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When to replace bee hotel tubes

Updated: 22 October 2026

You left a bee hotel on a fence through last summer, and some holes are still closed. You need the right week for the swap. Replace bee hotel tubes after the adults have emerged, and keep any stem that is still plugged where an insect can still leave. Damp, a cool dry shed, and the following spring decide which canes you retire. The [bug hotel filling comparison](/hub/garden-supplies/bug-hotel-filling) lists the refills. First-time packing is on [how to fill a bug hotel](/hub/garden-supplies/bug-hotel-filling/sub/bug-hotel-filling-how-to-fill). Peter F. used those UK guides and one amazon.co.uk review. There is no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.

You left a bee hotel on a fence through last summer, and some holes are still closed. You need the right week for the swap.

Our top picks

TOYANDONA TOYANDONA 100 reed tubes, 15 cm

Best overall

TOYANDONA TOYANDONA 100 reed tubes, 15 cm
7.8/10about £10.49
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MAGICLULU MAGICLULU 100 reed tubes, 15 cm

Best value

MAGICLULU MAGICLULU 100 reed tubes, 15 cm
6.7/10about £9.99
View offer
BOBOZHONG BOBOZHONG 300 tubes, 20 cm

Rank 3

BOBOZHONG BOBOZHONG 300 tubes, 20 cm
3.6/10about £9.39
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On this page
  1. 1.Wait until the adults have emerged
  2. 2.Damp winters, not hard frost
  3. 3.Every year or every couple of years
  4. 4.When a new pack is justified

Wait until the adults have emerged

The swap waits until the insects have gone. Mud, cut leaves, resin, or plant hairs mean the tube was occupied, which is how the Natural History Museum reads a used cane. Late spring is the cleaning moment the Buglife manager describes. The museum replaces used canes after the new adults have emerged, and BBC Gardeners' World fits fresh stems in spring once that has happened. Friends of the Earth put a temporary house outside in March and change the stems only after the adults have left. A hole that is still capped stays full. Splitting a cane in October empties it too soon. A reed with a firm mud disc in March stays in the frame or in that box until the disc has broken. Bore and length for the new stem are on the buying guide.

Damp winters, not hard frost

Damp is what spoils the stems. Rain on an open fence soaks the cut ends, and mould follows the water. Frost in a dry shed does not do that. Bring an exposed box into a cool, dry, unheated shed or garage for autumn and winter, which is the Bumblebee Conservation Trust's place for it. Keep it unheated, because warmth can bring insects out before there are flowers. A heavy hotel you cannot lift needs a deep roof and a face out of the driving rain, and you still wait for emergence before used tubes come out. A hotel on a shelf in an unheated shed through December can come out in March with the mud caps sound. One left on a north-facing fence, stems dark and soft, is the box you refill for mould.
TOYANDONA TOYANDONA 100 reed tubes, 15 cm

Testsieger

TOYANDONA TOYANDONA 100 reed tubes, 15 cm
7.8/10about £10.49
View offer

Every year or every couple of years

Shop listings often print replace yearly on the bag. The Natural History Museum and BBC Gardeners' World tie fresh stems to the spring after the adults have emerged, a yearly rhythm for tubes that were used. The Bumblebee Conservation Trust says replace tubes and blocks at least every couple of years. A stem that was sealed and is now empty has finished. Buglife names sharp-tailed bees as nest parasites of these hotels. Retiring the used tube is housekeeping after emergence, and it does not clear every parasite from the garden. By late spring, twelve empty mud-capped reeds come out, and forty that never closed can stay while they remain dry.

When a new pack is justified

A refill is for holes that are empty: mouldy, used and then vacated, or pulled apart. Which pack fits the bore is on the best bee nesting tubes page. The Natural History Museum prefers several small hotels to one huge block, so a big piece count is a supply across years. BOBOZHONG is about £9.39 for 300 pieces, with a listed inner diameter of 3–5 mm, and it misses red mason bees near 7–8 mm. If a plug might still hide an insect, wait. Ask for help when the case is rotten, fixed out of reach, or you suspect honey bees in the wall.

Common questions

Do I replace the tubes every autumn?
Autumn is for moving an exposed hotel into a cool, dry, unheated shed or garage, which is where the Bumblebee Conservation Trust keeps nest boxes over winter. BBC Gardeners' World also uses a cool dry place in autumn. The Natural History Museum replaces used canes after the new adults have emerged, in spring. An October clear-out takes insects that have not left.
What if some holes are still plugged in March?
Leave them closed. Mud, cut leaves, resin, or plant hairs mean the tube is occupied, in the Natural History Museum's reading of a used cane. Put doubtful tubes in a sunny spot, as Buglife describes, or in an upturned box, as the Bumblebee Conservation Trust describes, so the bees can still leave. Opening the plugs empties the tube too soon.
Should the hotel stay outside all winter?
Bring an exposed box into a cool, dry, unheated shed or garage. Friends of the Earth keep their temporary design indoors from October to February, then outside from March. A heavy hotel you cannot lift needs a deep roof and a face out of the driving rain. A heated porch can bring the insects out before the garden has flowers.
Is cold or damp the problem?
Damp ruins the filling. Rain in the cut ends turns the stems mouldy, and you retire those stems once you know they are empty. Frost in a dry unheated shed does not soak the canes. Keep the shed unheated as well as dry, so a warm week in January does not wake the bees early.
Can I reuse a clean-looking reed for a second year?
A reed that stayed open, dry, and free of mould can remain under the Bumblebee Conservation Trust's line of at least every couple of years. A reed that held a bee comes out after emergence, following the Natural History Museum and BBC Gardeners' World. Buglife names sharp-tailed bees as nest parasites, which is a reason to retire used tubes rather than to treat them yourself.
What do I do about tits pulling tubes out?
Fit mesh as the Bumblebee Conservation Trust describes, so birds cannot perch and pull stems, while bees can still enter. A UK review of MAGICLULU reeds on amazon.co.uk says blue tits pull the tubes out, and that pack lists no mesh. Replace canes that are already out only when they are empty. Mesh does nothing for a tube that is still sealed.

Related pages

Insect hotel comparison

Bug hotel filling

Best bee nesting tubes: the five amazon.co.uk packs

Bug hotel filling: checks to make before the price

How to fill a bug hotel with the back and a recess

Reed vs bamboo bee tubes: which suits the UK garden

Sources

Public UK sources for this comparison. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk listings in this set. Page updated 22 October 2026.

  1. Bumblebee Conservation Trust: solitary bee nest boxes (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. Bumblebee Conservation Trust: solitary bees (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. Buglife: bee-hotel guide (PDF) (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. Buglife: how to be the best bee hotel manager (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. Natural History Museum: how to make a bee hotel (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. NatureScot: solitary bees and bee houses (PDF) (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. BWARS: bee hotels information sheet (PDF) (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. RHS: habitats for wild bees (retrieved 22 October 2026)