Maggiesdad
Loving the herd life
Pshaw - steel your nerves and jump right in! (says the newbie!) 
Level your gaze across the table at your DH, and tell him "Come now, we can do this!(don't forget to blink, in the appropriate manner) "It will be a xxxxdisasterxxxx - an adventure! Besides, we can't leave (friend) hanging with all those bees in her house... why it might just explode with honey in late summer, and that would be a HUGE mess!" Hee hee tell him that.
Seriously though, if you get 'one' package, and low level involvement, there's a good chance your first colony will fail. If you get the package and ramp up the involvement to where you know how and when to time the disturbance, then your bees benefit from your knowledge and you gain the house colony.
An alternate way could be to set bait hives at the affected house, and after catching the swarm that that colony throws, kill all the bees in the wall... but that's a lousy way to go.
Depending on the colony size, the bees and brood in there could be worth between $200-$400.
I say find a local beek that has done this, and go in with them and learn the process. Let DH do the repair work so your friend doesn't get burned with bills. Work a deal with the beek for a shook nuc from the colony, or something like that - so you get a colony start from them. And maybe a little honey?
Years later, when you hand the reins to your honey empire over to your grandkids, they'll beg you to tell them one more time the tale about how you and grampa got started w/ bees!
Level your gaze across the table at your DH, and tell him "Come now, we can do this!(don't forget to blink, in the appropriate manner) "It will be a xxxxdisasterxxxx - an adventure! Besides, we can't leave (friend) hanging with all those bees in her house... why it might just explode with honey in late summer, and that would be a HUGE mess!" Hee hee tell him that.
Seriously though, if you get 'one' package, and low level involvement, there's a good chance your first colony will fail. If you get the package and ramp up the involvement to where you know how and when to time the disturbance, then your bees benefit from your knowledge and you gain the house colony.
An alternate way could be to set bait hives at the affected house, and after catching the swarm that that colony throws, kill all the bees in the wall... but that's a lousy way to go.
Depending on the colony size, the bees and brood in there could be worth between $200-$400.
I say find a local beek that has done this, and go in with them and learn the process. Let DH do the repair work so your friend doesn't get burned with bills. Work a deal with the beek for a shook nuc from the colony, or something like that - so you get a colony start from them. And maybe a little honey?
Years later, when you hand the reins to your honey empire over to your grandkids, they'll beg you to tell them one more time the tale about how you and grampa got started w/ bees!
but I am sure you agree. 
