Today in your shop (mason bee house anyone?)

[Gene Howe]

Thanks for all your work, Ed. Your directions are clear and easy to follow. I think I'll start one soon as I get my Morris chairs done.
When you paint, will you paint the trays, too?
Did I understand that the trays will need cleaning each year? Don't the guests stay all year?

[reible]

No paint on the trays but if you want to torch the fronts that fine. From some of the reading people think they prefer a darker entry way. So I think I will try it that way.

Mason bees come out of the holes in early spring to do there thing. They only live a few months so one of the things they do is lay new eggs, we are hoping that is in our bee house. Once one chamber is filled they do another and another so one bee may use the house several times. When they die off in the summer the eggs stay in the nest until they hatch and come out the next spring.

Some people clean them every year others every few years. Some I guess not at all. Not all emerge, some holes might have parasites or excessive bee droppings so I clean mine each year. I haven't seen any out and about so I keep watching to see when they have left the house then clean house.

My other house has a back that comes off so I can rod them out with a dowel. This is my first attempt at the trays but others have done it and like it so that is where I'm at.

Ed

[Ed in Tampa]

I would love to build one but here in Florida we have Mud Daubers and they love holes.

I have a hedge trimmer I keep in the garage and it has holes in the handle where the screws that hold it together is recessed. If I leave the garage door up Mud Daubers fill those holes almost as fast as I clean them out.
The front of the Mason bee box would be mud within a week.

Mud daubers catch spiders, sting them enough to make them woozy and seal them in with their eggs. When the larva hatch they chow down on spider.

There are about three types of mud daubers, one builds it's nest with the blackest mud you can imagine, also most impossible to wash off, I usually get it as clean as possible and then paint over it. Another specie builds nest that almost look like pipe organ pipes side by side and each a little shorter than the next. These nest are usually grey in color. The third is the one that loves existing holes.

One good thing about mud daubers is they love brown and black widow spiders. Almost every nest has at least a couple of black widows in it.

[ERLover]

reible,
What diam core bit was that?
Also at Wally Mart today and got some cutting boards, thanks for that heads up too.
Sorry about the confusion, I swear I saw "5/8" there, or did you do a fast Edit on us?

[Skizzity]

reible,
What diam core bit was that?
Also at Wally Mart today and got some cutting boards, thanks for that heads up too.
Sorry about the confusion, I swear I saw "5/8" there, or did you do a fast Edit on us?

3/8" bit, 5/16" deep

[reible]

reible,
What diam core bit was that?
Also at Wally Mart today and got some cutting boards, thanks for that heads up too.
Sorry about the confusion, I swear I saw "5/8" there, or did you do a fast Edit on us?

The bit is 3/8" wide and if you look for one that has about 3/8" high that will work really well. I think the one I got was from Menard's. Don't recall the price but I found them online for $11 and free shipping. It's in one of the first few posts.

No fast edits..... Have your eyes check of late. I was just in and I even got to stay with the glasses I have so that saved a few $$. I did have them replace the nose pieces which were yellowed and grungy looking.

Ed

[JPG]

VERY Clear!!!!

[swampgator]

Ed, this project fascinates me. I have carpenter/mason bees flying around my garage and house. They seem to always build/bore a vertical hole in the fascia. Usually, I use a 3/8" dowel with some Titebond III glue and it either kills them or stops them from continuing their project. So, I am so curious as to why you have built the hole horizontal vice vertical. And, where do you plan to station this bee house? Thank you.

[reible]

Ed, this project fascinates me. I have carpenter/mason bees flying around my garage and house. They seem to always build/bore a vertical hole in the fascia. Usually, I use a 3/8" dowel with some Titebond III glue and it either kills them or stops them from continuing their project. So, I am so curious as to why you have built the hole horizontal vice vertical. And, where do you plan to station this bee house? Thank you.

I'm not a mason bee expert but I have looked online for plans and horizontal seems to be how they are made. I have no idea if vertical hole would work but one could give it a try. I'd have to assume the bees would have access from below so the trays in my box would have to have something to make sure they stayed in....

If I do another one I will make a few changes in the design so it could be used holes down... maybe the bees would like that better?

I have one house in the front yard where we have some spring plants that attract the bees. My new house will be in the back yard attached to a fence about 3' high. Again I don't know why it should be 3 feet high but that is what I've read. In that back we have a couple of dwarf apple trees and other flowers so I hope this helps that population but if the front yard bees want to nest in the back or the back yard bees what to us the front it is all up to them.

Ed

[swampgator]

Thank you, Ed. Will steal your ideas and put them in vertical to see if and how they respond. Will make the roof removable by using screws to secure the box and top. That way, I can clean it out each year. Also, will put a small thin strip under the combs so they won't fall out. Thank you so much for an interesting thread and ideas.

Steve, Pensacola, FL