[coontail]

im going to pickup 5 hives 100 mi away. i plan to ratchet strap the hives, then load them on the pickup after dark with entrances facing the tailgate. will this be o.k? anything else i need to do?

 

[Beeslave]

Sounds good. You may want to run a strap over the tops of the hives to keep them from sliding. Place them all the way to the front of your bed. 3 hives in front and 2 centerd up tight to them. All entrances facing back. That way if you have to stop quick they will not slide.

 

[Bighorn06]

My mentor came to help me prep a hive for moving, he had some hive staples. They are about 2" wide and 3/4" deep staples, they cross the bottom board to the first box, first box to the second and so on. Once the hive is stapled together on all corners and the top is nailed down, and the entrance is blocked. It is a breeze to move with a hand truck.

I had another hive that I strapped together, and moved with a hand truck. It was a mess.

I ordered a box of hive staples from Brushy Mountain.

Good Luck
Tony

 

[honeyman46408]

I dont move many but when I do I use ratchet straps around the hive sides NOT front to back, the staples sounds like to much banging on the hive to me but thats just me, oh the straps make a good place to lift too.

 

[Batman]

Agreed that while the staples from our point of view seem great, banging on the hive is just going to make the bees mad, and yes, even at night they will fly and sting, specially the person that is holding the light.

Craig

 

[Bighorn06]

I forgot to mention that we nailed the hives together and prepared them during the day, with smokers and suits. Then came back later, after the girls went to bed, and closed the entrance and moved the hives.

We had been into the hives, removed every frame and put them into new boxes. The old boxes were rotted. So the bees were already very stirred up, but not aggressive. Hammering the nails didnt bother them anymore than the re-boxing.

 

[BEES4U]

Closed the entrance:
I hope that you used a piece of 1/8" hardware cloth and not a board!
You might consider making a hole in the cover and staple a piece of hardware cloth over it so that the bees can move air into the entrance and blow it out the top.

BTW: hive staples can allow the bottom to shift and they have a tendency to shift or pull out!
If you use the hive staples attach them in this manner. / for the back of the hive and the reverse for the front of the hive.
Good luck.
Ernie

 

[Cedar Hill]

Used staples for many years. Eventually those wooden areas become "soft", esp. on the bottom board and the staples don't hold for long trips or when the hive is turned on the truck's bed. Straps dont damage or alter the supers in any way so as to cause weak bottom areas where the bees eventually will find holes in the wood. Both methods are good with experienced help. Note that most of your commercial beeks use straps. Leave your truck's motot running while taking the hives off. The motor's vibration seems to have a calming effect on the load. OMTCW

 

[Cedar Hill]

Forgot to mention, the beekeeper's best friend - a roll of toilet paper. As Ernie stated use 1/8" screening. Stiff window screening does the trick. Fold in V shape after it has been cut to the size of the entrance. The ends of the screen are then stuffed with toilet paper. Removing the screen becomes very simple, a puff of smoke and zip. Toilet paper is also used to plug up any holes that the bees may insist on using or lighting up the bottom of roll-up cardboard in the smoker or any other emergencies one encounters on a bee trip. OMTCW

 

[Damonh]

make sure the hives have lots of ventilation. Do a good inspection as soon as you get them to your location. Remove any broken comb frames etc. that ooze honey if bees get drenched with the honey they will die. You could replace any broken comb with new frames and feed the older frames at a later date.

 

[sqkcrk]

anything else i need to do?

Sounds like you have things pretty much under control. You may want to be sure to fill up your fuel tank before you load. Other than that, sounds like you aught to be alright.