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Author Topic: Condensation prevention  (Read 13065 times)

Offline Robo

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #20 on: October 19, 2007, 04:46:42 pm »
Yes, this will be the first winter with polystyrene hives and I am concerned with the 7watts being too much.  That is why I will control them by the internal hive temp.   
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Offline Finsky

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #21 on: October 19, 2007, 10:12:53 pm »
.
It is easy to notice what is right temp under the winterball. Wen you light he inner cover, and ball is dispersed, it is too much for winter hibernating.

Strange is that I have not met nosema in electrict heated hives and number of dead bees is really small.

Offline buzzbee

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #22 on: October 20, 2007, 07:18:33 am »
Perhaps heating cold air entering the hive dispels  enough moisture to help prevent it?

Offline Robo

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #23 on: October 20, 2007, 07:48:31 am »
Strange is that I have not met nosema in electrict heated hives and number of dead bees is really small.

I have noticed the same since you turned me onto providing electric heat.
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Offline beekeeperookie

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #24 on: October 20, 2007, 10:29:49 am »
i would like to see some pictures of setups, it will help me with some ideas i have in mind for this up coming winter

Offline Cindi

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #25 on: October 20, 2007, 11:00:24 am »
My experience, I have related this several times in our forum talks, so you may be getting sick of the story, but I am a rambler and a'ramblin' I will go.

Last year (2006) I went through the season with 8 colonies (or so, can't quite remember exact number).  I lost all of them except for one because of neglect with varroa treatments (and swarming too). 

I had one little tiny Carniolan hive that went into winter, I didn't even think it would make it.  Upon reading posts on the forum by Finsky about his use of a terrarium heater in the hives to help with weaker colonies come through the winter, I purchased one.  Approximately $35.00.  So....money spent, that is OK, I am an experimentor.

I gave this colony this 15 watt heater placed between the screened bottom board and the solid bottom board.  I was using a screened bottom board that is called "varroa nator", a plastic screen that sits over the conventional solid bottom board.

This colony came through the winter.  It was a colony that I really did not think had a hope in blazes of coming through alive, so I was going to try anything.

THis is the colony that grew like gangbusters this season.  It was my colony that I had to make a cut down split from, (probably should have split it several more times), it was the colony that swarmed, I caught that swarm (on September 6, unusual for such a late swarm) and they are still going gangbusters.  This swarm that came from my Carniolan colony even had a frame of capped brood the last time I looked, which was about 1 week ago.  All the other colonies had absolutely no brood whatsoever and the brood nest was backfulled with sugar syrup.  Still going gangbusters!!!!

I cannot praise use of the extra heat on a colony that may need some extra warmth enough.  Have a wonderful and beautiful day, in our great life.  Cindi
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Offline beekeeperookie

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #26 on: October 20, 2007, 12:33:48 pm »
hmmm...so cindi are you going to try it again this year, and use it with your strong hives?....going to by a heater cable and run it in my hives

Offline buzzbee

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #27 on: October 20, 2007, 04:35:44 pm »
So,
do you need to provide heat all winter,or could you maybe heat the last third of winter to stimulate the colony pre-spring?

Offline Moonshae

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #28 on: October 20, 2007, 09:07:26 pm »
How do you keep the wires dry? I'd be worried about snow piling up and shorting out the connections. Or do you tuck the connection in the slot between the boards, too?

Do you run the heater all winter long, or just on the most brutally cold days?
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Offline Robo

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #29 on: October 20, 2007, 09:23:03 pm »
I plug my lights into an extension cord, elevate it off the ground (on a rock) and put a bucket over it.  Stays nice and dry and has never tripped the GFI.  In previous years, when using wooden brood chambers, I had mine set to come on when the temperature went below 30degrees.  Once February came, I left them on full time. This year I have switched to polystyrene hives,  so am setting up to turn them on/off based upon the temperature in the hive.
 I believe Finsky turns his on after the first Spring cleansing flight.
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Offline Cindi

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #30 on: October 21, 2007, 01:01:34 am »
I left the terrarium heater on all winter, that was only because the cluster was so tiny, they did not have a hope in blazes of keeping things in their home warm enough to survive.  This is what I believed anyways, it still could have been a wrong thought.  I have no intention of using any heating in the colonies this winter.  I believe that I have entered the wintering season with strong enough colonies that they can keep themselves warm.

We do not live an extremely cold climate as so many of our forum friends do.  We are usually above zero (in celsius or farenheit) until January, where we may have a couple of weeks of freezing temperatures.  We have intermittent freezes from October 31 to March 31, but nothing that is prolonged.

My information and experience may not be relevant to the more southern central areas.

Again said, I only used the terrarium heater because I had such a terribly weak and small colony.  I hope this information will help and clarify some thoughts.  Have a wonderful and beautiful day in this great life.  Cindi
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Offline Brian D. Bray

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #31 on: October 21, 2007, 01:20:59 am »
Isn't the heated germinating pads used in starting seedlings in nurseries pretty much the same thing as a terrarium heater?  Seems that would work just as well and may be a little cheaper.
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Offline Cindi

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #32 on: October 21, 2007, 01:37:45 am »
Brian!!!!!  Hey, now you have me on a mission, that is on my "to do" list tomorrow.  I have used the heating germinating pads in the past, but discontinued their use because I thought it too expensive for my little nursery business.  I used warm water for keeping them moist, basically similar to heating pads.  The number of seedling that I would have had to provide heating pads for would have been ridiculous, so I never used it.  But....I bet, it they are of a suitable watt they would be excellent, and far much cheaper.  Onto to checking out the catalogues.........tomorrow.....Have a wonderful and beautiful day in this great life.  Cindi
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Offline Robo

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #33 on: October 21, 2007, 06:34:40 pm »
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Offline the kid

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #34 on: October 21, 2007, 08:37:40 pm »
I wounder what the ideal inside temp would bee  ??????
If its to warm wouldn,t it be worse then no added heat????
the kid

Offline Robo

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #35 on: October 21, 2007, 09:05:58 pm »
If you get it too warm, they are more active and consume more stores.  They are also more likely to fly when it it too cold and die in the snow.   You want it just warm enough that they can move to new stores.  It is really beneficial in February when they start raising brood.  By providing the extra heat, they can raise more brood.
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Offline Michael Bush

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #36 on: October 21, 2007, 09:12:21 pm »
>I wounder what the ideal inside temp would bee

Anything over 50 F is too warm.  Anything under that is acceptable, but 30 to 40 F is probably ideal. If it gets over 50 F they will break cluster.  At 30 F the cluster can still move to stores well and won't get stuck anywhere and won't need a lot of stores to keep warm.
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Offline Cindi

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #37 on: October 22, 2007, 12:43:51 am »
>I wounder what the ideal inside temp would bee

Anything over 50 F is too warm.  Anything under that is acceptable, but 30 to 40 F is probably ideal. If it gets over 50 F they will break cluster.  At 30 F the cluster can still move to stores well and won't get stuck anywhere and won't need a lot of stores to keep warm.


Michael, I find this bit of information you are sharing to be very interesting.  But I am having a really hard time wrapping my head around what you are saying.  I may ask you if you could elaborate a little more on what you say about the internal temperature of the hive.

I may elaborate myself on my queery.  Our temperatures in the wintertime are varied, but I am thinking that our average temperatures (and I will use F) would be around 40-45 F, varies alot, but usually not too much colder than that, because of the rainy climate.  We can have hard freezing for a couple of weeks in January, and that is common, but not usually before or after this time.  Your comment suggests to me that the bees in my particular area would be able to move to their food stores easily for most of the winter here and not starve because they could not reach it.  Did I get this information correct?  Have a wonderful and beautiful day in our life.  Cindi

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Offline Jerrymac

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #38 on: October 22, 2007, 03:54:02 am »
My bees will be out flying at the mid 40s F
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Offline randydrivesabus

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Re: Condensation prevention
« Reply #39 on: October 22, 2007, 07:01:38 am »
my seed starting heating mats have a probe with a thermostat but i dont think it can be set to less than 70F.

 

anything