hive move

[vvand111]

I have just completed a 6 foot by 36 foot platform. In reality it is a porch for my wood shop / honey house.

 The 2 hives I have are less than 8 feet from where I want to move them.  I will be expanding in the coming months as to the number of hives. I expect to go to 6 hives

#1 hive is very strong. I would guess from what I have read that I am going to have to split it this spring in order to keep it from swarming??
#2 is weaker but still reasonably good as I have read about on this forum. Maybe will not need to split, we Just do not know.

I need to move these hives about 10 to 12 foot from where they r and I have looked at all the videos but am still not sure what I should do

This is a pivotal time of the year and keeping these hives through the winter has been special for me. I will expand but I want to move these hives in the next several weeks. 

Should I leave well enough alone or can I do this move for me without hurting my girls??  Ideas and opinions are more than welcome.

    THAT INCLUDES U IDDEE

[Perry]

2 feet or 2 miles is the golden rule I try to stick with.
In your situation however, I would simply move them a couple of feet every few days and in no time you will be done. If you are moving them when they are clustered, be extra careful not to disturb them much because if the cluster should break, they may be unable to reform one if it is cold.

[kingd]

I agree with Perry on the 2ft or 2 miles rule is best
 I have done the trick of boxing them up for a couple of days,then put a bunch  branches and grass in front of the hive to force reorientation,

[riverbee]

if you are only moving them 8 feet, and have the ability, i would just screen them in one evening, after everyone comes home, and move them the 8 feet.
leave the screen on, and the next day remove it, or keep it on for a day and then remove it.  when you remove the screens prop or leave them near the entrance of the hives, this should be enough for them to reorient.

also like perry said about moving them if they are clustered.
if i had to move bees when they were clustered, i think i'd wait until warmer weather.

good luck, and let us know!

[Chip Euliss]

I was taught the 2 inch or 2 mile rule.  Wouldn't accomplish much with either 2 inches or 2 feet, I'd guess

[riverbee]

i was taught to move new nucs/splits/divides 3 miles...........!    chip, two inches? oh my aching muscles and fat cells!...........

moving hives 8 feet, gettin older and i just move the whole shebang at once and not torture myself moving hive bodies inches or a foot at a time........  
i just leave a nuc box/hive body(with frames) back for the bees who get disoriented for them to collect in.
thankfully, i have not had to move them a short distance too often.

when i move my nucs/divides 3 miles down the road and bring them back, i always place a nuc box/hive body with frames to collect the bees i left behind.

bees do remember the last place they were or were supposed to be........, (their home before we moved it) and will collect there, even if the hive has been moved. 

[Chip Euliss]

Just the rule I was taught River; not what I do.  I do move a hundred or so hives about 2 miles each spring without any problems but the rest of the hives go as far away as 80 miles   I've heard that you can break the rules a bit if you move them when they aren't flying and then place some type of obstruction in front of the entrance--suppose to make the exit so markedly different that the bees initiate orientation flights when they first come out of the hive post move.  Never tried it but I heard it from a fellow who has been making a living from his bees for many decades.  The most valuable thing for me about the "rule" is that it can be used to fool bees into going back to a specific location where you can manipulate which box the bees use as a residence, whether the original hive, a nuc that needs a population boost, etc.

[riverbee]

thanks chip! 

can't imagine the work you do moving hives! lots of hard work!

i break the rules all the time...........read my signature............

well anyway, i have moved my few hives/nucs 3 miles and about 100 miles. don't ask me about the buick trip down a wisconsin freeway..........
never again.

i do like to move hives when they aren't flying or lock them in. i don't like moving hives when they are flying. i have never really used anything like branches and such.........just always left the moving screen propped on the bottom board across the entrance, enough for them to 'take notice'.
seems to work for me. 

and true about the 'rule'  fooling bees to go back to a specific location for a population boost, etc!

[Lburou]

The easiest, if you can manage it, is to move the hive a foot or two each day until you have them where you want them.  (Some of those foragers remember the old location even after a move and being weathered in the hive for a week.)  The barrier over the entrance forces them to reorient, but some foragers can still go back to the original spot.  I vote with Perry on this one.

[vvand111]

Thanks to all of you.  I feel like I have been so fortunate that I have decided to rethink any kind of move right now. The hives are doing great and producing more honey than has ever been advertised that they should.  I am going to sit tight for a bit here and make some more long term decisions.  Thank you all for the input. I will be back at you very soon on this issue.

Thank you all 
Vandy