Standard Mason Bee House

Update: some reviewers are giving this nest box poor reviews. This basic Mason bee house is not fancy, however it is sturdy with acceptable dimensions for both Mason and Leaf Cutter bees. It's a good price for people who do not have the means to build their own. Any loose joints can be tightened with screws. Craft sticks or wood strips will cover any cracks, although we have not had that happen with this house. The tubes are easy to tear, allowing access to bee cocoons if you wish to store those for winter. Loni is correct in stating NEVER purchase bamboo tubes as these lead to parasite infestation if not destroyed each season. Same for drilling holes in wood blocks or posts. They are one season use. Buy a roll of brown craft paper and roll your own tubes each winter to prep for spring. Amazon sells craft paper which is brown on both sides (bees like a dark tunnel). Amazon also carries a good selection of premade tubes, six inches length, specific for Mason bees.People don't bother to research the "bee fad". Unfortunately, companies jump onto this fad and cause more harm than good with poorly designed nesting boxes. This makes it harder for those of us who are serious at providing these tiny bees nesting opportunities and keeping parasites and predators at a minimum. If my neighbor's bee house is loaded with parasites, my bee colonies are at risk. Please do not hesitate to purchase this Mason bee house. Our little native bees love theirs!Found on warehouse deal. Nice addition to our Mason Bees colony. The length of the tubes and the box depth is just right at about 6 inches. Six inches encourages the female Mason Bee to lay more female eggs. Shorter tubes tend to result in more male eggs.

This bee house arrived in perfect shape, well wrapped & appears to be very strong. Made of 1" pine, no plastic or hardboard. It has a small overhang for shade & removable cardboard cells/straws, highly recommended by bee keepers. The only thing that would make it better is using screws instead of staples, but I can add some reinforcing screws in a couple minutes. A good purchase! I'm eager to see if it works as well as it looks.

I may have placed the bee house too far into the woods, but it just didn't protect the cardboard tubes from rain. I finally admitted that the soggy and mildewy tubes were not ideal for native bees. I've taken the waterlogged tubes out for recycling. I'll leave the box for a bit to see if the birds will use it.For other purchasers, I think this is just a fine bee house. It needs to be placed under enough cover to keep the tubes dry. Some humidity is fine, but rainfall that soaks the tubes will be a detriment to the bees using the tubes or will prevent bees from using the tubes.I'll have to look around at other locations to place my pair of bee houses for next year. I have some work to find spots that will be better protected from rain.In all other considerations, I think this is a fine bee house and does just fine attracting native bees.

It took a few months(probably because our mint and other stuff nearby hadn't flowered yet), but over the last couple of days this little lady(see attached image) has started blocking up some holes and sleeping in one when she's not busy being a mason.Box is well built, and since purchasing it it hasn't shown any signs of wear or degradation BUT one thing to note is that most of the cost in this is the rolls themselves, otherwise it's standard wood put together. Regardless even if I had to, I wouldn't mind replacing the whole unit once a year.

I have had tons of Mason bees use this house! they do not sting and are crucial pollinators. Love that the tubes are removable and can be replaced. I placed it on a ledge at the side of my porch and they have been coming in all spring and summer.

I am really disappointed in the construction. The wood pieces don't fit tight allowing mites and small wasps access to the straws. Wasps can chew through the straws. This house is porous to parasites. There is no way to hang it. I will have to either drill holes to fit over nails to hang it or nail on hangers.I have used it for a year with great success. Recovered nearly 600 pupae in early February, washed off the mites, saved them in my refrigerator, and will be placing them outside in March. Apparently the poor construction did not hamper the usefulness of the bee house. I have placed new straws in the cardboard holders and am ready for the new season as seen in the picture.It is now 2 years old and I have successfully harvested over1500 pupae!

I purchased this last spring, hung it under an eave facing southeast where it gets morning sun, surrounded by Oregon grape and scarlet hawthorn, both early bloomers. There is also a pollinator garden nearby. so far, no one has taken an interest in this box. It's sturdy, well made and attractive to humans , but so far the bees haven't taken an interest in it.

Welliver Outdoors Standard Mason Bee House. After a couple days after the return date I noticed that the roof is cracking. And mason bees have not discovered the house like they did my other bamboo one with different sized tubes. I think these cardboard ones may be too small