screened bottom boards

[Gypsi]

I keep my hives in full sun because deep shade and shb / mites took out my first hive, with a nice toasty temp near 100.

I am in Texas. Since my bee yard is about 95 degrees or higher for about 6 months out of the year, over 100 for 2 to 3 months out of the year,  I changed my solid bottom boards out to sbb's, and I keep oil sticky sheets under them in the winter. I will check my brood pattern in February or so and see if the "not filling frame" is true, but to be honest, looking through old pics I have on file, I'm not seeing a problem. My bees are VSH, which means they remove the varroa and drop them, and the oiled sticky which I make myself for less than a dollar a piece does a real nice job of catching them. I build my own sbb's, they aren't perfect but they work for me.

[Jen]

Excellent Gypsi!  I use a sbb as well and check it all year long every couple of weeks. I almost lost my hive this last fall to mites. I was instructed to put a sticky board under the sbb and it's a good thing I did. I used formic acid sticky strips and had over 2,000 mite kill. Geez!

I just made mine out of a plastic realty sign and smear Crisco shortening on it. They fall and stick, Yes they do.

It was interesting to see how after the formic acid treatment, the bees were more active and docile. I like happy bees

[LazyBkpr]

after a little (too much) strawberry mead turns out I dont care where the post went lol

  Thanks Zoo.. started the morning with a good rolling belly laugh. I needed that after shoveling and plowing for the last hour and a half!!!   I'll try not to Hijack anymore...     

[Jen]

We are going to do our first oxalic vaporizer treatment tomorrow, I hope there is a down wind. I'm excited

[Mikey N.C.]

Bees can't get through wire, and why would bees try to get through bottom unless they were trying to rob? ? It's full of oil, there's no way the bees can get to it,unless they try and get in around the drawer opening, if it's built rite no dead bees, we're still trying to perfect the slide with different type seals

[apisbees]

Mikey When the use of SBB was first used it was touted a a natural means to control and to monitor varroa mites. Yours are designed for the control of SHB using the oil trap. 2 totally different products in my opinion. In both design and in the way they are used.

[Mikey N.C.]

Thanks for clearing that up for me.