!/4" mesh is the size to use. Bees go through it fine but mice can't quite squeeze down that small, so it works great.

 

I like 1/2"....I think the bees lose less pollen.

 

I have watched mice squeeze through 1/2" with no problem.

 

I believe that mice (at least some of them) can get through 1/2" hardware cloth.

The NY Dept of Health says ...

Mice are much smaller than rats, but they can still do a lot of damage. They destroy food, books, furniture and even appliances with their gnawing, urine and droppings. Worse, mice in the home have been linked to a number of human diseases, including asthma. Because of their small size, they can fit through crevices as small as 1/4 inch wide, making them hard to control.

http://www.health.ny.gov/publications/3206/

Note that the holes in 1/4" hardware cloth are slightly smaller than 1/4" due to the diameter of the wire.

 

Interesting....1/2 seems plenty small....guess the 40 mouse guards I just made would be better used as kindling! Most are on hives already...will let you know how it worked out in the spring. Better go with the 1/4" LampBurner.

 

Maybe he will chime in here but I'm pretty sure Michael Palmer uses 1/2 x1/2. 1/4 makes it hard for them to get dead bees out. I've had mouse damage, but never through a 3/8" entrance reducer - just lucky?

 

For Michael Palmer's mouse guards see post #26:

http://www.beesource.com/forums/sho...howthread.php?290052-Workable-mouse-guard&p=1015934&highlight=mouse#post1015934

Note that while he is using 1/2" cloth, he is folding it into a Vee shape. That effectively reduces the size of the hardware cloth holes once inserted into a hive entrance.

 

I've used 1/4" before, but removed two vertical (a few inches apart) wires to make the openings 1/4" x 1/2". Still made it hard to remove the dead bees.
I now switched to 1/2" for this winter season. We will see how it goes. Our mice are real fattys here, so I doubt they will be able to squeeze through.

 

Our mice are real fattys here, so I doubt they will be able to squeeze through.

Mine are fatter than yours.

 

1/4 or 1/2 inch slot is not the same as a 1/4 or 1/2 inch square, I would really like to see a mouse fit through a 1/2 x 1/2 inch square hole. I have always used 1/2 inch hardware cloth with no problem.

Michael, I have never seen a brindle colored mouse before, very interesting .

 

Most of the time if a mouse can get his head in it will fit through.Look like if its back feet is mid air they can't get through LOL

You use 3 mesh galvanized hardware cloth for mouse guards

http://www.tinyurl.com/mzoe6pd


BEE HAPPY Jim 134

 

I drive an upright row of thin nails in the entrance reducer slot. Space about 5/16" apart.

 

Back before I had top entrances, I used 1/4" hardware cloth with good results. A mouse can squeeze through a 1/4" wide crack but not a 1/4" by 1/4" square... they have to flatten themselves pretty well to get through the 1/4" crack and then they are much wider than 1/4".