SBB question

[honeyshack]

i'm thinking of using them next year, and talked to a friend and mentor on how to make them.
Anyhow, in our dicussion we were talking about the reason for making them a certain way
...to prevent drone brood from being laid on the bottom of the frames due to to much space between the brood box and the screen
...Wax moths getting in the tray of the SBB and having a hayday cause of all the garbage that fell through the screen

In thinking on wether or not to build these things, I had a thought.

One of the atributes of a good queen is the ability to keep her hive clean. But with a screen bottom board we are taking that away from her. I mean now the bees do not have to clean the bottom of the hive, we do it.

When i look in my hives i am constantly amazed that the real healthy hives are the ones with a real clean bottom board. Are we going to end up breeding that out of them if we always clean the tray in the SBB? Are we going to end up breeding out a job that they do, and make the beekeeper do it? I see alot of talk about genetics when it comes to queens and healthy hives. Is not a queen keeping her hive clean part of those genetics?

just a thought.

[Durandal]

My SBBs are opened to the ground. Anything that drops down falls to the ground through the SBB. When doing checks or sealing up for winter you can run a dado cut or use clips to slide a board underneath.

Its just more equipment to keep up if you have a board underneath and, in part, defeats part of the reasons for using a SBB.

[Brandy]

There's still a lot of debris that doesn't fall to the ground through the SBB's. Like bee's. So they will still have a fair amount of housekeeping to do. I can't imagine not using SBB's at this point in the varoa battle but everyone makes their own decisions. Especially in summer with all the nectar coming in. A seperate slide for each board is not that much extra equipment when the benefits are such that they are. Here's a definite vote to try them.

[standman]

I had a rather lengthy discussion with a fellow beek about whether the SBB affects the bees ability to regulate the temp inside their hive. His theory is that the solid BB allows the bees on the porch to "push" air through the hive, even manipulating the flow of the air with bridge comb so that all of the hive is ventilated evenly. My speculation is that the SBB offers benefits with a trade off. More unassisted air flow (a plus in a warm climate) and some decrease of mite population, while taking away some of the control and responsibility from the bees for temp control and cleaning. The variables for a thorough test are too great to cover: breed of bees, climate, sun exposure, mite levels, IPM practices. IMHO the screened BB are a viable tool for warmer climate beeks and those who have trouble with mites. Your personal experience will tell.

[Tom G. Laury]

I have never used screened bottoms but am considering trying some out. ( pallets )

Don't they propilize the screen?

Will the lighter construction i.e., elimination of the plywood, hold up in the field?

[beemandan]

Don't they propilize the screen?

When using #8 mesh screen they don't seem to propolize except around the edges a bit....in my experience.

[dickm]

I make some pretty good ones out of 2X4s. A saw cut makes a place for a slide and a rabbet creates a place to staple wire.There is no real floor. One can make them on a table saw. Set the saw once and run off a bunch. Cheap too.

dickm