Welcome, Guest

Author Topic: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!  (Read 9699 times)

Offline kedgel

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 192
  • Gender: Male
 :-x  I bought an AJ'S Beetle trap and put it in one of my hives.  I followed the directions and filled it with oil and placed it between frames and put a piece of linoleum over it to give the shb a refuge where theoretically, they will find their way into the trap and drown.  What a pain!  The wretched thing has a rounded bottom so it won't stand up when filling it.  Unless you put it in place on the hive, it falls over and spills the oil out if you try to fill it by leaning it up by the hive.  This necessitates using a syringe to squirt in the oil through the tiny slots in the top--also a pain.  If by some miracle you can fill it off of the hive, you will spill out most of the oil while trying to snap the bloody cover on the thing.  It is a hassle to fill and has yet to trap and kill a single SHB for me.  The shb's did, however appreciate the hiding place I provided, as they were thick as Democrats on a tax increase underneath it.  If you want to attract and kill those little orange "piss ants", get one, as it works great for that.  I emptied it out today after weeks on the hive and found it was full of ants.  I never saw any of them in my hive until I put it in.  I expect I won't see them now I'm not attracting them with the oil.  I am trying an alternative use for it, though.  I cleaned it out and put a bead of Fipronil down the bottom of it.  I'll keep you posted on how it works when baited with a poison.  It should do double duty as an ant killer, as they are killed by the stuff as well.
Talent is a dull blade that cuts nothing unless wielded with great force--Pat Travers

Offline G3farms

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1598
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #1 on: November 08, 2009, 08:51:55 pm »
You did't put it back in the hive with the poison in it did you?????

G3
those hot bees will have you steppin and a fetchin like your heads on fire and your keister is a catchin!!!

Bees will be bees and do as they please!

Offline kedgel

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 192
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #2 on: November 08, 2009, 09:08:27 pm »
I put it under the hive in a cavity in the cinder blocks supporting the hive to see what it does before I put it in the hive.  I'm a little nervous about putting a deadly poison in even if the bees can't get to it.  I tried Fipronil in response to a post I read:  "getting ride of SHB" (posted in Feb. of '05, I think).  We'll see what happens...
Talent is a dull blade that cuts nothing unless wielded with great force--Pat Travers

Offline G3farms

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1598
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #3 on: November 08, 2009, 10:43:10 pm »
Whew I was worried there for a minute!

G3
those hot bees will have you steppin and a fetchin like your heads on fire and your keister is a catchin!!!

Bees will be bees and do as they please!

Offline KD4MOJ

  • Field Bee
  • ***
  • Posts: 719
  • Gender: Male
  • Bees... Motorcycles... amateur radio...
    • TangleWood Apiary
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #4 on: November 09, 2009, 04:11:38 pm »
Kedgel try checkmite instead of oil. Works.. no fuss... no muss. Only thing is they will seal it up pretty quick, but then again it would be time to take the CM out of there anyhoo.




...DOUG
KD4MOJ


Offline TwT

  • Senior Forum
  • Galactic Bee
  • ******
  • Posts: 3396
  • Ted
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #5 on: November 13, 2009, 01:20:02 pm »
I put it under the hive in a cavity in the cinder blocks supporting the hive to see what it does before I put it in the hive.  I'm a little nervous about putting a deadly poison in even if the bees can't get to it.  I tried Fipronil in response to a post I read:  "getting ride of SHB" (posted in Feb. of '05, I think).  We'll see what happens...

I believe that is the bait he uses on this video, beeks have been using Max Force Gel for years now, it contains Fipronil, it is the most effective thing used on SHB's, they are very attracted to it.

http://georgiabees.blogspot.com/2009/10/video-on-filling-and-installing-traps.html
THAT's ME TO THE LEFT JUST 5 MONTHS FROM NOW!!!!!!!!

Never be afraid to try something new.
Amateurs built the ark,
Professionals built the Titanic

Offline Meadlover

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 216
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #6 on: November 24, 2009, 01:50:03 am »
kedgel,

I got 2 of them to try out a little while ago. I agree with you on most points however I have trapped quite alot in my 2 traps so they have been useful to me, certainly not ideal though.

I don't think I will be buying anymore in the future for a few reasons though:
1. As already mentioned they have a round base. That is a REALLY bad design flaw and makes it harder than it should be to fill.
2. They aren't very deep therefore it is very easy to spill the oil, and if the hive is on a slight angle it spills inside the hive.
3. Their volume is very small so I don't think they trap anywhere near enough SHB.
4. The clip on grate doesn't always clip on 100% and the result is spilled oil inside the hive all over the frames  :-x
5. You need to open up the hives to inspect/empty/refill them.

I am testing another trap which is a thin tray (around 1" across x 1" deep x full width of the hive) and sits under a slot in the bottom board. They have proved quite successful, but again I think there is better options.

I really like the look of the mesh bottom board and tray of oil underneath.

ML
« Last Edit: November 26, 2009, 05:13:41 pm by Meadlover »

Offline kedgel

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 192
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #7 on: November 25, 2009, 10:36:16 am »
I've recently tried a number of methods I read about on-line.  I tried using a a square of corrugated cardboard, both with and without Fipronil poison.  I found that without bait/poison in the cardboard, the beetles don't really hide out inside it.  I tried splitting a couple of spots, filling with bait and covering the splits with duct tape and attaching a string to pull it out without opening the hive.  It worked too well!  The shbs jammed into it.  The bees, aware of all the intruders chewed the daylights out of the cardboard to get at them to evict them.  Luckily, either they didn't get to the poison, or didn't eat it, as I had no dead bees from it.  They also pushed the cardboard out of the hive.  I wouldn't recommend this method unless you use the PLASTIC cardboard like they use in signs and you use a piece big enough to prevent them pushing it out of the hive.  I tried the baited plastic sandwich box, but found it to be too cumbersome to fit in the hive.  I put an empty super on to house it, but found I only provided extra places for the shb to hide and didn't trap that many shb.  They seem to prefer the lower corners of the hive.  My best solution to date is an empty CD case.  The 4 holes are the perfect size to let the shb in but not the bees.  It is slim and fits nicely underneath the frames.  I taped on a length of monofilament fishing line that they can't chew through and baited it with Fipronil.  They ate it up!  After a week in the hive it was full of the bastards and all of them were DEAD.  It is easy to pull it out, empty and re-bait, and no messy oil to attract other problems like raccoons or oil-eating ants.  As an added benefit, it kills ants and other pests as well.  My bees are WAY less cranky with fewer shb in the hive.  I tried to buy the screened botton board/oil pan on-line, but there was a glitch on the page that kept asking for info that was already there.  They had no phone # or other way to buy, so I gave up.
Talent is a dull blade that cuts nothing unless wielded with great force--Pat Travers

Offline asprince

  • Super Bee
  • *****
  • Posts: 1743
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #8 on: November 25, 2009, 11:00:29 am »
kedgel,

If you use those Fipronil bait traps on the bottom board, be sure your hives are leaning forward (if solid) or use screen bottom boards. You don't want standing contaminated water sitting on your bottom board. I had that happen to me once. If used, I now always place such traps on the top bars.

Steve

 
Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resembalance to the first. - Ronald Reagan

Offline irerob

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 164
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #9 on: November 30, 2009, 08:03:29 am »
  I've used AJs beetle eaters and had a fair amount of success with them. though I do admit they can be a bit clumsy the round bottom wasn't the best idea. Take some string or duct tape and place it around a deep container then put the traps on the holes it holds them nicely.I also use a number per hive from 1 to five depending on how many supers and how bad the beetles are.
You don't need a parachute to sky dive.... you do how ever need one to sky dive twice.
 KJ4QMH.

Offline David LaFerney

  • Field Bee
  • ***
  • Posts: 924
  • Gender: Male
    • The Door Garden
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #10 on: November 30, 2009, 11:12:31 am »
I used home built screened bottom boards/oil traps late last summer with very good success.  Since I was already developing an infestation before I added the traps I never completely eliminated the SHB - even now I'm seeing a few drop out.  I think (hope) that if you use them all season long and restrict access to the hive so that the beetles have to enter across the screen it might be possible to prevent it from ever getting out of hand to begin with.  Also the oil traps are a good way of monitoring what all falls out of the hive - I never knew I had varroa before.
"It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so." Samuel Clemens

Putting the "ape" in apiary since 2009.

Offline wfuavenger

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 82
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #11 on: December 17, 2009, 11:37:29 am »
anyone tried the "Beetle Blaster"?

Beetle Blaster from Brushy Mountain/

I got a few of them to try come spring when I get my first two hives.... cant beat the price if they work!

Offline KD4MOJ

  • Field Bee
  • ***
  • Posts: 719
  • Gender: Male
  • Bees... Motorcycles... amateur radio...
    • TangleWood Apiary
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #12 on: December 17, 2009, 11:45:18 am »
I have been using the "Beetle Barns" with checkmite and it works wonders. I testing one with Fipronil and it worked just as good.... but I rather use checkmite.

...DOUG
KD4MOJ

Offline kedgel

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 192
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #13 on: December 19, 2009, 02:01:47 pm »
I found that the advice given by asprince accurate, but too late.  :'( I looked at my CD case trap and figured since the bait was in the top, it was away from any water accumulating in the hive.  I was wrong.  We had a huge rain storm and apparently the water pooled on the bottom board enough to wash some of the Fipronil out into the hive.  It kicked my Obama!  It took a week or so, but soon I had THOUSANDS of dead bees.  I replaced the bottom board with an un-contaminated one and looked for the queen.  I couldn't find her, but I never have been very good at finding the queen, as she is usually smothered by attendants.  They continued to die for a couple of weeks even after I did the switch.  There is still lots of capped brood, but no grubs.  I hope that it is because the queen quit laying due to the artificial dearth, and will soon restart.  I won't chance putting in poison again.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they didn't transfer any into the comb. If they did, I think I would still be seeing dead and dying bees.  So far, so good. 

I finally got my hands on some screened bottom board traps.  I'm assembling them today.  I'll keep you posted.  So far the SHB haven't over-run the hive even though their numbers are back up since my trap removal.
Talent is a dull blade that cuts nothing unless wielded with great force--Pat Travers

Offline kedgel

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 192
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #14 on: January 24, 2010, 07:12:33 pm »
UPDATE ON THE SCREENED BOTTOM BOARD (SBB):

These things are AWESOME!!!   :shock: I was able to modify my standard bottom board to accomodate the screen/pan so I didn't have to build the complete setup from scratch or waste the old bottom board.  I bought just the screen and pans from greenbeehives.com opting to buy my own wood and build them myself using the info they provided.  If I had it to do over, I'd have bought the DIY kit complete.  By the time I bought the wood to build the components and took the time to cut them, the little I saved on shipping was more than eaten up by the time and hassle of making them myself.  If you are converting standard bottom boards, it makes sense to just buy the screen and pans.  My other bottom boards were some odd-ball plastic ones that were given to me.  Because of their configuartion they wouldn't work.

A daily check of the pan showed shb's in large numbers that diminished gradually.  I still find them in the oil, but now I don't find them in the hive.  I think this is the single most effective thing I've done to control them.  I have also followed the advice to move my hives into the sun.  The hive in question has rebounded and the queen appears to have emerged unscathed.  I have also found the SBB alerted me to a looming varroa problem I didn't know I had.
Talent is a dull blade that cuts nothing unless wielded with great force--Pat Travers

Offline Meadlover

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 216
  • Gender: Male
Re: I figured out what the "AJ" in AJ's beetle trap stands for: Absolute joke!
« Reply #15 on: January 25, 2010, 01:19:03 am »
Thanks great news kedgel!
All I have to do to finish mine if rivet and seal up the tray and it's good to go.
I'll be testing mine in a nuc 1st, then if it's all good I'll probably fit all of my hive from now on with a SBB & trap.

Thanks for the feedback.

ML