[SeaCucumber]

I'm a beginner. Determining entrance size and reducing top entrances is difficult.

There are many great devices for reducing bottom entrances. Top entrances have many advantages, but seem more difficult to reduce. I would like to either have tiny bottom entrances or not have them. My top entrances are in my inner covers.

I have reduced top entrances with a putty I made from wax and coconut/olive oil. Unlike a lot of reducers, these ones don't get stuck, break, and fall out much.

Do you do any of these?

1. mold entrances out of wax
2. use reducers that the bees can modify
3. use a cheap, disposable, or recyclable reducer material

I designed an inner cover that is like the common one, with these differences:

1. simpler
2. The rim is on one side.
3. no hole in the middle
4. The entrance is about 2 or 3 inches long.

 

[GregV]

Soft paper plugs work great - toilet paper/paper towels.

Clean.
No work/material needs.
Wet the paper and shape it into anything.
Bee chew through it easily OR propolize as needed.
All it is to it.

 

[SeaCucumber]

I think paper is better for entrances that are not in the inner cover. Wax edible entrance reducers have been working. Do I need non-edible ones?

 

[little_john]

I'm a beginner. Determining entrance size and reducing top entrances is difficult.

Needn't be (imo)

Do you do any of these?

1. mold entrances out of wax No
2. use reducers that the bees can modify No
3. use a cheap, disposable, or recyclable reducer material No

I designed an inner cover that is like the common one, with these differences:

1. simpler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \ Top bee-space system
2. The rim is on one side. / therefore no rim - doesn't get any simpler
3. no hole in the middle How do you feed ? My full-sized hives have four holes, nucs two.
4. The entrance is about 2 or 3 inches long. All of my boxes have 22mm holes drilled in them.

I edited the above, for simplicity.

Drilling holes in every box then allows those holes to be used as entrances, except during the robbing season, when only the bottom entrance - which is protected by an anti-robbing screen - is used.

"I think paper is better for entrances that are not in the inner cover. Wax edible entrance reducers have been working. Do I need non-edible ones?"
Dunno - if your system is working ok - then stick with it. I'm a great believer that there's no such thing as a 'one size fits all' solution to the keeping of honeybees. Whatever works for you is perfectly ok.
Good luck,
LJ