This $22 bee trap saved our family cabin from a carpenter bee invasion — it's easy to install and clean

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• Carpenter bees aren't just a nuisance, they will cost you your family vacation, or your home, should you have to replace the siding or trim on your house in their wake.
• Sprays and plugs can work, but only so well, and it's generally only a matter of time until they find a new place to burrow — often just a few inches away from where you've just barricaded them.
• Bees N Things Carpenter Bee Trap was the quick, cheap, and easy solution to the problem, as it seems they just can't resist that perfectly cylindrical point of entry.

If you've ever looked at the trim, or the siding on your house, or any piece of wood, and wondered why it looked like it'd been shot up, there's a good chance you're dealing with carpenter bees. Another telltale sign is that you hear a crunching sound in the morning and at night when they're burrowing ever deeper into your abode. No, it's not a good thing, but we're here to help.

Carpenter bees exist in most temperate climates (and all over the contiguous United States), and while they're important pollinators, they will make an absolute wreck of wood, especially untreated wood such as cedar, commonly used in siding and trim (see below).

Taking on the incursion

Like many a concerned millennial, I was worried when it seemed like the only way to handle this issue was to send these perfectly contributional creatures to their grave. But this aggression would and could not stand. Rebuilding our cottage, or at least the outside of it, was out of the question. Sorry, little guys, but let this be a lesson to your survivors.

Mounting and function

Mounting the Bees N Things Carpenter Bee Trap is a cinch. All mounting hardware is included, and if you prefer not to mount the thing, you can also just rest it on the ground (if that doesn't work, you may want to devise some other way to position it where it will be more effective). At the very least, it's not an entirely horrible eyesore.

The trap works simply. That little angled hole looks like a pretty safe, ready-made haven for the bees. They crawl up in there and are immediately sent into the plastic chamber below where they'll live out the remainder of their days. 

And although I recommend leaving at least a few dead bees in there to try to ward off the others (no need in senselessly killing them, right?), when it comes time to empty the trap (hopefully you won't really end up with that many), just remove the Phillips head screw and toss them (responsibly).

Lastly, when you do handle the bees, watch out: Males, while aggressive, don't sting, but females do, and they can do so post-mortem.

Bottom line

No, it's not fun killing bees, and I generally don't condone it at all, especially when it comes to honey bees. But damned if I'm going to let an insect eat my home and cost me thousands of dollars. So, invest the $22, save your home or outdoor furniture, and plug up the holes left behind with the bee dam that's included (or some half-inch dowels). It'll all be over soon.

Pros: Cheap, easy to install and clean

Cons: Kills carpenter bees, which are crucial pollinators

Buy the Bees N Things Carpenter Bee Trap from Ace Hardware for $21.99