Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS => Topic started by: lee on May 19, 2005, 09:07:47 pm
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my deep body is feeling up. so should i put another deep body on the deep. it will have new foundation in it. or should i put a medium on the deep body.
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Your choice really. I use two deep brood boxes, then I start on the mediums. I do have some small honey boxes, but haven't used them yet. Bought them late last year, and it hasn't been time to use them.
Beth
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You're in MI Lee, stick with the 2 deeps, you'll probably want 2 deeps on if you're going to winter them.
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if i put on 2 deeps now. next spring can i take 1 of the deeps and put a queen in it to start a new hive. thinks
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I say cut all the deeps down and use all mediums. :)
http://www.bushfarms.com/bees.htm
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Only little girls and people with bad backs use all mediums... :lol:
I like standardized equipment as well, but choose to use all deeps. Do what you feel comfortable with.
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If you choose to go to all mediums (good idea imo) 3 mediums equals two deeps for a brood nest in northern climates like yours (and mine)! :D
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>Only little girls and people with bad backs use all mediums...
I'd like to see a little girl lift a 60 pound full medium. :)
I'm tired of the 10 frame mediums now and am only buying 8 frame mediums. I must really be a little girl. I really think the issue is gravity. It has been steadly increasing. It is now to the point that a full 8 frame medium weighs what a full deep weighed back in 1974. I don't understand why the scientists aren't investigating this. I can't be the only one who has noticed this. ;)
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Truth to tell, I'd like to see Phoenix lift a 100lb deep. I have no doubt he could do it, I'd just like to see the pretty colour in his face. :D
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I've noticed it MB. Not only that, but I'm shorter!! It must be gravity!! Dang that Newton!!!
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a 100 lb. i would have to get a hi lo i have a long way a carry then. :D
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Well, I'm a little girl WITH a bad back :lol: and my deeps have 11 frames! What do you big burly guys think this all means?!?!
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It means you pull frames one at a time????
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SherryL, I think it means that you're one little girl (with a bad back) that those burly men wouldn't want to mess with. :)
Personally, I can lift a full box, and carry it a ways - but it's tough. Much easier if it's mostly brood, almost too hard for me when it's honey. I'm semi young and in pretty good shape. A full super is heavy - no two ways about it.
Beth
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I use deeps for my brood and supers for my hoeny, just doing it the reg. way. :D
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I use deeps for my brood and supers for my hoeny, just doing it the reg. way. :D
So am I, for the time being. Since I don't move the deeps around much, it 's isn't an issue. But I see a day when Michael's way will be an issue. I won't always be a young (sort of) fit woman...
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Well if I ever grow big some day that is what hired help is for, lol :D
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I vote for mediums. I have one hive in a deep and two in mediums. I love how easy it is to manipulate the frames in the mediums as compared to the deep frames. My back appreciates my choice to go to mediums very much.
53 years and counting. Gravity does play a role. If Newton was around today I'd slap him one!
Ron
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Sometime around 25-30 years ago Gleanings in Bee Culture published an article advocating the use of all-medium (6-5/8") supers. Of course, I was much younger and in better physical form then, but hefting around those 90+ lb deep supers was still an unwanted chore. I adopted the all-medium way of life.
Presently, among all my hives I am using only 3 deeps. Those are just for my pleasure (to play with, because they are different than mediums). I also have adopted small-cell because it sounded fun and purposeful. I was initially using all-wax small-cell with horizontal wires, but began using the plastic base small-cell as soon as it became available. I like it especially, because sometimes I forget and leave equipment idle too long and wax moths turn all-wax comb/foundation into empty frames and comb/plastic foundation just reverts back to plastic foundation.
I like using 3 mediums for the brood chamber(s) and mediums, as necessary, for honey supers. All the frames are interchangeable, even those in the honey supers. This can be very convenient whenever any manipulations may be necessary. Good for creating nucs too.
The small-cell plastic foundation presently is only available in full-depth size. It can be cut in half through the horizontal plane and used like this:
(http://www.wjclemens.com/cordovan-honeybee/images/SC_plastic.jpg)
I have heard that "Dadant" is thinking of discontinuing supplying this product. This is making me sad :(
Here are a few more photos illustrating this idea:
(http://wjclemens.com/cordovan-honeybee/images/Med_brood_1.25_w_side_racks.jpg)
(http://wjclemens.com/cordovan-honeybee/images/Med_brood_1.25_w_side_racks_B.jpg)
(http://wjclemens.com/cordovan-honeybee/images/Med_brood_1.25_w_side_racks_C.jpg)
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What's the purpose for the slatted side racks in those boxes Joseph? If it's just to take up the dead space after trimming down the end bars, why not throw another frame in that box? Once the end bars are cut down to 1-1/4" from 1-3/8" you've got room for another frame.
If not to just take up the dead space, I'm curioius as to the advantage of the side rack.
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Several decades ago slatted racks were advocated, not just for the bottom board but also inside supers in place of one frame. They provide additional clustering space for the bee population as well as channels to improve ventilation, those bees don't just hang out in this clustering space, they fan too. It was said to reduce swarming and provide other benefits to hive health. I notice that with them the queen will frequently lay even in the outside of the outer comb surfaces, a plus, 20 potential brood surfaces. They build very little burr comb in these spaces. I have tried both slatted bottom boards and slatted side racks. Colonies so equipped beard quit a bit less.
The racks are made by cutting 3/4" thick leftover scrap wood to 5/16-3/8" thickness (bee space) slats. Using polyurethane and small, wire frame nails I fasten two vertical slats 4" back from each end and then glue and nail on 5 horizontal slats spacing them 5/16" apart and leaving that much space from the end of each slat. I leave a bee space above the first slat and extra space remains beneath the 5th slat. This way they occupy the space of one frame (less weight) and provide extra space and ventilation for the bees.
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I suppose they serve some of the same purpose as a follower on the ends. I don't mind a follower for maintaining some space to remove the frames, and to give some cluster space and to cut down on condensation, but I'm not willing to give up another frame of brood. :)
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11 frames with 1-1/4" spacing = 22 comb surfaces. Usually a maximum of 20 comb surfaces with brood.
10 frames with 1-1/4" spacing and slatted end racks = 20 comb surfaces, and 20 possible comb surfaces with brood. The bees even put brood in the outer surfaces of the outermost combs.
Perhaps the end slatted racks don't make enough of a difference to make them "cost effective", but they are a fun toy.
I did not come up with the idea for slatted racks, but I have adopted it and use it with most of my bees.
I have not used side slatted racks with honey supers and presently have no plans to do so. I do plan to eventually migrate all of my colonies to 3 medium boxes configured this way for their brood nests.
BTW, I have also built my bottom boards with slatted racks and fastened the bottom medium brood super to the bottom board with 4 deck screws. These can be removed once the super is emptied and the deck screws removed.
I have never treated my colonies in any way for mites or diseases and haven't lost any either. Other than photographs and illustrations I've never seen any brood diseases except a couple of chalkbrood once in awhile. I started converting to small-cell just in the past 3 years, after continuously keeping bees in the Tucson-Marana Arizona area for going on 9 years now. Before I began using small-cell I was almost exclusively using Pierco plastic foundation and one-piece frames for both brood and honey.