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Author Topic: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?  (Read 6742 times)

Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #20 on: December 26, 2011, 12:18:03 pm »
I just removed bottom box as expected mouse in first four frames, dead now because i closed it in, nothing else in bottom box it is empty no bees or honey so that explains why the new hive made it to 5 boxes over summer sun is out and bees came out so i will leave alone until they return to hive then remove next box and leave top two....no i have not treated with anything

Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #21 on: December 26, 2011, 04:13:07 pm »
hope what i did is ok, took 2 bottom boxes off today 39 degree weather both boxes empty besides one dead mouse due to me blocking off entrance too small to get out. bees were pushed up to the two upper boxes, now two upper boxes are only boxes left but i am worried about over crowding observed a bee in entrance fanning wings, would it help to add an empty box? i have 6 frames of honey i took off this fall in freezer and could put them on top?

Offline Finski

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #22 on: December 26, 2011, 05:04:55 pm »
.
Take the inner cover off and look how much the hive has  capped food in uppermost box.

'When you do that, give at same time oxalic acid trickling against varroa.
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Offline rdy-b

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #23 on: December 26, 2011, 07:03:59 pm »
 Hvac--what size boxes are you runing-deeps or mediums-??-RDY-B

Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #24 on: December 26, 2011, 08:45:29 pm »
ok finski thank you, i am using 10 frame dep boxes

Offline rdy-b

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #25 on: December 26, 2011, 09:32:00 pm »
 thats alot of boxes- ;) there are many on the forum that have great luck with
 notching the inercover for ventilation -I think blue bee and tomas both make there
 own inercovers-and have much successes -RDY-B

Offline Finski

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #26 on: December 27, 2011, 12:05:57 am »
thats alot of boxes- ;) there are many on the forum that have great luck with
 notching the inercover for ventilation -I think blue bee and tomas both make there
 own inercovers-and have much successes -RDY-B

I have a 15 mm entrance in a front wall + solid bottom. so it goes.
Inner cover has 9 mm pruce board and no holes. Insulation is 70 mm foam plastic mattres.
Construction breathers = part of moisture goes trough the wooden board and insuation.
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Offline T Beek

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #27 on: December 27, 2011, 07:14:57 am »
Two deeps s/b plenty of room.  Bees will continue to die throughout winter.  While open did you notice amount of capped honey?

Its true, I use a 'notched' inner cover as a top entrance.  On top of that I place an 'empty' box that I fill with dry sugar for the winter.  The sugar also acts as an absorber of excess moisture.  I place 2" rigid insulation on top of the sugar. 

With the abnormal weather I've added another ten pounds of sugar to each of my three colonies just last week.  With the top box (feed/vent box) there is little disturbance when checking feed stores, just lift, look, dump in some sugar, close back up.

thomas
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Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #28 on: December 27, 2011, 08:56:20 am »
how do you add empty box with sugar? where is the sugar placed, on top of inner cover

Offline Finski

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #29 on: December 27, 2011, 12:40:35 pm »
how do you add empty box with sugar? where is the sugar placed, on top of inner cover

You have those extra 6 frames capped honey, you need not think about dry sugar.
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Offline T Beek

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #30 on: December 27, 2011, 12:58:03 pm »
True what Finski says, use up your honey first. 

In my case I have no extra honey, so like you said, place empty box on top of inner cover and fill cavity w/ as much sugar as you dare.  Dry sugar should be treated as 'insurance' or 'just in case' they need it.

thomas
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Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #31 on: December 27, 2011, 04:45:34 pm »
ok thank you, i do have 6 frames of honey in freezer so when will i know when to add them and since box holds 10 and i only have 6 how should i place them together or another arrangement? your advuce is greatly appreciated

Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #32 on: December 27, 2011, 04:59:33 pm »
finski you mentioned oxcilic trickling, if i remove top inner cover bees will be sure to come out and give me a run, is there a way to do this without removing top inner cover?

I am curious about how much honey is in top box but worried about hive population being subject to 30 degree weather

Offline T Beek

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #33 on: December 27, 2011, 06:00:00 pm »
Put the honey frames in the middle and 'empty' frames on sides if that's what/all you've got. 

Some beeks will even put wool blankets or sweaters on sides of honey stores when there isn't enough honey to fill a box, keeping honey frames in the middle.

thomas
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Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #34 on: December 27, 2011, 08:55:22 pm »
Thank you for your help thomas :-D

Offline T Beek

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #35 on: December 28, 2011, 07:20:13 am »
Hope all works out for you and yours.

thomas
"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

Offline hvac professor

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Re: what am I seeing, bees "drinking" condesation?
« Reply #36 on: December 28, 2011, 03:46:41 pm »
Today i took my 6 frames of capped honey and four of my neighbors and put the full deep box of 10 frames on top of the two boxes of bees left. I put the inner cover on the top box with the 10 new frames of capped honey and the outer cover on top of that. Temperatures were in the upper 30's but now down to @ 30, will be single digits tonight hope all is well

 

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