You can use actual roach bait for small hive beetles and it will work so long as it contains "Fipronil".  We recommend trying these greener versions though, and they cost pennies to make. All of them are great small hive beetle bait recipes.

Since Fipronil is toxic to bees and is also water soluble, it is not advised to use it inside a trap on a bottom board unless the bottom board is screened. This way if water infiltrates the hive, and dissolves the Fipronil won't end up with poison all over your hive bottom. 

A better solution is to use a more green approach. One which you can make yourself and is cheap, easy to use, and works great. There are three recipes for small hive beetle bait I've found on the internet and ill share them here.

Recipe #1.  

Mix pollen and honey into pie dough consistencies and put it into the trap. (completely green recipe / will not kill beetles. It will simply lure them into traps and allow bees to keep them there until you remove the trap)

Recipe #2.

Mix 1/4 cup soy flour, 2 tablespoons of boric acid, and 3 tablespoons of peanut oil and 1/8 of a cup of water. mix into pie dough consistences and put just a little of this bait inside the trap.

Recipe #3.

Mix 6 tablespoons honey, 3/4 teaspoon of boric acid, and 4 tablespoons of  Crisco and only enough soy flour to mix into pie dough consistences, put inside the CD/DVD trap.

Like the traps shown above? They are inexpensive and available for purchase from us, just follow this link. Once you have the traps from us you can use the small hive beetle bait recipes to make your own bait.