Wow, wow wow Good, good information thank you David I have gone to all screen, bottom boards, and use the slide in corrugated material to slide back in Thank you good info
It's my first year using screen bottom boards and they work controlling SHB, mites, etc. So, I am going to winterize the hives with the screen bottom boards this year, wish me luck 🤞
I use a white plastic pan under the screen to catch the debris, dead beetles, mites, and etc. I use the cheapest cooking oil in the pan, it traps everything in the pan. I clean it every month and refill it with oil. I have very little to no SHB and mite in the 3 hives I have. I made my own screen bottom boards with a groove on each side to slide the pan in and out, it's a tight fit. ENJOYING THE COOL FALL WEATHER ALREADY.
In western Washington moisture is a bigger issue than cold so I use the open screens to help get airflow. I leave the screens open except when treating and have not wrapped a hive so far. Good to hear different perspectives!
I use a screened bottom board with the inspection insert board in place. The gaps seem to allow enough ventilation. That along with thorough mite treatment and an insulation box that I make with pink rigid insulation, have gotten me almost 100% survival for my 16+ hives the past 5 years.
Nick, that's what I use also. Remove in spring and add in october. I've considered an insulation box but I'm not sure. What zone are you in? I'm in 6b and weather is getting crazier and crazier each year.
Great info! I agree that the climate or region you keep your bees in will greatly affect how you keep your bees and what you do. I live in central Oklahoma so my winters are not as bad as they are in the upper Midwest. But I have screened bottoms and just put the IPM boards in during the winter. The "junk" falls out but I believe it helps to prevent drafts through the hive. We do get lots of wind here and I am sure on windy days if wide open it would tend to blow up through the hive some. Last winter I left the screen bottoms with an IPM board in, and a screen top cover. I did wrap the hives for 5 days when they predicted and we did get 3 days of -15 Degrees F weather. But the hives came though winter just fine and I am prepping them now for this winter.
The top entrance idea makes perfect sense… it is a warmer area for the bees to come and go from, close to their overwinter food source, and far from the wastes that get dropped downward through the hive. The idea of “ Keep it simple stupid” has been my guidance through my first year of bee keeping…matching science with survival. It also reminds me of the folks that buy a new Harley and tinker with it from day one…most bee keepers I have found tinker with all these concepts and construction of seasonal hive add ons. I found that I spend less on the hive stuff than on the Harley stuff, and that’s a big plus!
Thanks Roy, and you make a good point. Sometimes, we try every new idea and gadget and hope that will work when just learning all we can to understand bees might be the solution.
Great idea I’ve been trying to work it out how to get more ventilation in the hive, An air hole around the bottom board works well. My bottom board was really wet last time I went in the hive. Go for it with the question and answers thing. Just make sure you are in control it can get out of hand like anything on the Internet.
Solid advice. (South Texas) I pull the plastic sliding board out from my screened bottom board whenever I go down to visit the hives in the winter. The entrances are down to the small 1" slot. It's amazing to me how much capping and debris fall down in a short time. I'm still working on how much ventilation is too much. The presence of mildew on the walls in the spring tells me I should be using more.
I just got my hive last week and even though I don’t have my bees yet, I was wondering about. My hive came with a screen bottom, and not a solid board. I now feel better about just keeping the screen. Thanks!
Thanks Heather. Screen bottom boards have worked TONS better for me. When I first started beekeeping we only had solid bottom boards, so screens are so much better for me. But winter does make many feel like the hive is too open, so we can calm our fears and wind block it or slide something in there if it helps us sleep better 😴
One of my projects I’ve got in the queue right now is to make a “demonstration” hive out of lexan. It’s not something I’m going to keep bees in but I’m going to use it to use it for demonstrations to show things like airflow under different configurations like open bottom, solid bottom, lower entrance, upper entrance, both entrances, and happens during an OA treatment etc. I have an almost endless supply of small pieces of lexan from work that are the perfect size to make boxes out of so it’s not going to cost me much other than time. If it works out like I think it will I’ll put together a set of videos.
This is some good advice/ info, I got 2 screened bottom boards for both my hives and they both have a 1/4 inch mite control board that doubles as a solid bottom board for winter
I run screened bottom boards and leave them like that for winter. I do however tend to let the grass get door high around the hives, and don't cut it until spring. So it's sort of a natural wind break for the bottom of the hive.
My screened bottom boards have a space to slide a corrugated piece in, but it covers the whole bottom when it's slid in, there are no gaps around the edges. Would you advise cutting it down to provide those gaps? I currently have the board in to monitor mite drop, but I think I could still get a good idea of mite drop even if the board was a bit smaller. Or I could just make a couple of smaller boards for my hives. I do think this would be a good idea for my hives, since I'm in Southern NYS and our winters have extremely variable temperatures lately, from 60°F days to 0°F days, sometimes within the same week, and I definitely don't want them to get too hot or too cold.
I built a screen bottom board that I seen on another channel and it has space to fit a 2" foam insulation just in case my winter gets crazy. If you live in Michigan you know what I mean
Hello David just found this video an ya it is a little older but I liked to topic an your response on it . I have just about all my colonies are screen bottom an I really like them . For me I think they have so many more uses for them over a wood bottom 😅😅😅 l
I slide my mite monitoring board in for the winter, not sure if that helps or hurts. Still having challenges on getting a hive through the winter. Ny winters are tough!
You should go check out Etienne Tardif's page. He overwinters with high success in the Yukon and gives detailed instruction on how to insulate so the bees can stay warm with minimal caloric intake.
Great video David. what about using screened bottom board but inserting the IPM board under the screen to cut down on wind? Perhaps only slide it in 80% so there's some air flow... Thanks.
I started to follow your account. I love coffee time. I’m a firefighter for 23.5 years so far… coffee time is therapeutic. I do however have a bee question…… I own 6 hives. 2 lines of 3 hives….. my middle bigger colony (a deep & 3 supers…. A little short of a month ago i inspected the hive and didn’t find any eggs. There was quite a bit of capped brood, nectar and pollen. I found a few queen cells. I found the queen so I started to get rid of the cells when the queen emerged in front of me. I let her into the hive and closed it up. Fast forward 3 weeks, (yesterday) there was no more capped brood, found the queen and no eggs. Could she be the newly mated queen? I found no eggs. There’s room for her to lay…. Plenty of nectar…. But no eggs! A friend said wait a week to see if she starts to lay…. If there’s no capped brood a week seems dangerous to me…. Hopefully I painted the picture ok for you…. Would you requeen? I’m in SWFL. Thanks!!!
I have a question here: Many, many times I find dead bees covering the lower entrance of hives when it is cold out. I can remove these dead bees and maybe a week later they are right back there. My question is would it be possible that the bees use the dead bees to block off the hole ????
I've been using super DFM for a few years now and I think it helps. The inside the hive channel has a good video on it. I'm in north central Wisconsin and have colder weather than David. But of course nothing is better than a hive that's very clean of mites.
I just found a lot of wax moth larva in my frame sugar water feeder. I have not found much help on getting rid of them. My hive is border line strong but only one deep box. Do they have any chance of survival?
Are you sure they are wax moths larvae and not small hive beetle larvae? SHB larvae are about 1/2 with spikes on top and wax moths larvae are longer, no spikes and about 3/4 of an inch to an inch.
This is a very interesting subject as apple cider vinegar has a very acidic content which has been show in some bee research to destroy some viruses. Since this is difficult to control, measure and obtain the correct dosage, it is risky to speculate or make claims. Also apple cider vinegar attracts wasps and beetles.
Wow, wow wow
Good, good information thank you David
I have gone to all screen, bottom boards, and use the slide in corrugated material to slide back in
Thank you good info
Glad it was helpful!
It's my first year using screen bottom boards and they work controlling SHB, mites, etc. So, I am going to winterize the hives with the screen bottom boards this year, wish me luck 🤞
I use a white plastic pan under the screen to catch the debris, dead beetles, mites, and etc. I use the cheapest cooking oil in the pan, it traps everything in the pan. I clean it every month and refill it with oil. I have very little to no SHB and mite in the 3 hives I have. I made my own screen bottom boards with a groove on each side to slide the pan in and out, it's a tight fit. ENJOYING THE COOL FALL WEATHER ALREADY.
In western Washington moisture is a bigger issue than cold so I use the open screens to help get airflow. I leave the screens open except when treating and have not wrapped a hive so far. Good to hear different perspectives!
Good to hear how you do it. You're right, different for all people.
Do you leave in the mite board or just open altogether?
I use a screened bottom board with the inspection insert board in place. The gaps seem to allow enough ventilation. That along with thorough mite treatment and an insulation box that I make with pink rigid insulation, have gotten me almost 100% survival for my 16+ hives the past 5 years.
Nick, that's what I use also. Remove in spring and add in october. I've considered an insulation box but I'm not sure. What zone are you in? I'm in 6b and weather is getting crazier and crazier each year.
Great info! I agree that the climate or region you keep your bees in will greatly affect how you keep your bees and what you do. I live in central Oklahoma so my winters are not as bad as they are in the upper Midwest. But I have screened bottoms and just put the IPM boards in during the winter. The "junk" falls out but I believe it helps to prevent drafts through the hive. We do get lots of wind here and I am sure on windy days if wide open it would tend to blow up through the hive some. Last winter I left the screen bottoms with an IPM board in, and a screen top cover. I did wrap the hives for 5 days when they predicted and we did get 3 days of -15 Degrees F weather. But the hives came though winter just fine and I am prepping them now for this winter.
Great! Thanks Keith for subscribing too!!
The top entrance idea makes perfect sense… it is a warmer area for the bees to come and go from, close to their overwinter food source, and far from the wastes that get dropped downward through the hive. The idea of “ Keep it simple stupid” has been my guidance through my first year of bee keeping…matching science with survival. It also reminds me of the folks that buy a new Harley and tinker with it from day one…most bee keepers I have found tinker with all these concepts and construction of seasonal hive add ons. I found that I spend less on the hive stuff than on the Harley stuff, and that’s a big plus!
Thanks Roy, and you make a good point. Sometimes, we try every new idea and gadget and hope that will work when just learning all we can to understand bees might be the solution.
Great idea I’ve been trying to work it out how to get more ventilation in the hive, An air hole around the bottom board works well. My bottom board was really wet last time I went in the hive. Go for it with the question and answers thing. Just make sure you are in control it can get out of hand like anything on the Internet.
Solid advice. (South Texas) I pull the plastic sliding board out from my screened bottom board whenever I go down to visit the hives in the winter. The entrances are down to the small 1" slot. It's amazing to me how much capping and debris fall down in a short time. I'm still working on how much ventilation is too much. The presence of mildew on the walls in the spring tells me I should be using more.
I just got my hive last week and even though I don’t have my bees yet, I was wondering about. My hive came with a screen bottom, and not a solid board. I now feel better about just keeping the screen. Thanks!
Thanks Heather. Screen bottom boards have worked TONS better for me. When I first started beekeeping we only had solid bottom boards, so screens are so much better for me. But winter does make many feel like the hive is too open, so we can calm our fears and wind block it or slide something in there if it helps us sleep better 😴
One of my projects I’ve got in the queue right now is to make a “demonstration” hive out of lexan. It’s not something I’m going to keep bees in but I’m going to use it to use it for demonstrations to show things like airflow under different configurations like open bottom, solid bottom, lower entrance, upper entrance, both entrances, and happens during an OA treatment etc. I have an almost endless supply of small pieces of lexan from work that are the perfect size to make boxes out of so it’s not going to cost me much other than time. If it works out like I think it will I’ll put together a set of videos.
Sounds interesting
I leave them open all Winter in summer my bees do great. I am a North Texas
I thank you for putting out all the videos. I enjoy watching your content. Thanks David
Thank you Chuck, I appreciate that!
This is some good advice/ info, I got 2 screened bottom boards for both my hives and they both have a 1/4 inch mite control board that doubles as a solid bottom board for winter
Thank you!
I run screened bottom boards and leave them like that for winter. I do however tend to let the grass get door high around the hives, and don't cut it until spring. So it's sort of a natural wind break for the bottom of the hive.
Unless that is some impressively thick grass, you might consider a better wind block.
I think you can do the live stream, I’m a new bee keeper , I watch you a lot. I make mistakes, I enjoy, I’m learning, I’ll do better next time
My screened bottom boards have a space to slide a corrugated piece in, but it covers the whole bottom when it's slid in, there are no gaps around the edges. Would you advise cutting it down to provide those gaps? I currently have the board in to monitor mite drop, but I think I could still get a good idea of mite drop even if the board was a bit smaller. Or I could just make a couple of smaller boards for my hives. I do think this would be a good idea for my hives, since I'm in Southern NYS and our winters have extremely variable temperatures lately, from 60°F days to 0°F days, sometimes within the same week, and I definitely don't want them to get too hot or too cold.
I built a screen bottom board that I seen on another channel and it has space to fit a 2" foam insulation just in case my winter gets crazy. If you live in Michigan you know what I mean
Thanks for all the good info! You make awesome videos! Keep up the good work👍
I appreciate that Nathan, Thank you! 😄
Hello David just found this video an ya it is a little older but I liked to topic an your response on it . I have just about all my colonies are screen bottom an I really like them . For me I think they have so many more uses for them over a wood bottom 😅😅😅 l
Yes, that video is really not that old. I have some dating back to 14 years ago 😃
I slide my mite monitoring board in for the winter, not sure if that helps or hurts. Still having challenges on getting a hive through the winter. Ny winters are tough!
Yep, just work hard to get lots of bees of winter physiology. And WOW, thanks for being a subscriber for 2 years!!!
You should go check out Etienne Tardif's page. He overwinters with high success in the Yukon and gives detailed instruction on how to insulate so the bees can stay warm with minimal caloric intake.
Great video David. what about using screened bottom board but inserting the IPM board under the screen to cut down on wind? Perhaps only slide it in 80% so there's some air flow... Thanks.
Perfect
Thank you David for your informative videos.
You're welcome Stanley!
Learning a lot from the ultimate be keeping course. Thanks! I’m using Super DFM Probiotics worth it or worthless?
I would think the bees need a little ventilation below the frames but nothing passing through the cluster in winter.
I like space below the cluster so things can fall out, and a bit of ventilation at the top so stale moist air can escape from the top
I started to follow your account. I love coffee time. I’m a firefighter for 23.5 years so far… coffee time is therapeutic. I do however have a bee question…… I own 6 hives. 2 lines of 3 hives….. my middle bigger colony (a deep & 3 supers…. A little short of a month ago i inspected the hive and didn’t find any eggs. There was quite a bit of capped brood, nectar and pollen. I found a few queen cells. I found the queen so I started to get rid of the cells when the queen emerged in front of me. I let her into the hive and closed it up. Fast forward 3 weeks, (yesterday) there was no more capped brood, found the queen and no eggs. Could she be the newly mated queen? I found no eggs. There’s room for her to lay…. Plenty of nectar…. But no eggs! A friend said wait a week to see if she starts to lay…. If there’s no capped brood a week seems dangerous to me…. Hopefully I painted the picture ok for you…. Would you requeen? I’m in SWFL. Thanks!!!
Hi Jason, your friend has good advice. You should have drones in southwest Florida. So you need to check again in a week.
@@beek ok perfect, there are drones…. Thanks Dave!
@@beek I couldn’t wait a week!!!! I checked today…. (Drumroll…….) WE GOT EGGS! She’s a laying machine!
Love the bloopers!
I have a question here: Many, many times I find dead bees covering the lower entrance of hives when it is cold out. I can remove these dead bees and maybe a week later they are right back there. My question is would it be possible that the bees use the dead bees to block off the hole ????
So I guess in the warmer months there is no reason for that bottom board?
Learning a lot from the ultimate 🐝keeping course. Thanks! I’m using Super DFM Probiotics worth it or worthless?
I've been using super DFM for a few years now and I think it helps. The inside the hive channel has a good video on it. I'm in north central Wisconsin and have colder weather than David. But of course nothing is better than a hive that's very clean of mites.
If treating with oxalic acid vap, should you take the winter bee kind off? Or is it ok to leave it on.
Good question
Off!
@@beek why is that
Thanks for some good ideas!
Thanks Garry!
Would you block off the bottom entrance even if you're using a single brood box.
I could go either way
Screen bottom board!
I just found a lot of wax moth larva in my frame sugar water feeder. I have not found much help on getting rid of them. My hive is border line strong but only one deep box. Do they have any chance of survival?
Are you sure they are wax moths larvae and not small hive beetle larvae? SHB larvae are about 1/2 with spikes on top and wax moths larvae are longer, no spikes and about 3/4 of an inch to an inch.
@@beek after looking at pictures & videos, I am pretty sure they are shb.
However I have never had very many here in Lawrence KS.
Does anybody feed apple cider vinegar to their bees or is this a bad idea
This is a very interesting subject as apple cider vinegar has a very acidic content which has been show in some bee research to destroy some viruses. Since this is difficult to control, measure and obtain the correct dosage, it is risky to speculate or make claims. Also apple cider vinegar attracts wasps and beetles.