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Author Topic: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?  (Read 15067 times)

Offline Bamabww

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Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« on: March 27, 2011, 02:13:56 pm »
Last night we had some terrific wind storms with gusts up to 40 to 50 mph according to the weather radio.  I worried about my hives all the while.  I don't recall ever seeing any strapped down but is there a need to protect them against being blown over?

I have mine slightly off level to prevent rain from running inside.
Thanks
Bamabww

Offline iddee

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #1 on: March 27, 2011, 02:27:16 pm »
Protection from lids blowing off is more common than protection from blowing over. A brick, block, or rock on top won't hurt and may even help.
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Offline AllenF

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #2 on: March 27, 2011, 02:55:41 pm »
I have only had one hive tip over and it was during a bad storm where a big limb broke out of a poplar tree and smacked the top of the hive.   Broke the top and knocked the hive over.  As long as they are on a good stable base, I don't think they are going anywhere.   

Offline G3farms

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #3 on: March 27, 2011, 03:16:39 pm »
As Iddee said, I always put something on the lids to keep them from blowing off.
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 donm

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #4 on: March 27, 2011, 03:18:40 pm »
Me too.  Three for each top.

Offline donm

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #5 on: March 27, 2011, 03:19:09 pm »
bricks that is....

Offline Michael Bach

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #6 on: March 27, 2011, 10:27:08 pm »
All depends on location.  One of my yards I just but a brick or two on top.  The other yard the hives are strapped down to the hive stand.  That location is very windy and the gusts get a head of steam across the open pasture.

Online Michael Bush

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #7 on: March 28, 2011, 03:22:35 am »
We get a lot of 60 mph winds.  Gusts sometimes take down trees in my front yard.  Of course they blow over hives.  That's one of the reasons I like them all up against each other.
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Offline beemaster

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #8 on: March 28, 2011, 09:19:30 am »
This takes me back to when I worked my first beeyard at 13/14 years old with my classmate of many years and fellow 8th grader, he took me to his backyard, moderately wooded in a rural area, about 1/4 acre, some tall grass about. He had 11 hives.

He did his best to point his hives toward the Sun, but even added another 30 degrees direction  to allow for the hive body to point so the prevailing winds would cut into two 45 degree angle cuts at the back of the hive, slicing the wind instead of having prevailing winds constantly slam the back or side of the hives. aiming a corner at know winds, here it is SSW as predictable as could be except for bad weather. We do get WHOPPER North Eastern weather that will jack up to 60+ miles an hour, a dozen times every Winter, sometimes for days. He beaved by reducing the cold wind that would hit his hive, compared to redirecting the wind around likely saved him 15% more honey each season.

Mike my friend and mentor had a real point for general bee yards more in the open that his (in his case the trees would have made a great wind break) but in the open fields here, I think Mike may have been on to something. But NO I have never seen a hive body tossed over IF it were on a proper base. Old plastic milk crates only last so long. :) some of the stuff people put 3 or 4 deep hives on is crazy, OSHA would have a field day.
 
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Offline zzen01

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #9 on: March 28, 2011, 01:52:17 pm »
I use the corkscrew dog tie downs with a long tie down strap works well for critter control too.

Offline Mason

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #10 on: March 28, 2011, 06:04:10 pm »
I really don't know if anyone else does this but:

I don't like to put bricks in the center of the top cover.  My theory is that the brick will cause the top to sag in the middle.  Condensation would then run to the center of the hive a drip directly through the middle instead of down the walls.

Like I said,  I don't know if this has any merit but it's something I do.  Can't hurt I suppose.
Former beekeeper until March....maybe next year...RIP

Offline Hemlock

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #11 on: March 29, 2011, 10:46:33 am »
We have wind storms here every Spring.  If i want to keep something that's outside it better be tied down.  I hold my hives in place with 1 inch nylon cargo straps.  They attach to the stand and the stand has footers into the clay soil. 



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Offline catbackr

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #12 on: March 29, 2011, 02:18:24 pm »
I lost a top bar hive last fall to a bad wind storm.  It was blown over and I didn't find it in time.  I will definitely take better precautions in the future.

Offline OzBuzz

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #13 on: March 29, 2011, 10:42:05 pm »
I had five hives blow over this season (domino effect) one went and it took four others with it. I had them sitting on a standard house brick which wasn't the full width of the hive base - lesson learned. Personally i'm going to make a timber stand about a foot off the ground which i will be able to sit all of my hives on - almost like a long frame - i'm going to build it so that it 'locks in' behind the feet of the hive so the hives are resting the full width on timber and they won't be able to move forward or backward and slide off. As a temporary measure i have larger bricks now which go the full width of the hive - after installing them i grab the top box and give a gentle push - if it's stable it won't move - if it wobbles then i figure out why

Offline edward

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #14 on: March 30, 2011, 02:36:53 am »
So far this winter I have lost 4 hives 3 because the top came off because of winds , Two more lost there roofs , but when I got there the bees were still alive.

All of the hives that lost there tops didn't have straps on them  :-x

Lesson learned , now all my hives are going to have straps , not rocks or wooden blocks that can fall off.

A colleague had i styrofoam hive that had blown over , it had a strap on it and they survived.  :)

By the way my hives are styrofoam

mvh edward  :-P

Offline scdw43

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #15 on: March 30, 2011, 09:39:52 am »
I use two concrete bricks.
Winter Ventilation: Wet bees die in hours maybe minutes, no matter how much honey is in the hive.

Offline montauk170

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #16 on: March 30, 2011, 05:50:35 pm »
Tie down nylon straps as someone already suggested. I use the ratchet type. Works great. I use it mostly when moving hives though but it will work for wind gusts.

Offline bailey

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #17 on: March 31, 2011, 10:58:42 pm »
i use rachet straps.
for hurricaine gustov and we took a direct hit.
no hives blown over or tops lost.

without them they would have been blown over for sure.
ask keith from baton rouge about winds and hives! he had a few hit hard at one point.

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Offline Bamabww

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #18 on: April 20, 2011, 11:38:00 am »
Well I found out first hand last night the answer to my original question about securing the hive.  I work third shift and when I got home this morning we had had a terrible wind storm last night.  half of my barn roof is missing, several 6 inch diameter limbs are broken off the giant oak trees in my yard, some cedar tree damage  and the hive I had not secured yet because I didn't have any bees in it, had the top cover blown off.

I'll put in a call to ALFA insurance later today and see if they can help me with the barn roof.

Bamabww

Offline rail

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Re: Any need to secure bee hives against wind gusts?
« Reply #19 on: April 20, 2011, 11:50:10 am »
I plan to make provisions like this for my hive during severe thunderstorms!

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