Author Topic: Jar feeders (Read 15048 times)

riverbee · « **Reply #20 on:** March 15, 2014, 11:56:19 am »

"Riv, you have any problems with them closing the screen holes with propolis?
Can you buy just the screens from them?"

tefer, you might get a little propolization, but i have never had them close it up completely. the propolis, if any, is easily removed with ammonia when you wash and refill the bucket. i am unsure if you could just buy the screens from them? send them an email and ask. they sell another one, for a 2 gallon pail, i have some of these, just glue them in with a hot glue gun:

Screen Feeder Plugs

Sorry Mrs Riv... Didn't mean to step on your toes.. I skipped too much when reading through the posts and missed it.. I humbly beg for your forgiveness!!!

.......

lazy, that was meant to be funny! no apology!
ps 2 GREAT minds think alike....!

tbonekel · « **Reply #21 on:** March 15, 2014, 06:34:59 pm »

Those look just like the little airators (sp) that you put in kitchen and bath faucets. I might have to keep my eyes open for those at garage sales.

riverbee · « **Reply #22 on:** March 15, 2014, 08:17:24 pm »

well i dunno tbone, those little aerators you would have to plug a lot of them into a lid if you were industrious and all......

apisbees · « **Reply #23 on:** March 16, 2014, 04:23:33 am »

The bees do not propolise the screens if there is syrup in the pail it is only if you leave them on the hive and they are empty. when we use to get package bees the feeder cans used fine nylon cloth as a screen material. There were 2 versions, one the cloth was attached to the inside of the lid and the cam was filled with syrup and the lid put on the other the cloth was put over a plastic ring insert and pressed into the hole in the lid of the can.

riverbee · « **Reply #24 on:** March 18, 2014, 11:27:15 pm »

"The bees do not propolise the screens if there is syrup in the pail it is only if you leave them on the hive and they are empty."

with all due respect apis, sure they will and yes they do.......(when there is syrup in the pail, not empty).

apisbees · « **Reply #25 on:** March 19, 2014, 01:24:46 pm »

I do not have a problem with bees propolising the holes in the lids closed. although I do not over feed the bees. I will provide syrup if needed but most do not need it. They do propolise the lid to the cut out of the inner cover.

riverbee · « **Reply #26 on:** March 19, 2014, 07:55:19 pm »

"I do not have a problem with bees propolising the holes in the lids closed I do not over feed the bees. I will provide syrup if needed but most do not need it. They do propolise the lid to the cut out of the inner cover."

neither do i. i don't overfeed my bees, i provide as you do when needed, and yes, experience the same propolization of the lid to the cut out of the inner cover. and sometimes they will propolize or try to propolize very minimal, some of the screen, very small dot or two.

Barbarian · « **Reply #27 on:** March 29, 2014, 04:38:13 am »

Just an experiment.
This season I hope to try a nuc feeder I have made.

I will use a fine needle to go through some of the base holes and pierce the foil. The frog is a float. The feeder will go on the hole in the inner cover.

I hope that I will be able to easily check the level of the syrup and refill with the feeder in position. The bees should have easy access to the close syrup.

I would appreciate any thoughts and comments on this design.

Perry · « **Reply #28 on:** March 29, 2014, 06:09:00 am »

http://www.beemaidbeestore.com/product.php?txtCatID=47&txtProdID=338

I have had the screens propolized shut (usually when a bucket is empty, but not always). I had a devil of a time trying to open them up. I tried a couple of quick passes with a torch and you guessed it......melted the lids.

apisbees · « **Reply #29 on:** March 29, 2014, 07:09:14 am »

Quote from: Barbarian on March 29, 2014, 04:38:13 am

Just an experiment.
This season I hope to try a nuc feeder I have made.

I will use a fine needle to go through some of the base holes and pierce the foil. The frog is a float. The feeder will go on the hole in the inner cover.

I hope that I will be able to easily check the level of the syrup and refill with the feeder in position. The bees should have easy access to the close syrup.

I would appreciate any thoughts and comments on this design.

If the seal on the lid is not 100% and it allows any air in it will allow the syrup to drip down onto the bees. the syrup will drip when the lid is open for refilling. Put the holes in the lid so when it is fulled and the lid is put back on a little air can be pressed out of the tub as it is turned over. this will keep the syrup from dripping until the vacuum is formed.

lazy shooter · « **Reply #30 on:** March 29, 2014, 09:24:01 am »

When I feed, I use quart jars over the inner cover hole or sometimes just a boardman set up. I don't have to worry about robbing as there are no bees other than mine in our drought ridden area.

Seriously, I suspect the feral bees in my area are at a low population level. My bees don't rob from hive to hive, as I selected my bees based on moral turpitude.

Sometimes the quart jars leak into the hives, but they seldom drown any bees. All the other feeding methods I have used drowned too many bees for my acceptance. But take my word as being from one who is a novice and one who hates to feed. Only God in Heaven knows how much I hate to feed.

LazyBkpr · « **Reply #31 on:** March 29, 2014, 10:40:52 am »

The larger the space, the more a vacuum system seems to dribble.
I have gallon small mouth jars that fit the same lids as standard quart jars. the gallon jars leak more when..
The temps change, the barametric pressure changes, the stand gets bumped or wiggled by the wind etc...
I think, weight and volume also have an effect. A lot more weight above, pushing down on the liquid opposing the vacuum.. so when they dribble they dribble a moment longer until the vacuum can overcome the added weight, as well as the speed of the syrup leaking out... Make sense??? My best guess....

I found Plastic gallon jars with standard small mouth lids.. I think it was from Pigeon Mountain... Those leaked even worse when the sun hit them.. or it went from 40 at night to 80 in the day. If the sun hit them it also warmed the plastic and let it flex more, which reduced the vacuum and let them leak..
These reasons are why I have built the four jar feeders to take 4 quart jars so I can still put a gallon of syrup overhead, without the issues caused by the larger space/volume.....

I use three or four holes in the lids, and they still dribble a little every once in a while.. I don't think you can ever get past a little bit of dribbling... but using this set up seems to create less of a mess.
I have also noticed on the large gallon jars.. If I want to give them a quart of syrup, it takes quite a lot of syrup running out before the vacuum builds enough to stop the flow.
Those are the things I have encountered... I like the idea a lot and am interested to hear how the testing goes. Please keep us updated on your findings and any modifications you make as you proceed!!!

riverbee · « **Reply #32 on:** March 29, 2014, 10:59:40 am »

"If I want to give them a quart of syrup, it takes quite a lot of syrup running out before the vacuum builds enough to stop the flow."

lazy, this is true with the plastic pails as well. before i place the pail over the inner cover, i invert the pail over an empty bucket first, to let the excess run out.

barbarian, interesting feeder you have there, would like to hear the experiment with it. also, i liked the little green frog in the container....

apisbees · « **Reply #33 on:** March 30, 2014, 07:21:10 am »

Quote from: riverbee on March 29, 2014, 10:59:40 am

lazy, this is true with the plastic pails as well. before i place the pail over the inner cover, i invert the pail over an empty bucket first, to let the excess run out.

I Like the plastic pails as I can push down on the center of the lid and expel some of the extra air, invert the pail while releasing the lid. the vacuum is formed in the pail and very little syrup drips out.

Barbarian · « **Reply #34 on:** April 10, 2014, 02:35:16 am »

I decided to try my idea "off hive" with the feeder filled with water. The short answer --- EXPERIMENT FAILED. :'( There was a steady drip-drip out of the container.

Apis was right. It seems that you need a negative internal pressure in the feeder to stop it automatically running out.

I have not totally abandoned my thoughts. I would still like to be able to use a see-through container. I want to check the uptake of feed. I am on the look out for a suitable squat vessel. I am still not keen on the need to suit up just to change a feeder.

GLOCK · « **Reply #35 on:** April 10, 2014, 06:20:08 pm »

I have been open feeding for about a week and the hives are loving it .
Here in SNOW SHOE PA. the pollen is not quite there yet {any day} and nectar at least 2 weeks . So I'm getting a head start building my numbers for the flow.

Dunkel · « **Reply #36 on:** April 10, 2014, 09:05:06 pm »

Wow, my bees would rob out that nuc before touching the chicken waterer. They are relentless though. I made up some nucs yesterday and I may have to move them this weekend.

LazyBkpr · « **Reply #37 on:** April 10, 2014, 09:20:04 pm »

hehe, Thats what I thought when I saw the pic too Dunkel, so had to look who posted it... Glock has been around the block a time or two so I quit worrying at that point..
I have been putting my feeders out every morning the bees were flying. They went for the pollen sub HARD at first, without touching the syrup, but have now slowly moved to the syrup with only a few in the pollen sub now. Maples and Locust pollen coming in, probably a few other trees blooming too.

Woody Roberts · « **Reply #38 on:** April 12, 2014, 07:40:21 pm »

Scott, as you predicted as the temps warmed up I love my jar feeders.

LazyBkpr · « **Reply #39 on:** April 12, 2014, 09:30:27 pm »

My bees took down 4 gallons today from my feeder stands. I would not normally have refilled but the next few days are looking cold and rainy so I wanted them to take as much as they could. If the cold lasts more than three or four days I will put jars on top of the hives. Got to love the versatility of a good ol Mason Jar.