Worldwide Beekeeping
Beekeeping => Beekeeping 101 => Topic started by: ward on June 29, 2014, 01:08:35 pm
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I bought a hive consisting of one very full 8 frame deep. I have them in the sun facing south and it gets quite hot there in the afternoon. I felt they needed more room so I added a deep. They seemed to calm down for a couple of days so I thought I had solved the space problem. Plus I put a notch in the inner cover at the back for ventilation.
Then on the third day they seemed to be circling around very noisy and I felt they were too hot and uncomfortable. I took a look inside. There were only a handful of bees on the new frames. They had not spread up. I took the top deep off, took the second and seventh frame out of the bottom box and replaced them with the middle two frames of the top box. Put the old frames into the middle of the top box and put everything back together. So far so good. Did I do the right thing? I felt that they needed familiar territory to move up. I'm new at this. I just don't want them to swarm. I thought I would do an inspection in a week and see what happened. Next time I want to go slower so I can actually see what is on each frame.
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Hey ward,
Sure you did the right thing ! You can hardly go wrong. You did something that you thought or had read somewhere that would allow them to thrive. So....yes you did a right thing. There are other ways of doing what you did, but I would say you did one of the most popular and successful adding of the second box. They may still be a little slow to move up because now they will draw comb on the frames that you put below. Then as the new emerge they will get to drawing in the added space of the second box.
I use a hive top feeder and offer feed to new hives until they have at least the second deep drawn and some stored. They may not use much if you have a good flow of nectar coming in.
Then give them a little time before the next inspection. You gain confidence as you go.
Tim
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Yep, that's what I would have done. I wouldent worry about them overheating. They can control their temp very well.
I would have been concerned about swarming hence I would have done what you did.
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Thanks for adding that Woody,
I skipped the heat issue entirely.
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As others have said on other threads, you can always slide the top back some or stick a stick under it for added ventilation. Just ensure there is area for the air to enter the bottom (entrance open or screened bottom).
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Thank you for the positive feedback.
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On your next inspection look for queen cells being actively drawn out or capped. not knowing how they were made up and for how long and whether they were crowed and may have started raising cells be cause they had gotten to crowed.
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curious if you found anything on your last inspection?
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we have not done much inspecting of the bottom deep. Since we exchanged 2 frames from the bottom deep, with 2 unworked frames, and put the two older frames in the middle of the second deep, they are making wax on frames on both sides of the old frames in the second deep.They seem happy. No swarming.
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Glad to hear it! Thanks for the update.
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I know nothing about the flow in Ma. but with the increase in population i would keep an eye on there stores. It's getting late in the season and you may have to feed. Jack
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I started a slow feed about a week ago just to be sure, because they have to make wax on new foundation. Is it ok to inspect the second deep once a week to check on their progress or will I disturb them too much?
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Unless i seen something strange going on i would let them do there thing and check them in two weeks, the less you disturb them the better. Jack
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OK thanks for the advice.
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keep in mind there are different levels of inspections. there are lifting covers to inspect feed consumed, to lifting the inner cover to see the area the bees are working in the top super and whether nectar is being brought in and stored and wax is being pulled. To breaking down the hive and looking at each side of every frame. The evasiveness of the different types of inspection will have more effect on the colony than the actual number of times you open the colony. I find that the full inspection only happens about 4 times in the year. The inspections that you go in and remove a few frames and if things look good after a few frames in (you see brood Larva or eggs the hive has pollen and nectar) you put them back together and leave them to carry on, will happen every 3 or 4 weeks even longer in July and first 1/2 of August. The pop the top and look for signs that the bees are working the top supers and if more room is needed can be done any time you think it is necessary. Once a week or even more frequently if you are not sure or familiar with the rate thing can happen in the hive.
To me it is not how often you do an inspection, it is more how invasive you are when you do the inspection.
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I started a slow feed about a week ago just to be sure, because they have to make wax on new foundation. Is it ok to inspect the second deep once a week to check on their progress or will I disturb them too much?
I think that if you just take the inner cover off and look down into the frames without pulling frames out, this doesn't bother them too much. I can tell a lot that way.
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I do want to see how the wax production is coming along and how the feeding is going. So I will peek in this week. I am not planning on an intensive look for awhile.
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That's what I would do. Have done. Do all the time. As you get more hives the quick looks can be done to different hives on a rotation to check on what mother nature is providing.