Easy way to add entrance above excluder

[dixiedogger]

I am very new. I had my queen get up in my honey so I moved her back down and put on an excluder. Now I am concerned I am messing up my productivity. I read an article on Bee Source about using an entrance above the excluder and just putting in a bee escape for droans on the bottom. My question how do you put an entrance above the excluder exactly and can I just permanently put my entrance reducer on the bottom for the droans? Will this work for the droans? Can skunks still get through the entrance reducer? Anything else I should consider about this? I have some hives with a screen bottom and some with a solid. Can this be done on both?

[cphilip]

An Imirie Shim is an easy way to do it...

Here is an example.

http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/prodinfo.asp?number=211

[jasontatro]

An Imirie Shim is an easy way to do it...


I've basically done the same thing to my excluder. Just cut a notch in it. That way the field bees don't have to fight their way through the brood chambers to get to the super.

JT

[dixiedogger]

Two questions

How do these affect bee space?

This seems like a very small opening. Does it replace the bottom opening?

[cphilip]

Not that I am aware of Dixie, it just creates a new opening at whatever Supers you place it between. Or perhaps you place it over the Queen Excluder (assuming you use one of those) and it creates a place for them to enter there and yet the bottom opening of the bottom board is still there plus the top opening of the inner cover (assuming you use one of those) still exists. And this opening (the notch in the inner cover) are about the same size as this Shim one is.

I am told the theory is to get the bees right to the place of work quicker rather than having to negotiate the rest of the hive to get there and a side benefit being some ventilation too. I would imagine it would indeed create some burr comb between the frames above and below though. I never have used these though so I will just have to assume it would. Maybe someone can pipe up and confirm that.