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Bees in a Water Meter Box
You lift the lid to read the meter and the box is full of bees. It happens a lot in Florida. A water meter box is dry, dark and sheltered, which is just what a colony of honey bees looks for. We move the bees out alive.
Why bees move into meter boxes
Honey bees search for a protected cavity. A meter box is a small, enclosed space under a lid, often with a gap or a crack along the side that bees can squeeze through. Once a swarm settles in, it starts building comb right away, so the colony grows the longer it stays.
How to tell it is bees
- Bees flying in and out around the lid or the edge of the box.
- A humming or buzzing sound when you stand near it.
- Bees coming up when the lid moves.
- Not sure whether they are honey bees? See honey bees or wasps.
What to do
- Don't open the lid, and don't reach in. Protective gear matters here, because the bees defend a small space.
- Don't spray insecticide, bleach or water into the box. It does not solve it and it can make the bees much more defensive.
- Keep kids, pets and mowers away from the box.
- Take a photo from a distance, with the lid closed if you can, and send it to us.
What we do
We look at your photos, tell you what the job takes and book a weekday appointment. We then remove the bees and comb from the box and move the colony into a hive. We don't kill the bees. They go to our apiary and keep making honey. Every job is priced by what we see in the photos, so send one and we will come back to you with a quote.
Send a photo, get a quote
Take a photo of the bees, tell us where they are, and send it here. Cody looks at your photos and emails you the quote with the 50% deposit invoice. Honey bees only: we don't remove wasps or yellow jackets.
More bee removal guides
Questions we get a lot
Why are there bees in my water meter box?
A meter box is a dry, dark, sheltered cavity, which is what honey bee swarms look for when they need a new home.
Should I spray the bees in the meter box?
No. Spraying does not solve it and it can make the bees more defensive. Keep people and pets away and send us a photo.
Do you kill the bees?
No. We move the whole colony into a hive and bring it to our apiary.
How do I get a quote?
Use the photo form on this page or text a photo to 352-397-7608 and we will tell you what the job takes.
4.9 from 117 Google reviews
Read our reviewsCody is professional, knowledgeable, and reliable. He was highly recommended by our pest company for a bee infestation in our home that we would have never been able to tackle on our own. He worked diligently to safely relocate thousands of bees from our exterior wall. He made frequent trips back and forth to resume work when weather was not in our favor. Definitely recommend!!
We unfortunately had a bumblebee nest in a fake plant near our front door. Very uncommon to say the least. Brainfood Honey, ie:Cody, was the only company that would relocate the nest and most importantly not harm the bees. Thank you so very much!
Absolutely wonderful experience. Great communication and arrived as promised. Cody removed a honey bee hive for me without any issues that was under the siding of my home. Great company to deal with! Highly recommended to anyone needing help with honey bees at their homes. Thank you for everything.
Love and appreciate this little honey shop in Spring Hill. I have been coming here for many years. It is a step back in time and amidst all new construction brings me back many years ago when all you heard was birds chirping & squirrels playing among the beautiful trees. Thank you for your shop.
Super easy to order and pick up! Also if you message them, they respond almost immediately which is a huge plus! We cannot wait to have it with our coffee when we get home!
We love to buy local honey when we travel. The understated roadside "Honey" sign got our attention while driving through Spring Hill and we're very glad we stopped! The honey is up there with the best we've had anywhere.
Ordinary sign, extraordinary honey!
We went through half a jar VERY quickly. The rest is coming back to Toronto with us.