Calling all pros, wondering if anyone can help me save a colony.
I'm a new beekeeper and custom home builder. Today while visiting a home I built a year and a half ago, the homeowners pointed out that they had a bunch of honey bees coming in and out of a hole in their front porch. The front porch is timber framed with 2 X 6 tongue and groove set on top before the sheeting and asphalt shingles. The slight relief on the edges of the 2 x 6 where the interlock leaves a quarter inch high triangle that seems to be perfect for the bees to slip in to the attic area. I won't bore you with details but this is a green home and the area the bees are occupying is not accessible from the attic as its isolated as non-heated space.
Bottom line, I don't know how long the colony has been there or how big it is but the homeowners seem to remember having a lot of bees drinking out of their fountain last fall. This leads me to believe they probably wintered over last year. The owners want them gone and were considering poison or blocking the hole to trap and slow kill the colony.
They aren't anti bee but are concerned about future damage and they have 3 small children that spend a lot of time playing around the fountain the bees drink from. The owners are fine giving me some time to try and find a non lethal solution. Tear out would be costly and might be my responsibility under warranty, if not legally for sure as a goodwill gesture that I stand behind my homes.
I have a Nuc box, could I bait it with lemongrass oil and place it a foot or so away from the access? Any chance they would move? Is there a one way trap that anyone is aware of?
I'm lost, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.