Sonny-Mel Small Hive Beetle Trap

[tillie]

Yesterday I made the small hive beetle trap and installed it on my hives today.  I made a video, if anyone wants to know how to do it:

http://beekeeperlinda.blogspot.com/2007/05/small-hive-beetle-trap-saga.html

Have a great weekend,

Linda T hot on the trail of the SHB in Hotlanta

[dlmarti]

A drill and drill bit will give you a better hole than a soldering iron, also it won't damage the soldering iron like the plastic will.

While I am a big fan of Linda's videos, I do find some aspects of the videos quite funny/cute.
No man would ever be allowed to setup a portable work table in a kitchen...

Keep 'em coming, I'll watch every one.

[tillie]

Actually my portable work table is in my basement - When I had the kitchen redone, I had the contractor move the kitchen cabinets and counters from the old kitchen to the basement to help me have more work/storage space.....

Sonny and Mel advised me to use the soldering iron because they had tried the drill without good results - it's a $12 soldering iron - if it ruins it, I probably won't ever solder anything else anyway!!!

Thanks for the support, dlmarti - doing this is fun  :-D

Linda T in Atlanta

[Michael Bush]

The soldering iron makes a very smooth hole where the drill makes a very rough hole with burrs on it.  The small hive beetles might no like the burrs.

[Fish]

Do you really need to build the extra box or can you put the trap on top of the inner cover.  I have found as many beetles up there as inside the hive bodies. 
Great video though!  I am anxious to see the results.

[tillie]

You don't need to build the ring box for the trap - I did because Sonny and Mel do that and it provides a pretty easy place not only for the SHB trap but also to do winter feeding via baggie and I needed something like that -

obviously from the video I didn't make the ring an exact fit since it wobbles in its place, but hey, that's what happens when you didn't get to take shop (when I was in school, girls took home ec  :-D)

Sonny and Mel did say that you could just put it on the inner cover - I see most of the SHBs on the inner cover usually on the hive side of the inner cover, though. Or you could leave the inner cover off and put it on top of the frames and then put on the telescoping cover....

I usually try to do it the recommended way first before I make changes, so I followed their "recipe" (to bring my home ec into it!)

Linda T in Atlanta

[Michael Bush]

I'm afraid of all the burr comb you'll get in that 2 1/2" box.

[tillie]

I'm worried about 2 things:

**killing bees unintentionally
**burr comb in the box

I do just have 3 1/2 hives so I can keep a close eye on it....if the burr comb is a problem, Sonny also has tried removing the inner cover - since I prop the top, I don't particularly want to do that, although I suppose I could figure out another way to make a top entrance/ventilation access.....

I'll let you all know how it goes.

Linda T in Atlanta

[Understudy]

When I am home for more than 10 min. I will make and send you a few of my top entrances. The two things you worry about are two things you don't need to worry about. You cannot save every bee. And burr comb is not a horrible thing. The queen can use to more easily move from frame to frame.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[tillie]

Another possibility would be to put the sandwich box on top of the inner cover inside the ring with the telescoping cover over that - wonder how that would affect things?  The SHBs are almost always (at least when I see them ) somewhere on the inner cover.

Then I don't think I'd have the burr comb issue and my current top entrance would be functional as it is??

Linda T musing after midnight in Atlanta

[Michael Bush]

I think over the inner cover makes the most sense.

[tillie]

Since I'm using the trap on three hives, I'll do an experiment - I have to go out to the hives today to put the super on that I harvested on Saturday.  And I need to take a cut comb super off of a hive as well.

I'll move the SHB trap and the ring I built up above the inner cover in one hive and leave it under the inner cover in the tall hive and we'll see if there's anything to be learned. 

That assumes the same amount of SHB problem in both of those hives, but since they are right next to each other, that's probably a pretty reasonable assumption, although I see more SHB in the tall hive.

Linda T always in an experimental mood in Atlanta

[Fish]

Here's an idea for the hives that you put the trap on top of the inner cover.  Surround the trap with the box you made but drill a hole in one of the sides.  You will have your top entrance and ventilation without having to prop up your telescoping cover.

[mgmoore7]

While I am a big fan of Linda's videos, I do find some aspects of the videos quite funny/cute.
No man would ever be allowed to setup a portable work table in a kitchen...

LOL.  That is so true.

Thanks for the videos Tillie.  Keep up the good work.

[mgmoore7]

Tillie
Have you checked the results yet. 

My inspection yesterday revealed a few beetles.