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Located in northeast Houston, Texas, I perform bee removals and other bee related services in the Greater Houston Area.
Bee Removal; $500+ My base fee for structural bee removal is $500 and goes up with added complexity, mileage, etc. I price my jobs as an upfront quote. Whatever I run into, doesn't matter, the price doesn't change (with the one exception being if you could have warned me and didn't). Historically after 100 jobs I've never had to raise the price. All of my prices are quoted WITHOUT REPAIRS.
I AM AN APPROVED REMOVAL SERVICE BY TEXAS APIARY INSPECTION SERVICE, AND I CARRY LIABILITY INSURANCE FOR YOUR PROTECTION!
Add on's include:
$25 per floor level up I have to go, based on avg ~9' per floor. A roof peak beyond a second story would be considered a third floor. The extra cost is due to the added time and risk involved with working from a ladder. If I have to go above ~20', I borrow a bigger ladder or rent scaffolds. There is a service fee for the added time it takes me to go pick up these items, plus the actual rental cost is passed on. By all means, it's a last resort!
$25 if on a corner. Corner soffits and wall corners have extra bracing which always makes the job more complicated and take longer.
$50 if I have to work with brick or masonry
$25 if running a chainsaw (tree work, not common on residential)
Travel time (varies). If the job is on or near my route to and from my day job, I don't charge extra for drive time.
On the note of tree jobs, if the tree can be safely dropped, I will drop it. I DO NOT haul off debris but will organize my work area once done. If there are nearby hazards where I can not safely drop the tree, I can refer multiple tree service companies that will knowingly trim/service bee trees.
To submit an inquiry about a possible removal, call/email, or click here to submit an information form and I will contact you at my earliest convenience.
Trap Outs - Trapping out is a process of placing a one-way access over the bee's access point to a structure or tree. They get out but can't find their way back in. This is a lengthy process, minimum of 1 month. It prevents opening a structure, but it does leave nest behind. If all the honey is not removed, it can become a mess afterwards (same as when bees are exterminated). If it goes right, the bees consume all the honey, but the combs remain. If the access is not properly repaired, future bees will gladly move in to this tailor made home.
Swarm Removal - In general, a swarm removal is $50/hr (including travel time) with a 1 hr minimum.
Beekeeping Classes - Please click the link or go directly to the “classes” page for more info
Consultation - I understand that we all have questions, and I'm happy to help. Feel free to email/text with general questions. If it is a more pressing case, I will take calls, but often I'm at work or with my family and prefer something I can get back to later. Consultation via phone/text/email is always FREE, unless you want to do some sort of Skype or other video conference scenario. If you are considering beekeeping, I encourage you to read all your can first, and hopefully you can find most of what you need here
If you already have bees and are concerned about your hive or unsure of something please be prepared to answer a few questions for me as well. Before you even call, please do an inspection on your hive. Have a camera handy, and anything you are unsure of, take detailed photos so I can see what you saw. Often I can diagnose a hive just from a few photos, but I have to know what's inside the box. Please don't call or send a photo of a bunch of bees on the front of the box and ask what's going on. Your guess is as good as mine! In addition, taking detailed photos of each frame is good material for you to look back on later.
Things to look for on the inspection before calling:
Did you see honey/pollen stores? If so, can you quantify it? How many full frames of each did you see. It's normal to see maybe only a half frame of pollen for example. And keep in mind each frame is double sided. So if you saw two frames where each had one half on one side covered, that's in total just a half a frame of pollen. Same goes for honey.
How many frames of brood did you see?
How many frames were the bees covering when you first opened the box, before they disperse or move around a lot?
Did you see eggs?
Did you see the queen, or queen cells? If queen cells, take a count. Were they capped or not? Were they actually cells or just base cups? Was there an egg or larva inside? Was it already emerged?
Any signs of pests?
These are just examples of what to look for and consider. Write down any questions you have along the way so you don't forget to ask later.
If you want me to come to your location and inspect your hive for you I will. I charge $100/hr, including round trip travel time, and I'm happy to treat it like a private beekeeping class if you wish. Or if you are not available but need your hive checked, I can do that too and will do whatever I feel necessary to the hive. I ask that you have a the resources on hand. At a minimum please have a spare hive body with frames/foundation and a feeder. I can furnish sugar and water if you are out of town.
If you are interested in splitting the hive, always have a entire spare hive setup ready to go. I will gladly split a hive if I feel it is a viable option at the time.