How to Keep Wasps and Bees Away from Your Pool

During the heat of the summer, wasps and bees seem to hover over any body of water. This adds to the beauty of nature but it can be a real problem for pool owners. Bee stings are no fun for anyone but they can be life threatening for someone with an allergy. You could douse the area with insecticide spray before the kids go out, but that's not practical or safe. Poison could get into pool water and make your family sick. It's better not to go there.

Here are some simple solutions for the wasp and bee problem for your pool that are safe for your children and pets.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• shallow dish
• pebbles
• soapy water
• bucket or basin
• a piece of raw meat
• diesel fuel
• empty soda bottle

1. 
    
   An inch of diesel fuel with do

   Place an inch or two of diesel fuel in an empty soda bottle with no lid and place it high enough to be out of reach of children. Bees will flock to it and drown in the fuel. For some reason, diesel fuel is a bee magnet.

2. 
    
   Wasps love raw meat

   Hang a piece of raw meat from a bush or branch with a basin of water containing dish detergent underneath. When the wasps gorge on the meat they will drop into the bucket. Be sure to add soap to the water because the wasp's body has a natural water shield. The soap will cut through that shield and they will drown.

3. 
    
   They like blue, white, & yellow

   The most humane alternative is to place 2-3 containers of water about 3 feet off the ground in quiet sunny spots at a safe distance from the pool. Surround the pool area with these containers, if possible. Bees and wasps prefer the colors blue, white, and yellow. This could be a birdbath, or just a shallow dish of water on a picnic table. Place pebbles and stones in the bottom of the container and fill so that the tips of the stones show above the water to give them a landing spot.

Tips & Warnings

• Cover the pool for a few days, so these containers are the best place nearby for them to get water. The wasps will have a more pleasant alternative to the pool and get their drink from the dish.
• If you place these containers near blue, white, or yellow flowers, you'll increase your success rate.
• keep diesel fuel traps safely out of reach of children
• place your water stations a safe distance from the pool

Resources

• More Budget-saving Tips Here

[frugalfamilies]

on 7/30/2009 Raw beef or chicken breast. The meat must be solid enough to allow dangling from a string without falling. A nice sized piece of stew beef would do. Thanks for the comment, india63!