Dadant Hives

[BeeKing]

Hello Everyone,

I am a new beekeeper in France. I am just ordering new equipment for next spring and they really push the Dadant Hives in this country. Some bee suppliers only provide workers and queen in a type of Nuc box that only fit Dadant hives making it a little more difficult to order bees.

I read the earlier questions regarding Dadant hives, but am leaning towards Langstroth hives. Other than weight and inspection difficulties, are there other disadvantages? Are Dadant hives used like Langstroths? I notice that it comes with only one deep body and a riser? unlike the Langstroth that has 2 deep bodies.

[Michael Bush]

>I am a new beekeeper in France.

Welcome.

>I am just ordering new equipment for next spring and they really push the Dadant Hives in this country.

They not only don't pus them here, you can't even find any of it anymore.

>Some bee suppliers only provide workers and queen in a type of Nuc box that only fit Dadant hives making it a little more difficult to order bees.

That does limit you.

>I read the earlier questions regarding Dadant hives, but am leaning towards Langstroth hives.

Sometimes it's not worth bucking the systm.

>Other than weight and inspection difficulties, are there other disadvantages?

I think the advantage to the Dadant (for you) is it seems to be the standard, you have all the brood on one level so you don't have to lift a deep box to inspect, and the queen lays a nice pattern on those big combs.

>Are Dadant hives used like Langstroths?

Well, basically it IS a Lanstroth, just two inches deeper.

>I notice that it comes with only one deep body and a riser? unlike the Langstroth that has 2 deep bodies.

Assuming we are all using the same terminology, a Lanstroth Deep, here, is a 9 5/8" (24,45cm) hive body with a 9 1/4" (23,5cm)frame.

Typically here, people run either one, two or three deeps for the winter. Some run a deep and a shallow (5 3/4") or a deep and a medium (6 5/8").

A Dadant deep FRAME is 11 1/4", 2" deeper than the regular deep. A Dadant deep hive was originally 19 7/8" by 19 7/8" which is square and holds 12 standard width frames. But sometimes Dadant deep frames are put in a Langstroth sized box that is Dadant deep depth. So then it's 16 1/4" by 19 7/8" b7 11 5/8" and holds 10 frames. If you have the square box, you need either square supers or you'll have to put a board on the side to cover the extra 3 5/8".

Either way, most people running Dadant deep frames have only one brood chamber and winter in that.

In my opinion, I would rather run the sqaure Dadant deep for a brood box than two Langstroth deeps, because of the difference in lifting and because the queen seems to lay more effeciently and since that one large box is on the bottom you don't have to lift it to work the hive. But here you have the fact that the equipment is hard to find.

I actually run all my hives, except for one that is Dadant deeps, in all mediums. The brood nest is three or four medium boxes and they are easier to lift.

The Dadant deep hive I have right now, I built and it is 32 1/2" long which is 22 frames. I swarmed last Saturday when it wasn't even full. http://www.beesource.com/ubb/frown.gif

But it started as a 2 pound package in mid April and has done very well.