A little advice would be much appreciated.

[user 22934]

I wasn't thinking of keeping bees until my ceiling came down. This nest, or colony? is at one corner of the roof/ceiling. I know there is another nest at the other corner. Been there for years. Since the ceiling has to be repaired I thought the building disturbance would encourage the bees to move on but they haven't. Looks like they're staying put. I did wait for spring before repairs to give the bees the best chance of finding a new home, but I don't know if this was right. I must say, these bees have been very docile - yes, they did get a bit miffed when the ceiling came down, but they've never been aggressive and I've never been stung.

Could you please give me some advice about how to encourage the bees to move on, in the least harmful way to them, so I can get my room back?

Thanks very much,
Ergin/South Wales.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

a cutout is the only way I'm afraid.
The first issue you've got is finding someone brave enough to venture into Crynant.
Get in touch with Swansea and District Beekeeping association, also West Glamorgan BKA and they can put the word around to see if anyone is interested.

 

[user 22934]

a cutout is the only way I'm afraid.
The first issue you've got is finding someone brave enough to venture into Crynant.
Get in touch with Swansea and District Beekeeping association, also West Glamorgan BKA and they can put the word around to see if anyone is interested.

I guess cutout means exactly that. Someone cutting out the nest!? I remember sometime ago there was a post on the local Facebook about someone wanting to know about swarms in the area, so I will contact the people you mention. Maybe it's them.
What about a little smoke? The whole room needs to be redone so I'm not worried about smoke damage.

 

[Ian123]

Smoke won’t remove them. As above contact a local beek.

 

[ericbeaumont]

how to encourage the bees to move on

They won't. Go with the advice given and contact a local BKA.

Make sure that the beekeepers remove as much as they can of wax & bee traces, or next year the smell will attract another swarm. Paint or disguise the remaining surfaces with anything pungent: aftershave, floor cleaner, or gloss paint (or all three).

Aim to seal likely entrances as small as 6mm within several metres of the nest entrance, for the same reason. Look to seal roof venting with fine mesh and be prepared to fail to do so, as roofs are notably porous.

Be willing to pay properly to have the nest removed. It is a messy job and may take all day, plus a return trip to collect the box of bees and clear up. Find out if your buildings insurance will pay for the job, and whether the beekeepers have insurance for the work.

thinking of keeping bees

Now's your chance!

 

[blackcloud]

You've been keeping bees for longer than youve been aware of!!

Pest control is expensive and sometimes avoidable but many companies will just refer you back to a beekeeper, who will possibly refer you to back to pest control.
Eventually there will be one who would be willing to attend.
Just keep trying with an edge of panic in your voice
Few want exposure to the risk of prosecution such is the effect of the blame culture.

I had a chimney call this morning from a couple who had been given my number by their insurance company- which speaks volumes.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

I guess cutout means exactly that. Someone cutting out the nest!? I remember sometime ago there was a post on the local Facebook about someone wanting to know about swarms in the area, so I will contact the people you mention. Maybe it's them.
What about a little smoke? The whole room needs to be redone so I'm not worried about smoke damage.

Watch this video which will give you an idea of the process of conducting a cut out, albeit with fantastically tolerant bees and not inside a room. J P
has a range of similar, interesting videos.

 

[user 22934]

Update

Thank you all for your comments and advice. They've been spot on!
In brief:
I detached the nest with a hoe into a bucket.
I put the bucket behind the garage.
Two days later the bees swarmed and flew off.

Now I know why people keep bees. The taste of honey straight from the comb is simply sensational.
And thank you to my bees - loud, curious and busy, but never aggressive.

Now - there's the other nest to deal with!

The first photo show the combs with what I imagine is the queen surrounded with workers. The video is of the swarm on my cherry tree. The last photo is of the empty combs after swarming.

 

[ericbeaumont]

detached the nest with a hoe into a bucket.
put the bucket behind the garage.
Two days later the bees swarmed and flew off.

Sounds a bit odd to me.

The usual method used by a beekeeper is to cut out the combs, wedge the pieces into frames, wrap with rubber bands and load the frames into brood or nuc box. If you get the queen - and a bee vac would be easier - the frames and bees & queen would be reunited in the bee vac brood box.

At this point the easy part of the job would be done: wait for 24 hours until the flying bees re-locate to the box - which will be parked in the loft next to the original nest - then close the box and re-home it with floor and roof 3 miles away, ventilating the box during the journey with a travel screen.

You did none of this because you're not a beekeeper, so what you have achieved is the destruction of the nest, and as only 25% of swarms survive to the following year, perhaps the colony as well.

If you leave the few brood combs in the open other bees will rob it, and as you don't know the disease status of your remans or that of the robbers, you may have succeeded in spreading disease. Burn the combs or bag and bin.

If you do not clean and seal the original site of the nest you will be back to square one because another swarm will arrive, perhaps next week, but certainly next year. Even if you do clean thoroughly, the roof is so porous that a return is more than likely.

The video shows (just about) flying bees but what is going on in your loft, and where is the rest of the nest?