Black Mold Problem
My hives are in south Texas and with recent rains the black mold has returned on the landing boards and outsides of my hives.
In the past I have used a concentration of 2 ½ cups bleach, 3/4 cup Jomax to 3 1/3 quarts of water. After several hours, I rinse the surfaces with a 3 parts water to 1 part Bleach solution and wait a couple more hours before rinsing them with plain water. If the weather is warm and dry enough to dry the cleaned hive boxes and landing boards, I give them a couple coats of paint.
The mold problem causes a lot of work and I am not really sure if I am killing all of it since the problem seems to return when the weather turns wet.
I have read that glossy latex paint is less likely to encourage mold. I have been told that KILZ does not stop mold. My questions are:
Is there a mold resistant treatment for hives? Is there an easier way to clean, prepare and retune the hive boxes and landing boards to service in the bee yard?