Going without queen excluders

[capt44]

The only thing I use Queen Excluders for now is for Queen Rearing using Timing Boxes and Cloake Boards.

[chux]

OldMech, your explanation for the way you use excluders makes sense to me. I didn't even consider the use of an entrance for returning bees above the excluder. (I don't use a top entrance, but maybe I should.) For those who say that a queen excluder slows the speed at which bees fill supers, I wonder if this solves that problem. If nearly all returning bees go through a top entrance, an excluder should be a non issue in regard to the amount of honey produced. I suppose, if you have a colony at full strength and want to keep them from adding to the size of the brood chamber, this use of an excluder would be a good idea.

Right now, my colonies are young/small. Next season, the brood chambers should fill one deep and at least one medium(Hopefully two.) After that, I may look into top entrances and queen excluders in the few weeks before harvest. Thanks to all for this discussion.     

[OldMech]

Chux;
   Some folks bore a hole in their excluder boxes.. SOme folks use shims to allow entrance under the inner cover, some folks put the shims under the super to make an entrance there, some folks flip a bottom board and use it for the top entrance...
   I have a couple supers with holes in them, The bees DO USE those holes.. but generally flip my inner cover with notch down..  I space the front of the tele cover up about half an inch...  helps the rain run off the back as well as allowing a bit more ventilation, and I dont have to keep plugs available in case robbing starts.
   My tele covers are also 1/4 inch wider and longer.. so theres plenty of room to get into/out of that notch...   Just pick the method yu like most and give it a go!

[1of6]

Just a note on one earlier post...the use of brood being pulled up and used as bait - in my experience the method seems to be intended for use with uncapped brood instead of capped. The intent is to entice young nurse bees through the excluder to go up and care for the open brood, thus establishing some residency above and in turn traffic through the excluder.  It works to some extent in my experience with uncapped brood, but usually not at all with capped brood.

To support the original post, I'd throw my support in to say that many colonies just have a real hard time getting in the habit of crossing the excluder, and unless you use other methods of making sure that it only presents a barrier for the queen but not the workers, in my experience it will surely present you with some thrown swarms due to congestion, 'honey-bounding', and decreased broodnest area.

[edward]

I run 10 frames double Deeps as a brood box and a Queen excluder on most hives then 10frames shallow as supers.

I don't give them any choice the 10 frames are filled with brood top to bottom and side to side.

The Queen excluder must bee put on under the spring build up with the first shallow, this makes them fill the whole box and put all food stores on top through the excluder.

Doing this late in the season when they have decided the shape of the brood nest will make things difficult for the bees and the bee keeper.


mvh Edward  :-P