Valentines Eve – Joist Space Removal

The homeowners had purchased this home last year, right about the time I’d estimate that the bees moved in (based on the comb color and condition), however the home itself tells a story about bees occupying the space in years past – based on the residue and remnants from wax moth in the space.

During the evaluation of the colony last week, a FLIR thermal camera was used to determine the exact location of the bees.    The yellow is the heat signature of the bees in the joist space below the bedroom.  BEcause this showed that it was very close to the wall, it was decided to access the colony from the outside (instead of opening the floor above the bees)

Before, and during the opening of the siding.

After opening the siding and exposing the bees, here was the view:

The comb was removed, and the bees clustered back in the joist space against the fire-block.  They were collected, and recombined with their combs of eggs and larvae  at one of the Harmony Hollow bee yards.

The joist space was filled with insulation, then the home was reassembled.