of summer, but they are following, very closely, the queen bee. When they stop, they swarm on a branch or other surface in a great group all trying to be as close the queen as possible.

My, guess is that you have an infestation of wasps that are often, at least here in the U.S., mistaken for bees.

If it doesn't appear that there are a large number of the critters, the best course of action would be to have a good handyman seal up the entrance to where they are going. The few that are on the inside will die quickly. There shouldn't be enough to cause any smell. The entrance can probably be sealed quickly with a good caulking gun and approriate caulk (which is what should have been done by whoever drilled the area anyway).

Good luck!

[jaberwocky]

i am led to believe after a neighbour had a similar problem that there is not much that can be done.neighbour told me that authorities told him that it was illegal to destroy a bee hive. that is of course if they are bees.

[RATTER15]

They are more likely to be wasps but they could be bees, if they are wasps then they need to be got rid of promptly, if they are honey bees you can have them removed if you consider them a danger and they really could be a danger, especially if there are children around, remember the nests are being built now and getting bigger.

I was a pest control officer for 13 years.

[denby04]

A builder told me I had a wasps nest in my roof space. I rang the council (Lancashire) and they sent a chap around who told me it was dormant and the wasps don't usually return to an "old home". He was right. There was no charge for his visit but I was told if it was "live" the charge to get rid would be £36. In my previous home I had a wasps nest in the shed. I sealed the door with loads of tape, left a gap, sprayed loads of fly/wasp killer and sealed the last bit of the gap. It worked. Removed the nest when I was sure all was safe. They had built the nest between the cushions of a deck chair so that had to go so others please beware.

[jomifl]

If they are bees they may only be looking for a potential nesting site, The main swarm of up to 20,000 bees may not havearrived yet. If they have started building a nest but havent settled down they can be encouraged to go elswhere. Look in your yellow pages for a bee keeper who will know what is the best thing to do. Failing any other solution block up the hole they are using preferably at night as they cannot see very well at in the dark.

[AlBags]

Bees will not sting you unless someone pi$$es them off.
I doubt they can swarm where you say .. You sure they are bees .. and not a type of wasp?