How to Kill Bees with Soapy Water

Bees can be a serious problem if they decide to take up residence in the wrong place. If you have a child that is allergic to bees, or if the bees build too close to your house and become defensive, the risk of a sting is too big a problem to let go. If you want to get rid of your bees but do not want to use a pesticide to do so, consider using soapy water to kill them.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Liquid soap Garden hose Sprayer Long pants Long-sleeved shirt Gloves Scarf

1. Fill the hose sprayer with three cups of liquid soap and water. You can just fill the rest of the sprayer with water. It does not need to be an exact measurement.

2. Put on your bee protection outfit. Put on long pants, a long-sleeved shirt and gloves. Wrap the scarf around your head and face to protect the rest of your exposed skin. You also might want to wear glasses or safety goggles.

3. Shake up the soap mix. You want it to be very soapy and sudsy.

4. Douse the bees with the soap mix. Spray them from about ten feet away if possible. You should drown the area with the soapy water thoroughly and have an escape route ready. The soap will eat through the wax coating on the bees' bodies and drown them because they will just start absorbing water. You need a high concentration of soap so that the soap kills them before they get a chance to swarm and sting you.

5. Run. In case you do not get all the bees at once, you need to have an escape route. Get out of the way and do not interfere with the bees again until they have either expired or calmed down. Then you can repeat the soap treatment if necessary.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have bee allergies, do not attempt this. Hire a professional or someone who does not have an allergy.

References

• How to kill bees with soap
• Why soapy water kills bees