TYPES OF TREATMENT?

[GLOCK]

So what do you all do for VARROA mites and has it worked for you?
I have used OAV this past FALL and I had a great affect on the mite population and I have not lost any hives since last winter so I'm going to stick with it for now.

[Jen]

Blech! Blech! Blech! just looking at these hideous things makes me want to hurl!!!!

[Jen]

This last fall I learned how to put a sticky board under my screen bottom board. So I did just for experimenting. The next week I pulled it out and had 300 mites on it. GASP! So I did some very thorough quick research and decided on NOD Formic acid sticky strips. It's natural and won't hang out in your wax and honey, and it kills the mites that are attached to the drones in the cells.

It was miraculous! in 7 days I had over a 2000 mite kill, and very little colateral damage with larvae and bees.

But I now have an oxalic vaporizer which I will use twice a year if need be. We just did a treatment a week ago, will wait two more weeks to see how many mites have dropped. I'll post that event then.

I'll tell ya this.... after the formic acid treatment, my bees were so much more active and happy, more came out for foraging and flights.

[robo]

I have used OAV this past FALL and I had a great affect on the mite population and I have not lost any hives since last winter so I'm going to stick with it for now.

I haven't treated in many years. But until I got to that point,  I tried many, many different treatments, and OA vapor, by far, worked the best for me.

[Crofter]

Oxalic acid vaporization. Have used formic acid MAQs and bulk acid on pads and Hopguard. They are all so much more work to get into the hives and remove. The OA vaporizor slides in the entrance without disturbing the hive and so far have not seen any mortality whatsoever.

[Jen]

I love my Oxalic Vaporizer, so easy. But here is something you have to watch out for.

We treated with the OV a week ago, first time treatment. Did a trial first to watch and see just like instructions mentioned. Then we treated the hive. When I pulled the bowl out it looked like this. We were befuddled. The bowl is crusted with some serious black something or other and dead bees on it. WEIRD. Looked it up and the site said that if you have plastic frames the bowl could melt the plastic into the bowl. That it's best to have a screen bottom board so that you can lower the bowl down away from the plastic frames.

Another reason why I'm switching out to wood frames!

[robo]

Another reason why I'm switching out to wood frames!

Then you get scorched wood on the bottom of the frames.  Don't ask me how I know.

[Crofter]

You do have to watch your wires dont tilt the vaporizer. I reach in with a hook to pull down any ladder comb and clean the floor where the vaporizer will be going. I  think that wax will scorch black too. The odd few bees do wind up in the barbecue pit though. I rationalize that it must be the old senile ones!

[Perry]

MAQS (formic) and if I see any high counts after, Oxalic vapour. The new Quick Strips don't even have to be removed, they're done in 7 days and the bees get rid of them. If Tracheal Mites are an issue it kills them too.
I have only treated in the fall and have yet to treat in the spring. I haven't really noticed any difference from those that treat spring and fall.

[blueblood]

I treat for nothing.

[riverbee]

i haven't treated my bees in about 10 years now, and i have never used oav or the  maqs.  before that tried a number a different treatments.

[brooksbeefarm]

I'm with Blueblood and Squirt, i don't treat for anything. I think breaking up there breeding cycle by making up splits in the spring and taking frames of brood and eggs in late summer to raise queens for fall requeening is the reason i don't have mite problems. Jack

[Jen]

Crofter  ""The odd few bees do wind up in the barbecue pit though. I rationalize that it must be the old senile ones!""

Crofter- I'm thinking that the bees go right to it thinking it's an intruder, then the vaporizer starts and fries them.

OR, it could be that they are attracted to oxalic acid. Ya know, like they are attracted to clorine in a pool.

I don't know, but there is a lot less collateral damage with OAV.

[Jen]

Robo ""Then you get scorched wood on the bottom of the frames.  Don't ask me how I know.""

Better to have scorched wood than scorched plastic. YUK! Like throwing styrofoam cups in the fire pit in camp! YUK!

[Jen]

I do know this! And I've said this before!  I'm only going to have 2 maybe 3 hives. I can't afford to loose one of them due to fluid sucking critters like mites. I just can't stand the thought of mites on my bees, anymore than I would allow leeches on my children. Not gonna do it!

[Crofter]

Jaybird, that was close to the attitude I started with. I had spoken to a retired bee inspector and he said he did not know of any hives in our area that got through the 3rd winter without treatment. That was about 5 years ago and perhaps there has been some changes in genetics and general knowledge of manipulations since that time so maybe the odds have changed a bit. I am slowly reducing treatment levels and watching closely. It is all too easy to get complacent.

That said, everyone has to find the direction they are comfortable with.

[Lburou]

Philosophy aside, I have done one treatment using the H vaporizer.  It vaporized 2 grams of material in less than two minutes.  Using the unit according to the directions, its in there about one unnecessary minute.  So, I leave it on for only two minutes, or slightly more for more than 2 grams.  That may make a difference for you burning or melting frames. 

[Jen]

Nicely put Crofter. I would love to be treatment free. And interesting that the third season is the one where I discovered mites, A Load Of Mites. But my first treatment was Nod Formic Acid sticky strips, which knocked em down fast, and so easy to use. Then from now on I'll keep my eye on the sticky board and use the oa vaporizer.

According to Randy Oliver, if you find 10 mites on your sticky board in one week.... multiply that by ten. That is how many are in the hive draining the precious fluid out of your bees. Yuk! Eew! give me the shivers just thinking about it.

[Crofter]

My understanding is that the seriousness of the mite situation is not directly linked to the numbers of mites found. One of the biggest damages from the mites is inflicted by the viruses they inject when getting their drink of haemolymph. There can be up to 20 different viruses vectored by the mites. Similar to the dear tick / Lyme disease connection. The tick bite is nothing if you dont contract one of the viruses it carries. The virus levels in the mites tends to go up in the second and third years. It appears that there are at least 2 different strains of varroa as well; one is less virulent than the other. What may be a liveable mite load in one circumstance may be a death sentence in another.

Some of these things might have a bearing on why some people can get by without treating in their situation and others can not. It can make for some heated discussion.

[Jen]

Interesting....  pardon my while I go hurl!

The disease part is crucial for sure. But to me it's the fact that the mites are drilling holes into our bees and making them weak. How can the holes in the bees be repaired? they probably aren't repaired.