Bees

[RustyFN]

Hello,
I have an above ground pool. I am running a SWG on the pool. We have been getting a lot of little tiny bees in the pool. Does anybody else have this problem? Does anybody know if they could be attracted because of some kind of imbalance in the water?

 

[mknauss]

That is odd. Most flying insects do not like pool water as long as the chlorine is properly maintained.

 

[PoolguyinCT]

Hello,
I have an above ground pool. I am running a SWG on the pool. We have been getting a lot of little tiny bees in the pool. Does anybody else have this problem? Does anybody know if they could be attracted because of some kind of imbalance in the water?

Yes I do!!

I live very close to a farming & honey bee keeping enthusiast. Last year my pool was inundated with the bees, this year none. I just learned he sold the farm in February.

 

[Perpetual summer]

Are u talking about little black ones? They look like chubby ants with wings? We get more than a few of these things in the water, and they either bite or sting when they get on you.

 

[proavia]

I've heard that bees are attracted by the chlorine - and supposedly it's like alcohol to them. And they like salt too.

Here's an older thread on TFP about bees: we have a Bee problem

 

[zea3]

Provide a more attractive place for them, far away from your pool. Set up a little corner with a dish of Sprite and a dish of water and they will probably hang out over there.

 

[RustyFN]

These are very small and a dark color. When they get on you they will bite/sting pretty good. Some days I have to make a trip around the pool with a skimmer net in my hand every 15 minutes and will get 8 to 10. To give you an idea of the size they are 2 to 3 times bigger than a tic.

 

[dice7074]

YES. For the last week, I've noticed them hangin' around my pool and spa - and some of them even floating around, too. Everyday, I have to get like three dead ones out of my area. Ughhh… such a nuisance!

 

[linda1]

We call the little black ones sweat bees. They sure can leave a welt.

 

[RustyFN]

Not a great picture but this is what they look like.

 

[phonedave]

I would not say I have a lot, but now that you mention it, I have seen a few of them in my pool, as well as maybe 4 or 5 big fuzzy bumblebees this year.

I just switched to SWG this season as well. Never had these bees before. I didn't think anything of it, because I don't have a lot of them. Just enough that I noticed them.

 

[MrBfromNC]

Hurt like a mugga when they bite you. I've got a few also but can't seem to get rid of them.

 

[Saturn94]

Are u talking about little black ones? They look like chubby ants with wings? We get more than a few of these things in the water, and they either bite or sting when they get on you.

We get the same ones on a regular basis. One stung me the other day.

 

[poolkitty]

Yep, noticing them here too. They seem to like me best, probably because the kids never hold still. They are called sweat bees in these parts.

 

[mommark]

We are constantly dealing with ants that bite. And their bites hurt like heck. We put ant killer in the yard and it's done nothing to reduce the ant population in our pool or skimmer basket. They are evil little things.

 

[azide999]

I have struggled with Sweat Bees, the sting is not painful, more like a fire ant, but they are annoying.

I had a lot of insects bothering us before I treated (mainly mosquitoes - a lot of them). I ended up buying a product Bifen I/T, not available in regular stores, but bought online. It was around $35 for 96 fl.oz. which makes 96 gallons, which is spread at around 6-10 gallons/acre. I treated about 1 acre of my 2 acre property around the yard, house and pool (extending 20 ft around the pool decking, on the decking and under the decking ... pool is about 80 ft from the house and has complete decking around the pool). Commenting on the pool area: the ants and mosquitoes disappeared, no other bugs at all except for SWEAT BEES. I learned that sweat bees live underground, therefore I treated twice over two weeks with 2 gallons (2 fl. oz. added to 2 gal. water) of Bifen I/T under the pool decking and around the pool area. It eliminated the sweat bees.

 

[Rebbie]

In the spring and early summer I have always been stressed by the number of bees that accumulate in my skimmer basket overnight. I know some species are endangered and necessary to pollinate my vegetable garden. The Oracle of Google tells me that bees cannot aerodynamically break the bond of water if they land directly upon it - as in a pool - as opposed to landing on a solid surface like a rock or a bird bath and sipping from the edge. Since the bees seemed to visit at night I purchased a couple of those inflatable dolphins with giant eyes that get filled with water in the base to hold them upright. They float around propelled by the wind or the waterflow from the pump. This has dramatically reduce my skimmer critters each morning . I assume the bees consider "Fred and Ethel" as predators and avoid the pool. Now wasps are another thing all together and they can land on the water surface and fly off at will. Still working on that issue.