Bee & Beehive Control
Bee removal in Portland, Oregon starts with figuring out which bee you have
Text me a photo and I'll tell you whether it's honey bees, bumble bees, carpenter bees, or yellow jackets, because the answer changes the method, the timing, and the price. Then this page hands you to the one that matches. Same-day across the Portland metro when the schedule allows.
- Same-day service available
- Licensed Commercial Pesticide Operator
- Quoted before any work begins
How bee removal in Portland, Oregon works, whichever bee it turns out to be
Every bee job gets quoted before I start. Identification comes first on every call, because honey bees, bumble bees, and carpenter bees need three different approaches at three different prices. With honey bees and bumble bees I try to move the colony rather than treat it, and I'll tell you up front whether the spot allows it. Carpenter bees are a wood problem rather than a sting problem. Send a clear photo and I'll name it, then take the page below that covers it properly.
- Text a photo to (206) 817-7782 and I'll identify it before I drive out, at no charge
- Every job quoted before I start, so you hear the price first
- With honey bees and bumble bees I try to move the colony, and I say up front whether the spot allows it
- Same-day service across the Portland metro when the schedule allows
The three bees I get called out to, and which page you want
Pick the one that matches what you're looking at. Each page goes into the detail this one skips: what the nest looks like inside, how the job runs, and what it costs.
Honey Bee Removal & Relocation
Bees using one gap in siding, a soffit, or a chimney, or a cluster hanging in the open. That page splits swarms from wall colonies and walks through how the comb comes out.
Honey bees and swarms
Bumble Bee Removal & Relocation
A few dozen big fuzzy bees in the lawn, under the deck, or in an old birdhouse. That page runs through the nest's yearly cycle and when leaving it beats moving it. Read it before booking.
Bumble bees and ground nests
Carpenter Bee Removal
Round holes bored into bare deck rails, fence tops, or fascia, with sawdust underneath. That page covers treating and sealing the tunnels, and the woodpecker damage that follows if you don't.
Carpenter bees and drilled woodSmooth and shiny rather than fuzzy? You're on the wrong page, and wasp, hornet, and yellow jacket removal is the one you want. If a swarm has landed and you've wondered about keeping it, read OSU Extension's residential beekeeping guidelines and the City of Portland's guide to keeping bees first.
Which bee is it? Find the row that matches what you're seeing
This is what people describe on the phone, and what it usually turns out to be.
| What you're seeing | What it probably is | What to do next |
|---|---|---|
| Fuzzy golden bees streaming into one gap in siding, a soffit, or a chimney | Honey Bees | An established colony with comb behind the wall. I try to save it, and how well that goes depends on the structure. Read honey bee removal. |
| A football-sized clump of bees hanging off a branch, a fence rail, or a car mirror | A honey bee swarm | Calm, temporary, and the quickest job I do. It may also move on by itself within a day or two. |
| Big round fuzzy bees using a hole in the lawn or a gap under the deck | Bumble Bees | A small colony that dies off on its own in fall. Worth moving only if it's in the way. Read bumble bee removal. |
| A shiny black bee at the eaves, with a round hole and sawdust below it | Carpenter bees | Wood damage rather than a sting risk. Treat the tunnel, then seal it. Read carpenter bee removal. |
| Smooth yellow and black insects pouring out of the ground, a wall, or thick ivy | Yellow Jackets, not bees | The most common answer to a bee call, and the most urgent. Read yellow jacket removal. |
Not sure which row is yours? Text a photo to (206) 817-7782 and I'll tell you.
Check fuzzy against shiny before you book anything
A good share of the bee calls I take turn out to be yellow jackets. From six feet away they pass for honey bees, and getting it wrong is expensive, because a bee colony in a wall is a slow careful removal and a yellow jacket nest in that same wall is a fast treatment with nothing worth saving. The body gives it away. A bee is fuzzy and rounded with a thick soft-looking waist, and often has pollen packed on its back legs. A yellow jacket is smooth, hard-looking, and sharply pinched at the middle. If that sounds like yours, telling the three wasp nests apart is your page instead of this one.
What bee removal costs in Portland, Oregon, and what moves the number
Every bee job gets a quote before I start, and the species is only the first thing that shifts the number. A swarm on a fence post and a colony behind two storeys of siding are different days of work. Send a photo and I can usually price it off the picture.
Pricing
You get a quote before any work begins
Call or message me for a quote. Send a photo to (206) 817-7782 and I can usually price it without a visit.
Call or text (206) 817-7782Which bee it actually is
A carpenter bee tunnel in a fence rail and a honey bee colony three feet inside a soffit are not the same job. This is why I ask for a photo before putting a number on anything.
Where the nest sits
A swarm on a low branch is minutes of work. A colony behind second-story siding means a ladder and a conversation about repairs. Height and access move the price more than the species does.
Relocation or treatment
Getting a colony out alive takes more time and more equipment than a treatment does. It's the outcome I want for the bees, and it's the longer job.
How much you book at once
A bee job on the eave and an ant trail in the kitchen booked together get you a discounted rate over two separate visits.
You hear the price before I start, and you hear it plainly if you don't need me at all. Call or text (206) 817-7782.
What to do about a bee nest before anyone touches it
These hold for all three bees, whatever the photo turns out to show.
Worth doing
- Keep people and pets back, and give ground nests room when you mow.
- Take the photo from a distance and zoom in, rather than stepping in close.
- Move quickly on a swarm. It can leave on its own, so the window is short.
- Ask me whether it needs doing at all. Sometimes the answer is no.
Worth skipping
- Don't spray a honey bee colony in a wall. It leaves honey and comb rotting behind the drywall, which brings ants and wax moths.
- Don't plug the entrance hole. Bees find another way out, sometimes into the room you're standing in.
- Don't pour fuel or bleach into a ground nest. It poisons the soil and rarely reaches the queen.
- Don't take chances if anyone in the house has a sting allergy. That one's a phone call.
Who turns up, and where I work around Portland, Oregon
In Oregon, a business that applies pesticides for hire has to hold a Commercial Pesticide Operator license from the Oregon Department of Agriculture, which means a licensed applicator, insurance, and registration with the state. I hold that license. It matters less on bee work than on the rest of what I do, because a swarm and plenty of honey bee colonies come off a house with no product at all.
Saving the colony is what I aim for on bee work, and it isn't an upsell. Where the structure allows it and the colony is healthy, honey bees and bumble bees leave in a box rather than a bag, and I'd rather spend the extra hour doing it that way. Where the cavity makes that impossible I'll say so before I start rather than after.
I work alone, so the person who answers your text identifies the insect, quotes the job, does the work, and cleans up after. This is a new, independently owned local business based in West Linn, and one-time bee work covers the full Portland metro. My Complete Insect Protection plan is much narrower: West Linn, Lake Oswego and Oregon City only, with quarterly visits and free priority visits in between.
So start with the photo. Text it to (206) 817-7782 with your neighborhood, and I'll tell you which bee you've got, which page above to read, and whether it needs doing at all.
Google reviews
What Portland, Oregon homeowners say after the job
5.0 from 25 Google reviews
Read them on GoogleSam came out the day after I called and had predicted the situation correctly when we chatted on the phone. He was able to get rid of the yellow jackets and even helped with an ant issue we had. Super nice and knowledgeable!
Erin Dhruva Great service, fast response!
Alex Ramberg Sam was great. He was able to come out same day and take care of the yellow jackets living in our siding. He's efficient and professional. Highly recommend!
Susan Thomsen Before calling Sam, I was told by a “professional” Pest service that the infiltrators getting through my siding were honeybees. The bees were quite visible through my window, but we’re misidentified. Fortunately, I called Sam and he corr...
Patty Rissberger I called Sam to help with a yellow jacket hive in an exterior wall of my house. He communicated quickly over text, made an appointment for the same day, arrived when he said he would, and answered all of the questions I had. He treated t...
Sarah H Sam was great. He ended up coming the same day and removing a yellow jacket nest for us. I would highly recommend him to anyone!!
Tori Phillps From start to finish Sam was professional and easy to work with, he was knowledgeable and friendly and well prepared! It was a much more enjoyable experience to work with Sam than calling a big named exterminator. Sam was honest and fair...
Tamsyn Cox Sam was great! Successful wasp removal, easy communication, quick work. Would call again if needed.
Jen P Sam was outstanding to work with! We had a huge hive return to a spot in our attic that had been previously cleared a year earlier. I called Sam on a Tuesday and he came out the next morning! He worked quickly and efficiently to remove t...
Brian Odell I called Sam and was on a job and about done for the day and I explained my situation and he went out of his way and gave me a time he would be here and he was right on time. Did a Sunday removal of a wasps nest on my front porch and onc...
Michael puderbaugh Called Sam and he answered right away. He was able to come out within a few hours and took care of a large yellow jacket nest that had been built in a fern bush next to my driveway where we walk to get into the back gate and garage. He w...
Diana Lu Sam arrived quickly, day of, to save us from an aggressive hornets nest. Sam knew exactly the hornet before even having eyes on it and was communicative and helpful. The experience was much easier than trying to deal with some others in...
Katheryn Hayward We discovered a wasp nest in a planter in our back yard yesterday (and got stung 3 times, ouch!) and called Sam this morning. He was able to come out a few hours later and eradicate the nest. He was thoughtful, knowledgeable, and just a...
Hans Nolf Sam was awesome! Our Tennant texted us late Sunday night stating her heard buzzing in the walls, and Sam was able to come take a look the next day! He is clearly very knowledgeable and gave us quite a bit of information. Extremely kind a...
Megan Delmore Sam was super friendly and worked very efficiently to remove a huge colony of yellow jackets from our soffit…..which was 16 feet off the ground! Recommend very highly, worth every penny!
Laurie Kunert Fantastic service, Timely, Professional, Friendly, Easy to work with, Great value for the price, Good communication. Bye bye yellow jackets!
Scott Klees I had an urgent need at my work location. I texted Sam at 3:30pm. He replied within the hour. We made a plan for meeting to survey and treat the situation. He was on site by 6:15 and done working by 7:00pm. 5 stars for communication, for...
Patrick Clark A+++++! We were so relieved to find Sam the Bee Man! After an unsuccessful removal by a different bee pro, we were feeling helpless until I found Sam. Not all bee experts have the skill to cut into a structure, but Sam does. He used a he...
Jennifer Stafford Professional and friendly to work with. Great communicator and very knowledgeable. Would strongly recommend for any pest control or be removal services. If you have a wasp, they also specialize in that.
Detail Maestro Sam came out the same day I contacted him, and was able to quickly find and remove a yellow jacket nest. He also was able to talk to me about options for treating ants in my backyard, offering varying levels of treatment that felt most...
Ali C I had a bee problem. I messaged Sam this morning at 8:30am. He responded by 8:46am and was at my building by 1pm. Sam is highly knowledgeable and extremely thoughtful. His approach to bee management is taking into account the safety of t...
Nadine Stanton Sam is so knowledgable and is a godsend to us for keeping the ants and spiders away in our home. His membership model is super valuable and reasonably priced and perfect for our needs. He's also just super friendly and takes his time to...
Veronica McOmie Sam's my new pest control go to man. I had a HUGE ant issue in the primary bathroom. Sam came out the same day I called. He assessed the situation, determined the entry point and provided options for getting rid of them. I have signed...
M R Sam was great. When I had a bumble bee hive in my garage, he came out the same day and was able to relocate the hive to a safer location.
ryan spooner Great experience with Sam the Bee Man! Professional and thorough. Highly recommend!
Jessica Reed
Call or Text (206) 817-7782
For the quickest response to your bee, wasp, or pest concern.
Common questions
Bee removal questions Portland, Oregon homeowners ask me most
I don't know which bee I've got. What should I send you?
A photo of the insect if you can get one safely, or of the entry point if you can't. Add where on the property it is, how many are coming and going, and how long it's been happening. That's usually enough for me to name it and price the job. Text it to (206) 817-7782.
Does it cost anything to have you look at a photo?
No. Naming the insect from a picture is free, and so is telling you that you don't need me out there. A quote covers work at your house, and you hear the number before I start.
Why is one bee job cheap and another one several times that?
Because the three bees live in different places. A swarm on a low branch comes off in minutes. A colony behind second-story siding means a ladder, opening the wall, and getting comb out. Species, height, and access explain almost all of the gap.
Are there bee nests you'll tell me to leave alone?
Yes, and it happens often. A bumble bee colony at the back of the yard is finished by fall and nobody has to touch it. A swarm on a branch may well move on by itself. If the nest isn't near a door, a walkway, or anyone with a sting allergy, waiting is a real answer, and I'd rather say so than sell you a visit.
Someone in the house is allergic to stings. Does that change anything?
It changes the urgency. Anything near a door, a walkway, or a play area moves up my schedule, and I won't tell you to wait out a nest I'd normally leave alone. Say so when you text and you'll get a straight answer about how soon I can be there.
Which parts of the Portland metro do you cover for bee work?
One-time bee work covers the full Portland metro from my base in West Linn, including Beaverton, Hillsboro, Gresham, Tigard, Lake Oswego, Milwaukie, Oregon City, and Tualatin, same day when my schedule allows. The Complete Insect Protection annual plan is much narrower, offered to West Linn, Lake Oswego and Oregon City clients only. Call or text (206) 817-7782.
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