We're still getting down into the 30s at night around here and I've gotten two "friendly" complaints from a neighbor regarding the bees in his hot tub. There is available water other than the hot tub, so I'm guessing that the combination of warm water in colder conditions this time of year is contributing to the problem. To address the issue, I've considered three courses of action:
1) Move the bees temporarily or permanently
2) Have the neighbor drain the hot tub and leave it dry for a week or so
3) Seal off the bees for 3 or 4 days requiring them to reorient.
I guess fourth would be to tell the neighbor to pound sand, but I'd like to avoid that one in order to maintain the domestic tranquility.
Any other ideas? Thanks!
Definitely add the neighbors to the 'free quart of honey' list.
I have a feeling I'm going to be in the same boat as you this summer. My neighbor, (1st cousin) is currently putting in a swimming pool. My hives are situated withing 50 yards of a cattle pond and 100 yards of a creek, but I know where they will probably wind up.
I'm not really sure that if you have already provided them with a water source, that you could keep them out of another.
Good Luck!
I had this same issue last year with my hot tub....wife goes out in the dark, hops in, next thing I hear is screams....thousands of dead bees! It was gross!! She wouldn't go in the thing for 6 months and it was a pain to clean bees and parts out of filters and everything...so I feel your neighbor's pain. It was only really a problem in early Spring....I think the bees like the heat and the chlorine smell, and they don't have much else to go after. I bought a new cover that sealed better and it didn't seem to be a problem after May or June.
I'd offer to help him clean it and maybe buy him a new filter...if it got as bad as mine. Then, see if you can't help him seal it up and let him know that once it warms up and the pollen is flowing, it shouldn't be a problem (although a few bees here and there will always buzz by to take up a little water off the edge, or even the cover).
Usually once they have located a source of water they prefer, it is hard to change their mind. Add to that the lure of the chemicals (which they tend to like) it is going to be a hard task.
Taking the source away and letting them them re-orient and then add a new source for them baited with sugar water etc, may be worth a shot, but probably futile :-\
I had the same issue with a bird bath @ a neighbors. It was just easier, for me, to just move the bees.
A good cover on the hot tub will help, but the girls will still find the smallest opening at the seams and look for the water. The chlorine acts like a lure to the bees so I added a couple of chicken feeders filled with water and a couple drops of bleach. Also, to get them there, I put some honey on the rim for a couple of days. It really helped to "train" them to go somewhere else for their water.
Get your bees their own hot tub so they will not have to go to the neighbor's.... Or a better watering source closer to the hives.