The True Cost of Small Drywall Repair for Bee Removal

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**Our honesty policy: This post may contain affiliate links and I may be compensated if you make a purchase at no extra cost to you. Some are, some aren't--I do some comparison shopping. The important thing is you will know exactly what we are talking about. Drop a note/comment if you have any questions on the products as these are materials and tools we use on our own projects.

If you are doing some comparison shopping when it comes to a small drywall repair, the bids coming in might surprise you. In your head you (and, admittedly even after a couple of these jobs myself, I do too) are thinking, “But it’s just a small hole!” The true cost of a small drywall repair for bee removal is deceptive due to the amount of work.

The premise:

You, the unfortunate homeowner, who has a beehive within the walls of your home. The bee removal is not bad if you can get to everything by simply removing a few cement board planks on the outside.

The cost of bee removal depends on the location of the hive and how expensive it is to replace. Unfortunately, we needed access from the a hole in the drywall ceiling inside AND by removing a couple Hardie planks outside on this bee removal. Yes, the bees were gone when this picture was taken--don't do this without proper gear if they are still present.

Unfortunately, we needed access from the a hole in the drywall ceiling inside AND by removing a couple Hardie planks outside on this bee removal. Yes, the bees were gone when this picture was taken–don’t do this without proper gear if they are still present.

In addition, this was the second hive here. The replacement siding did not seal up all the way against the house, leading to a second hive taking up residence in the same location.

In addition, this was the second hive here. The replacement siding did not seal up all the way against the house, leading to a second hive taking up residence in the same location.

However, quite often they make it to the other side of a ceiling rafter. It is even worse if the hive takes up residence in between the floors of a two story house. This means tearing into wall and / or ceiling. If you looking at a 2 by 2 foot patch in your ceiling, it is not going to be an expensive repair, right?

If you looking at a 2 by 2 foot patch in your ceiling, it is not going to be an expensive repair, right? The cost of small drywall repair depends on your answer to the following questions: Do you mind noticing if it is still there? How much debris do you want throughout the rest of your house?

It depends on your answer to the following questions:

  1. Do you mind noticing if it is still there?
  2. How much debris do you want throughout the rest of your house?

Why would it cost so much for just a little spot? Let’s go through some reasons:

Proper temporary containment.

Containment of the affected space serves two purposes. First, the bees need to stay contained. You don’t want any stragglers or escapees throughout the rest of the house. Second, containment barriers keep the dust from entering the rest of the living space when drywall repairs are in full swing.

How much containment is needed? Blocking doorways is easy enough.

Containment of the affected space serves two purposes. First, the bees need to stay contained. You don't want any stragglers or escapees throughout the rest of the house. Second, containment barriers keep the dust from entering the rest of the living space when drywall repairs are in full swing. Sample Zipwall zipper door in a contained space.

Sample Zipwall zipper door in a contained space.

How much containment is needed? Blocking doorways is easy enough. Sample containment wall / door during bee extraction.

Sample containment wall / door during bee extraction

Unfortunately it seems bees have a knack for enjoying spaces in open kitchen areas with ceilings extending into the living room and dining room. (Note, if you are an open concept guy or gal stuck in a partitioned off home, this is the one time you’ll be able to enjoy your separate rooms.) In this situation, building a containment wall is necessary.

Unfortunately it seems bees have a knack for enjoying spaces in open kitchen areas with ceilings extending into the living room and dining room. (Note, if you are an open concept guy or gal stuck in a partitioned off home, this is the one time you'll be able to enjoy your separate rooms.) In this situation, building a containment wall is necessary.

Temporary containment walls are not always easy.

Check out what it looks like to build proper temporary containment walls:

First, you need a load of long enough 2×4’s and 6 mil plastic sheets held up with T50 staples. The plastic sheathing connections and joints to the walls are taped with poly tape along with the staples (the plastic can get inadvertently stretched and leave holes to the rest of the house). Poly tape leaves little to no residue behind upon removal on painted walls, tile and other surfaces. It is similar to painter’s tape, but it is specifically designed for attaching to plastic. Duct tape will work in a pinch, but it will leave sticky residue behind. Your run-of-the-mill sill sealer (not our favorite ultimate one) is installed under the base plate, top plate and wall connection studs–any place where the wood makes contact with your home..

Next, each stud is pressure fit separately. Think each stud in this wall is exactly the same? You might until the temporary wall starts going up. It is difficult to see a change in height over the course of several feet. Unbeknownst to us or the homeowner, this ceiling was sagging. So each stud was individually cut to fit ceiling to floor measurement perfectly. Too short and a bee could get through. Too long and cracks can start forming in the ceiling drywall or floor tiles.

Impact to existing crown moulding.

Bees are most likely to set up shop in the corner of a room considering they are coming in from an exterior wall. Once they get through the small crack and have a large enough space, they set up shop.

This means if you have crown moulding it may need to get removed to gain access to the corner and then reset. Nail holes will need to get filled and fully painted a couple times to make the repair invisible.

Sealing all exterior cracks and crevices.

Any means of insect entry 1/8″ or wider needs a mesh blocking if it is necessary (like a weep hole to allow siding to dry out), spray foam or caulking. Even if you block off the current points of entry for the current swarm, the bees will continue to look for other entrances. Given a chance they will try to start a new hive all over in the same location.

Sealing all exterior cracks and crevices. Any means of insect entry 1/8" or wider needs a mesh blocking if it is necessary (like a weep hole to allow siding to dry out), spray foam or caulking. Even if you block off the current points of entry for the current swarm, the bees will continue to look for other entrances. Given a chance they will try to start a new hive all over in the same location. This is definitely not the finished product. Caulk gets trimmed down and spray foam gets sanded and is paintable. However, the point is to fill in those holes, and the pre-finished view is more effective for driving that point home. Bees are no longer welcome here at this house!

This is definitely not the finished product. Caulk gets trimmed down and spray foam gets sanded and is paintable. However, the point is to fill in those holes, and the pre-finished view is more effective for driving that point home. Bees are no longer welcome here at this house!

Clean up of any possible traces of the hive.

A brush of some sort, Dawn soap and water are your tools. By removing all evidence of the hive, bees are less likely to take up residence. If you leave traces behind it is a welcome mat as the scent is a homing mechanism. We follow up with a bleach solution to assist with this step. Not just for cleaning, bleach is a deterrent, too!

Clean up of any possible traces of the hive. A brush of some sort, Dawn soap and water are your tools. By removing all evidence of the hive, bees are less likely to take up residence. If you leave traces behind it is a welcome mat as the scent is a homing mechanism. We follow up with a bleach solution to assist with this step. Not just for cleaning, bleach is a deterrent, too!

Install the drywall patch.

Once you give it a couple days with no signs of return and allowing the scrubbed scene to dry out, it is time for repairs. This is a case where you get to decide if you want to precisely trim out the drywall patch or put the patch in and float the joint compound. We prefer to trim out the drywall patch so that there is no evidence of a bump in the ceiling. Check out this article to see exactly what I’m talking about: How to Make an Invisible Drywall Patch

After the drywall patch is in place, there are still three layers of mud in order to make the area fully seamless.

Next, in our case, we bring in a drywall texture ninja.

Try and find the patch. Admittedly, it is difficult to photograph orange peel texture, but on my honor you wouldn't notice at all.

Try and find the patch. Admittedly, it is difficult to photograph orange peel texture, but on my honor you wouldn’t notice at all.

Again, know your limits and know when to outsource a problem so it isn’t a problem.

Paint, paint and more paint.

New drywall primer is a must. Our go-to is USG First Coat New drywall primer. This product helps seal and even out the porous surface of the new patch. We have found an added benefit of better texture adhesion as well (then we seal that up)…

After the texture layer prime the surface two more times with USG First Coat New drywall primer. Primer is followed by two layers of color coat.

At this point the paint patch is much bigger than the drywall patch so as to blend seamlessly into the rest of the field. Ideally, you would paint the entire surface, but it might be difficult if it is a combined shared ceiling or wall.

Can you see where the new paint stops on this wall? If you guessed behind the top of the tallest upper cabinet, you are right!

For instance, can you see where the new paint stops on this wall? If you guessed behind the top of the tallest upper cabinet, you are right!

Make your stopping point less obvious. A stop behind a tall cabinet is a good compromise. Similarly, if you can’t do an entire ceiling make sure you stop the paint in an odd shape. It is a lot easier to see a straight line when sunlight or light from a fixture is reflecting off a ceiling or wall. An odd shape is harder to spot.

Replacing any crown moulding.

We touched on this before, but this is where you have the additional steps of install, covering nail holes with wood putty and additional paint.

Other thoughts

As you can see there are several steps, many of which require drying time. Each layer of drywall mud and paint may require a separate trip. It may take longer to dry depending on the thickness of the layer, humidity, temperature and other environmental factors.

When you don’t live right next door and have around the clock access a small drywall repair for bee removal is a long process. Each trip elongates the job schedule. Each trip costs drive time and energy to the individual doing that part of the repair.

Removal of the beehive is quick, but proper containment, prevention, and putback take much, much longer due to all these steps*:

  • Containment
  • Cleaning any remaining evidence.
  • Drywall patch
  • 2 additional layers of mud
  • Primer
  • Texture
  • 2 layers of primer
  • 2 layers of color coat
  • Crown moulding
  • An additional layer of color coat

*Assuming some steps are combined for maximum efficiency. The crown moulding gets removed with containment. Preventative mesh and spray foam in all exterior cracks is done during cleanup of the hive before the drywall patch. The first layer of mud goes up with the patch. A wipedown of the original paint with a TSP solution for maximum adhesion of the new color coat is done during one of the layers of mud. Containment comes down during a coat of primer. One color coat goes up with the crown moulding install. Final cleanup is done with the last coat of color on the crown moulding.

The bid depends on so many factors. Do you have crown moulding? Is it in a small room easily quarantined with pressure fit doorway access with Zipwall zipper doorway or is it a full blown temporary set of walls? How big is the patch? Does the patch go across multiple walls and / or ceilings?

The final cost is unfortunately one of those numbers dependent on what is actually behind the wall. I may be stating the obvious here, but it all reality, you and the contractor can’t see what is hidden behind a wall.

Even with the help of thermal image cameras there can still be surprises.

The final cost is unfortunately one of those numbers dependent on what is actually behind the wall. I may be stating the obvious here, but it all reality, you and the contractor can’t see what is hidden behind a wall. Even with the help of thermal image cameras there can still be surprises. The cost of bee removal can increase if the beehive extends into the walls.

E6 Flir thermal image location of a beehive in the ceiling.

With all these steps there we are looking at potentially thirteen separate trips. Two weeks of work at a minimum working everyday of the week.

Like I’ve said before: do a good job and no one will notice. Do a piss-poor job and everyone will stare and attempt to keep their mouth closed (both from their mouth hanging open AND saying something). At any given step there is a chance–a bump in the drywall, mismatched texture, an obvious paint stop, nail holes in the crown moulding–to make the patch obvious.

Of other note is all the tools and materials needed for all this work. If you are looking for the materials we use on our job sites here is our go-to list:

As you can also see, the materials and tools list is not insignificant either.

What all should be included in the cost of a small drywall repair for bee removal

When speaking with a contractor you want to make sure all these different steps are covered in order to make your house whole again as well as make sure the bees do not return. You absolutely DO NOT want to do this more than one time!

So if you are staring at bids finding out firsthand the true cost of a small drywall repair for bee removal, consider the amount of work it takes to make it look like it never happened. Hopefully this post helps take some of the sting out of the price as well as educates you on what should get done to make your home whole–and bee free–again!

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