Best Small Hive Beetle Traps of 2026: Oil Traps and Screened Bottom Boards

Foxhound's traps are listed as a 12-pack of disposable small hive beetle traps that hang between frames, with the instruction to place two between the two outside frames on both sides of the top box, where beetles herded by the bees fall into the oil. Foxhound's own site sells the Beetle Jail at $25 for twelve, the Beetle Blaster at $19.99 for twelve (half-filled with vegetable oil, two to four per box) and an oil pan trap at $16.99. Check and replace the traps at each inspection.

Kasteco's Beetle Blaster pack lists twelve plastic traps at 9.06 by 1.57 by 1.5 inches, filled with mineral oil, vegetable oil or slaked lime. The 9-inch length spans the gap between two deep frames' top bars; the trap hangs by its lips. Half-fill with oil (Foxhound's instruction for the same design) so a trap tipped on removal does not pour oil onto the comb.

TIHOOD's traps are listed at 7.08 by 1.18 by 0.39 inches, white, twelve to a pack, and the listing says little more. The slim profile suits frames pushed tight together; the shallow trough holds less oil and fills faster.

BeeCastle's two-pack lists 10-frame screened bottom boards at 16 1/4 by 22 by 2 9/16 inches, beeswax coated, fully assembled, in FSC-certified wood. A screened bottom board with an oil tray in its slot is one of UF/IFAS's in-hive trap designs: beetles and mites that fall through the screen land in the oil. Without a tray it is a ventilated floor.

Honey Lake's board is listed at 16 1/4 by 22 by 2 9/16 inches in cedar dipped in beeswax, with a removable metal insert, woven wire mesh, an entrance reducer and assembly done. The insert is for monitoring drop; for beetles, a shallow tray of oil in the slot does the work.