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Do you have 20% moisture content, or the frames 20% capped.

20% capped, I would feed them to the bees.
20% moisture, use the fan.
 
Roktoy829 said:
Do you have 20% moisture content, or the frames 20% capped.

20% capped, I would feed them to the bees.
20% moisture, use the fan.
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I dont know my moisture content. The frames were fully capped when they started but I have had them outside in a box letting my current hive rob resources from them as our weather has not been great for bees.

My refractometer only goes up to 35 on the Brix side. It wasn’t intended for honey.
 
Roktoy829 said:
I would let the bees have what is left.
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Thats the plan for now until my digital one come in. Then I will inspect the ones I have frozen.

Opened up the hive today and poked around. I did some frame swapping today with the 2 frames I spun empty and replaced 2 in the 2nd deep that didn’t have comb drawn out yet. I noticed that this years nuke seems to have a very weak queen. The brood pattern has gone way down hill. I also before closing up put a space on top and banana slices on a small piece of waxed paper to give them some extra food.

Anyone ever build resource hives? Out club is having a queen making demo with the 5 club hives. Need to reach out to the main guy and see when he is in my area next to take a look for me.
 
Buncha shitbox bee boxes in this thread.:shaking:


:flipoff2:


1000043375.jpg
 
Inspected the a hive today looked strong and healthy, almost every frame completely full of eggs larve and capped brood, but we noticed what looked to be queen cells that are fresh. what would that mean?
 
ANGELO said:
Inspected the a hive today looked strong and healthy, almost every frame completely full of eggs larve and capped brood, but we noticed what looked to be queen cells that are fresh. what would that mean?
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Sometimes they are empty practice cells. If they aren't empty then they may swarm or kill the old queen and replace her.
 
Whistlepig said:
Sometimes they are empty practice cells. If they aren't empty then they may swarm or kill the old queen and replace her.
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It started to rain so we couldn't finish inspecting. But one had a larve in it. Current queen seems to be healthy. Should I have another box ready?
 
ANGELO said:
What do you guys do about hive beetles?
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Kill them.

Smash them with the j-hook or hive tool when inspecting. Or use your fingers. The best one I got was with a chainsaw, but I was butting wood, not inspecting a hive. They sell beetle traps.
 
ANGELO said:
What do you guys do about hive beetles?
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I have some beetle buster bottom boards with the pan filled with diatomaceous earth and I use the cheap plastic beetle traps with DE in them also. When they get full you can shake the dead beetles and DE out and reuse them. I also use swiffer sheets if I have a lot of beetles in a hive.
I also spread scotts grubex in a 20' circle around my hives as it kills the beetle larvae when they go in the ground. I just started that this year so results are not in yet.
 
ANGELO said:
What do you guys do about hive beetles?
Click to expand...
No grass/dirt under the hives. I use old shingles or rolls of shingle like material under the hives. The beetles need the dirt to pupate so making less available to them should help some. Entrance guards can help keep the beetles from getting into the hive. You can buy them online or find plans to 3D print some if you have that option available. I've used non-scented swiffer sheets placed in the corners of the hive above the frames, the beetles get caught in the fibers and can't get loose and die. I have not tried the oil traps but I hear they work as well. If you ask an old beekeeper, he/she will tell you the best defense is a strong hive. Be sure to deal with them, because they will slime a hive in no time left unchecked.

All good advice from others as well.
 
Some good info

Small Hive Beetle 101

Small hive beetles are a invasive species pest to honey bee colonies and this video gives you the 101 course on what you need to do to control and manage this p
www.afuturewithbees.com www.afuturewithbees.com
 
Did a late season split yesterday. Had a decent amount of extra resources and a local guy in the club had good queens available. Going to shake a few buckets of nurse bees after the farmers market today to make sure the new hive has enough. Next spring time will tell. Spun a bunch of honey as well to help they have some good drawn out comb.

ETA: Swedish sponges showed up so time to make oxalic acid strips for mite prevention.
 
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