Bottom Board Construction

[HarryVanderpool]

I wanted to share a method and design for super-solid bottom board construction that I use annually.
But first an opinion: :D
If you ever plan on moving your hives, especially on a regular basis, FORGET reverseable
bottom boards. They suck!
O.K. , with that out of the way; here's a picture:
http://orsba.proboards27.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=1138729570&page=1
If anyone wants plans (in Auto-CAD) e-mail me.
You'll need to download Volo-View to print.
:cool:

[nursebee]

Looks great.

[George Fergusson]

I've always wondered about the design of the conventional reversible bottom board. Left to my own devices, I certainly wouldn't have come up with that design. Your's is pretty clean looking.

[BjornBee]

BTW, Harry, I paint the inside of my bottom boards. That which is not screen.

[BULLSEYE BILL]

All you need now is a cut out for the screen and a track for the tray. Otherwise they look bulletproof.

[Brett]

OK. Stupid question time.
Why is it necessary to create more room by using rails to lift the hive off the bottom board?
If it is too high how do the bees get onto the frames? Fly up a 1/2"?

From my calculations, on a deep the bottom of the frames are .344" up from the bottom of the box and .218 up on a medium. If you were to add an additional 3/4" above the bottom board that is 1.094 that the bees need to crawl/leap up onto the frames.

Help me understand this.

[Michael Bush]

>OK. Stupid question time.
Why is it necessary to create more room by using rails to lift the hive off the bottom board?
If it is too high how do the bees get onto the frames? Fly up a 1/2"?

This is probably why they often build some burr ladders down to the bottom. But a typical box has only 1/8" at the bottom and that's not enough room. With a lot of traffic in the flow the wider entrance and more cluster space are helpful. The "Old" method when the reversible bottoms were invented were that the shallow side (3/8") went up during the summer and the deep side (3/4") went up during the winter so that the dead bees wouldn't clog the entrance.

Since I've gone to bottom entrances it really doesn't matter. Any more then a 3/4" and you get a lot of burr on the bottom frames. Any less than 1/4" and you don't have a beespace at the bottom and the combs all get propolized down to the bottom. I've done all the way from 1/8" to 3" at the bottom.

[BjornBee]

Hey George, do you know who Harry had make these fine looking bottom boards? :rolleyes:

[HarryVanderpool]

>>>Hey George, do you know who Harry had make these fine looking bottom boards?<<<

I'll tell you who:
The same 3 sorry, overworked, underpaid, schmucks that do all of my work:
Electrical, hydraulic, fabrication, automotive, fieldwork, carpentry, concrete work, pruning, woodcutting, all of this is done by the same 3 guys, and it all better get done right or I come down on them hard!!! I am a stickler for detail!!
Thats why I employ ME, MYSELF, & I. tongue.gif

Here's another picture showing the bottom boards mounted on pallets.
I also have the Auto-CAD drawings of the pallets.
:cool:

http://orsba.proboards27.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=1138839221

[George Fergusson]

>Thats why I employ ME, MYSELF, & I.

Oh! The 3 Stooges smile.gif

[HarryVanderpool]

HEY!
This isn't "Delete Me"
;)

[BjornBee]

Too bad it isn't....

[HarryVanderpool]

tongue.gif

[Chef Isaac]

Harry:

How do you do might counts?

[HarryVanderpool]

>>>"How do you do might counts?"<<<

I prefer PLAIN stickyboards.
We used to use the prorated but feel that the closer you get to zero, the highter the error.
We leave it in for 72 hours for a natural drop count, 24 hours for chemical drop.
:cool: