Brood Comb Colapse Inside My Top Bar Hive!

**honeybeekeeper** · 06-12-2010, 08:19 PM

Hi, Tonight i walked over to my top bar hive to find out why there was alot of bees hanging out the front and flying around the TBH differently then usual and when i looked in the observation window i could tell that comb had broke off one of the top bars...Either bar #1 or #2 which is right at the beginning in the brood area where they first started drawing comb when i first installed the feral swarm May 8th! my biggest question is how long do i have to fix this issue???? Im gonna fix it here soon if thats what is normally is done. What do you usually do in a situation like this??? Do u tie it up and hope that they will fix it or do they usually let it go and its not worth the trouble??? I havent had to fix one before so i was wanting to ask someone that experienced a situation like this...So if you actually had a situation like this i would like to hear any suggestions! I would hate for a comb of brood to go to waste. I read an article somewhere online that the temp was always regulated on the brood by the bees so thats some of the reasons why im not sure if the broke brood comb is ok or not!

**Mike S** · 06-13-2010, 09:38 AM

Good luck on your repair!

**honeybeekeeper** · 06-13-2010, 10:13 AM

Thanks Mike...I got everything prepared ahead of time, now i just gotta open it up and look at the extent of the situation. But first i have to feed the other hives "again"! They are putting down more feed now!

**charmd2** · 06-14-2010, 01:24 PM

you can take a needle and thread and sew it back onto the top bar. the bees will reattach it.

**Wyldbee** · 06-14-2010, 01:34 PM

I have considered using a strip of gauze and making a hammock type sling for the comb if this were to happen when I am doing maintenance. thankfully I have not had to do it but I think it may work. Take the strip of gauze, cut to proper length, staple one end to the top bar then run it along the bottom then staple it to the other end of the bar. The bees should reattach it then dispose of the gauze on their own

Brood comb is always worth saving in my book!

**honeybeekeeper** · 06-14-2010, 02:14 PM

I went ahead and come up with an idea yesterday when i seen that i wasnt getting any replies here on beesource.com. I used some strips of 1/4 hardware mesh wire that i had on the side and stapled it right to the top bar, i set the 2 pieces of brood comb and stapled the strips on the other side. I snipped off the excess up top. When the brood comb fell it must of went down on an angle and when it hit the Screened Bottom it buckled it into 2 pieces right on top of each other. It came 1/4" inch from the entrance hole, i say if it was any closer it would of blocked the entrance hole and the bees would of been really upset. I do know one thing, they did not like it when my hand was reaching for the brood comb, i think i heard 3 different pitches of buzzing and each one got louder but the weird part is that they calmed down once i lowered it back into its regular position. Its been really hot here lately, still is!! Temp might say 92 deg but it feels like 103 deg...I also took notice that my bees arent touching the fresh water i have right there for them, they are flying 25 extra yards to 4 old rubber tires that i have on the back of my old 68 chevy pickup. The tires have old leaves & rain water inside that they prefer much better, they was flying in 20-25 bees at a time and right back to the TBH...hahaha

**DroneDawg** · 06-14-2010, 02:26 PM

If it happens again you may want to try this. When I do a cut out I take 4"x5" welded wire, cut it to length and width so I can fold it over a frame and it makes a basket. Insert the comb and zip tie to the top bar. Works good for me.

**DroneDawg** · 06-14-2010, 02:27 PM

Sorry I think its 2 1/2 x 5 wire. Not at home to measure but you get the idea.

**honeybeekeeper** · 06-14-2010, 03:02 PM

Pretty much what i did but i used 1/4 hardware wire cut into strips and i stapled the ends along the top bar. Just enough to form a basket to hold the comb! it was no big deal, im sure there is a better way! Im just glad the job is done, the bees pretty much was cleaning up all around the edges so it wasnt as heavy as i assumed it would be. They was in the process of fixing it themselves...hahaha

**Wyldbee** · 06-14-2010, 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by honeybeekeeper

.I also took notice that my bees arent touching the fresh water i have right there for them, they are flying 25 extra yards to 4 old rubber tires that i have on the back of my old 68 chevy pickup. The tires have old leaves & rain water inside that they prefer much better, they was flying in 20-25 bees at a time and right back to the TBH...hahaha

I have a bird bath with gravel in it for them. They were not drinking the water from it at first so I added just a few bits of rock salt to the bath. I have not seen anymore mosquito larvae in it and now they are drinking it. I do not plan to add anymore but just to refill it as needed.

I am glad you got the comb re-attached. Excellent

**honeybeekeeper** · 06-14-2010, 06:43 PM

Thats what i'll look into is a bird bath of some sort...You say you added Rock salt to the water??? How much rock salt per gallon of water do you add??

I say them 4 ole rubber tires have mosquito larvae and everything else in there....Them tires been sitting in there for over a yr cause i dont use the truck anymore! and like i mentioned i have fresh water at all times right there at their hive. one container is an old stainless steel 2 1/2 quart stove pot! I have a few wood chips floating on top so the bees wont drown.

**Wyldbee** · 06-15-2010, 06:03 AM

Originally Posted by honeybeekeeper

Thats what i'll look into is a bird bath of some sort...You say you added Rock salt to the water??? How much rock salt per gallon of water do you add??

I did not actually measure it. Sorry. I would say that 1/4tsp is pretty close to what I placed directly to the bath. Salt does not evaporate so do not add it again.

I rinsed the pea gravel well before putting it in the bird bath to remove all powdered sediment. I fill the bath up just enough to wet the gravel and keep it moist for a few days. The bath is in the shade of a few saplings as are the hives. The hives are painted white on the tops, with screened bottom boards. I will post a pic if you want.

They have not had any problems with heat build up and comb collapse thus far. I hope they don't but July and August will be the true test! It gets very hot here. They are set in a field to get ample sun and just at the edge of the saplings. I mainly tend to them between 10:00 and 11:00 A.M. so I will be less apt to break the comb from the bars.

**honeybeekeeper** · 06-15-2010, 06:59 PM

Yeah pictures are always good!..

My OTBH and my 2 hives are facing east, they are about 4 feet away from a fence line of tall rasberry trees. The tree limbs were trimmed to give the hives enough sun during the day to control unwanted insects. By around 3:30pm-4:00pm the sun is above the tree line and the hives are in full shade. At first without timming any limbs they was only having direct sunlight up to about 11am. During that time i had alot of unwanted ant issues. Now i dont have any more ant issues but here lately in i say the last 4-5 straight days its been 90-93 deg but the heat index is whats through the roof, with adding the heat index/Humidity it actually feels like 103 deg! So far i have only seen just one bar comb colapse, all the others are still attached! I know its been really hot cause they pretty much tell me around 3pm by flying around the hive and they fly back and forth to the old farm truck to gather up the water inside them ole tires! That water is nasty and here i give them fresh water and they would much rather get that nasty water out of them ole tires.."Yuck"...hahaha

**Sam-Smith** · 06-16-2010, 07:13 AM

I know a guy that uses salt in his bee water, he pokes a hole in a bucket letting it drip onto a board bees love this for some reason. The gauze idea is a very good one imho, simple to implement effective and much easier then tying comb to the top bar.

**Wyldbee** · 06-17-2010, 04:51 PM

http://www.shutterfly.com/lightbox/v...#1276814666606

Here are my pictures, Honeybeekeeper. I only have the one with the bottom down inhabited. The other hive absconded when I installed them. These bees are doing awesome. I noticed when I was taking the pix that there is mosquito larvae in the bath again

I do not want to dump it because the bees are enjoying it now but, I don't want to breed mosquitoes either. What to do!

Sorry for sending the whole site. I' m still getting use to posting pictures.