Inner Cover On The Fly

[blueblood]

I couldn't justify spending $12+ dollars on a inner cover nor did I care to make any.  I have been running a couple of hives with just the telescoping lid.  However, I can't place my vent shims on without an inner cover because of the risk of bur comb city.  So, I pulled out a sheet of 3/8" plywood I salvaged a while ago and cut some 19-7/8" x 16-1/4" rectangles.  I used a door knob bit to cut the hole in the center.  I then converted some old candy boards to vents shims.  Right or wrong, I am going to give it a try and see how well they work. 









 

[Jen]

Hey Blue! That's exactly how hubby made mine during my swarm episode! Between his work, my work, and swarms we didn't have much time to be choosey. Ours are working just fine, No Complaints

[apisbees]

Rip some 3/8 strips and staple anb glue to one side and they woulb be done.



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[blueblood]

Rip some 3/8 strips and staple anb glue to one side and they woulb be done.

Hmmm, that is a good idea!  I don't know why I didn't think of doing it this way before.  Inner covers are my least favorite to make the traditional way.  So much rabbet joinery and it all has to fit just right or it's wopperjawed.

[LazyBkpr]

Rip some 3/8 strips and staple anb glue to one side and they woulb be done.



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   I just made ten..   2" on one side and 3/8 on the other. 3/8 side down for the summer, 2" down for winter to make room for fondant sugar etc..   I also put a 1" upper entrance on both sides..  I'll get some pics of them..   

[Yankee11]

Would like to see some pics lazy.

[Slowmodem]

I bought some vent shims,  but it came with big-hole screen.  I added window screen for smaller holes to keep the shb out.

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[DLMKA]

I don't even mess with them much anymore, piece of 3/4" exterior plywood works great and I get 10 of them out of a 4X8 sheet

[blueblood]

DL, I can't believe I wasted all that time in the beginning makes inner covers now.  They are so very difficult to build since there are several cuts and everything must be just right.

[Zweefer]

  I'll get some pics of them..

And?

[LazyBkpr]

  I'll get some pics of them..

And?

   And!!  I havent done it yet..     Got Camera in hand, will swing by the wood shop this morning...

[DLMKA]

DL, I can't believe I wasted all that time in the beginning makes inner covers now.  They are so very difficult to build since there are several cuts and everything must be just right.

I made 30 half-width inner covers the traditional way with masonite for some double nucs Mike Palmer style, I need to be able to open each colony individually and couldn't come up with a better, more elegant solution. It was a PITA start to finish but they look good. I used the same joinery for full size inner covers and made 10, some for my dad and I sold a couple complete hives too and wanted to give a nice, finished looking inner cover.

My full hives almost all have just a piece of plywood, nothing else, they wintered fine like that 2 years running. put some twigs under the corners if you need more ventilation but not enough space it needs to be defended.

[riverbee]

"I made 30 half-width inner covers the traditional way with masonite"

just my humble opinion from my experience with masonite inner covers, these were problematic for me;  warping, moisture, condensation, mold, mildew, sagging. they don't stand up as plywood does. i have taken my old covers of masonite and ditched them....well, ditch but hang onto. i only use them for transporting bees with a large hole cut out with screen stapled on in hot weather, or catching and moving swarms. i also think, again just my HO and experience, i seemed to have more moisture problems with masonite covers during winter months. i don't like them and i won't use them.  that's just me and my experience with these. 

[LazyBkpr]

K, I went out and took some pics of the inner covers I have started using..

   One side is 2" deep for winter position;



   The other side is just over 3/8 for summer. Notch cut in both for upper entrances;



  This one is on a production hive I acquired. Bearding dropped by over 3/4 in about two hours after putting it on the hive;



   This one is on a large cut out with a feeder jar under it;



   They take more material and time to build, but remove the need to store shims for the winter, they are already there. They also raise the tele cover above the top entrance.
   Starting hives, from packages, nuc's, cut outs and swarms I use a standard inner cover with no top entrance. I only put these on when they get the third box (medium) added.

[blueblood]

I like em!

[Zweefer]

nice! thanks for sharing these.