on the excluder just confussed like always

[paulnewbee1]

I getting more confused about the excluder then I was before. And I know am a confused person on many things. Many of the books I have read say use them here, they say don’t won’t the queen lay brood in the supper? And when you spin out the honey won’t the brood be bad for the honey. I know that it would add a little protein to our diet of honey which is one thing we all need. I just put on my excluder on three days ago tell me why it is not good and maybe I will pull it off. Its made of plastic and it slides around. Also I put a deep box on for the supper because I will be out of town for the next two weeks and know one to check on the hive. Not back until the 21 of July.

Thanks Mr. confussed

[Michael Bush]

You don't extract brood. You put it back on the hive. Odds are if there is any brood in the supers, it will be either a lot of brood, which you will want to leave, or it will be small patches of drone brood (because you didn't let them have drone brood in the brood nest). The queen is not looking to lay all over the hive. The bees want a brood nest that is roughly spherical and all contiguous.

If you really want to use an excluder, do it. But don't be surprised if they don't want to go through the excluder. I would at least let them start drawing comb in the super, before adding the excluder.

[peggjam]

I have mixed feelings about using excluders. If you use the same size frame in all the boxes that comprise the hive, then you can always switch any frames that have brood in them back into the brood chamber. If you don't, then you will need to leave them until the brood hatches out, or take them to extract, and try not to cut the cappings off.

If you want to use an excluder, you can always switch the hive to a top entrance, and that way the field force can bypass the excluder and go right into the super to unload.:)

[kc in wv]

Some people swear by them and others swear at them. It will be you that decides which is best for you.

I don't use them. Generally, the queen will not cross a 2 or 3 inch band of honey to lay eggs. You notice I said generally, this year I have had queens in my strong hives lay eggs wherever they can find a spot. The reason for this is, there has been very little early nectar where my bee's are but lots of pollen so the pollen has been stored in the brood nest of the hive.

I could pull out the excluders and use them to limit the area queens are laying in but it is possible the bee's know more about their needs than I do.

They were probably right, because now that the nectar has started to flow their isn't much pollen coming in with it.

[paulnewbee1]

how do you make a top entrance to the hive I have looked at mikeBush site but can't see how it goes togather \\

one other thing is how to you make a trangle excape board and what is it?

Thanks for all your help today

[peggjam]

You can just shim the cover up, if it's a telescoping cover, you will have to pull all the extra clearance to the front where you have your shims. The girls will figure out what your up to:).

[paulnewbee1]

thanks for the information on the top entarance I will use that

anyone know what a how to you make a trangle excape board and what is it?

I here talk about it but cant find it on a serarch on this site

Thanks all

[WVbeekeeper]

here is a link for the triangle escape board. maybe it would have came up in the search for you if you would have spelled it correctly.

http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/products.asp?pcode=774

[ottebee]

when making a top entrance do you shim under the inner cover or place the inner cover on as usual and add the shim to the top of the inner cover and prop just the top? Can you run a top entrance AND still run the bottom entrance? Will they guard both? This sounds like the best of both worlds. Excluder with a top entrance.

[beegee]

Some beekeepers simply bore holes in the supers for top entrances. The holes can be plugged with corks when you are ready to close them off.

[mwjohnson]

ottebee,
I prop up the top...but jacking up the inner cover would work too, I think.

I run top,bottom,and have auger holes in my brood boxes, all open...on a strong hive it isn't, IMHO, too much for them, and better, again, IMHO, than staggering boxes to create an upper entrance.

Paul,
I use excluders "as needed"...meaning that once the suppers are nicely being worked in, you will find a few hives will have brood in them, in which case, I will make sure that the queen is back down, then install an excluder for a few weeks, on just those colonies, giving the bees time to fill in the cells as the brood hatches, and then remove them the rest of the season, or until I can extract, and that the queen then will not be inclined to cross back up over honey.

I think that this works good.

Mark