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    Simon the beekeeper closing down sale

    My order arrived today, QX’s and jacket suits with spare hoods and a strainer. The two medium full suits at £2 each and the three poly Nuc brood boxes were out of stock and I received a refund. Shame their online stock system didn’t show this at the time of purchase, but under the circumstances...
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    A few questions from a would be beekeeper.

    Hi Bluebell1985, welcome. It may seem a huge step to choose your first type and size of hive but it’s not impossible to change later, just awkward. If you buy prolific bees in a good forage and weather area then the larger brood box would work. I started with Buckfasts bred in Yorkshire and they...
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    Efficient requeening / Easy queen replacement

    I have a queen to find and dispatch on The Hive From Hell, on double brood and couldn’t find her last year on numerous occasions. I’ll check the rebate on the bottom of the box first, thanks for the tip! :) courty
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    What did you do in the Apiary today?

    Put supers on three hives in an apiary in the sun, all out flying and lovely to see. I still haven’t inspected yet due to the cold weather, I won’t have another chance for the next week so hopefully I can relax and know they have plenty of room to play with for a while. On one hive they had...
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    Inspecting quietly?

    I don’t think I have ever experienced no brace comb between the top of the frames and the gap to the above crown board feeder. They just do it, I don’t think it shows lack of space, more a sensible use of a space with food source close by.
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    Rooftop beekeeping for a company?

    I haven’t ever done it but did look into it at my own work place. The main issues that would need to be addressed are carrying the bees up onto the roof and on occasion back off it. How would you be covered if they escaped en route on a stairwell or in a lift etc if someone tripped or some other...
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    Paradise or abelo poly national.

    Ericbeaumont’s suggestion “How about a DIY wood floor, new design Abelo boxes, a DIY crownboard and an old design Abelo roof?” is spot on, sorry, couldn’t work out how to quote it properly. I’m making wooden under entrances as per JBM’s plans for my apiary with the big wasp problem. The Abelo...
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    Dead bees around hive

    First day of flying for my bees, I watched them remove their dead and also one that wasn’t quite dead, they could be mistaken for fighting. there are a lot of dead that have built up on the hive floor during the prolonged cold spell here in Yorkshire, I’m not too far north of you. Today is their...
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    Looking for a reliable gas burner

    Thanks for the replies. It appears that all the attachments for my canisters are plastic at the fitting, even the one hemo recommends. I may be better off getting one of those smaller ones for browning Creme brûlée that refill with lighter gas for my smoker, cheap and small, and get something...
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    Looking for a reliable gas burner

    Hi, I am looking for a gas burner torch head that will fit on the canister shown in the picture. I have gone through two standard plastic ones, as shown, which break or leak gas after a few weeks use. Does anyone know of a reliable head that will last and be safe? The ones I bought were online...
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    Propolis collection, role in hive hygiene & webinar

    I tried your method earlier this year to coat the inside of bait hives. One worked, a bait hive made out of an Ikea bedside cabinet, the other didn’t, so a decent return. I have to say though, to my nose the resulting smell has a distinctive chemical odour. On that basis I haven’t coated the...
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    water in Abelo solved

    I bought the new Abelo roofs and crownboards to try, having already used the old style overhanging roof and five hole crown boards. I asked Damien how they compared, he warned me that some users had reported water getting in the new style roofs and into supers. I thought at the time that they...
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    What did you do in the Apiary today?

    Removed the last of the strips, put insulation on and all mouseguards in place. I was surprised how much smaller the colonies seemed to be compared to the lively heights of summer. i pondered on the balance between worrying that I may not have done everything right for winter versus knowing that...
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    Wax moth larvae

    I don’t recall ever reading any warnings about wax moth being toxic to humans or ruining honey. I would expect that some wax moth debris is present in frames that are put into extraction, either because it isn’t visible or the beekeeeper hasn’t noticed it. Honey filters probably remove most...
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    Maisemore poly nuc winter question

    Thanks for the comments, some of the feeding wells have been painted with gloss paint to make them easier to clean the mould. I’m leaving the off floor open, I think the insulation of the nucs is excellent, I just wondered if the void above the feeder would need filling. If it is airtight then I...
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    Maisemore poly nuc winter question

    I have two Maisemore six frame poly nucs occupied for overwinter. The bees look like they have stopped taking the syrup that is in the integral feeder, this is the one that acts as a crown board as well with a small Perspex screen and two wells for the feed. I will be lifting the feeder off in a...
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    What should be seen in a hive at this time of year (October)

    I had a quick check of one of my hives last week when it was Relatively warm and Sunny, when removing apivar strips. no brood at all in any stage. I thought the queen may have failed so looked to do a unite, however when I checked the next hive to see if it was suitable it also had no brood...
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    What did you do in the Apiary today?

    Nothing done in the apiary today, I went fishing on a reservoir in a rowing boat and enjoyed one of my many former pleasures that have started to fall by the wayside since I started beekeeping. I still ended up rescuing a couple of bees that were stuck on the water, sharing a bit of my Mars bar...
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    Foundationless Frames

    I tried foundationless brood frames this year for the first time, on the whole they worked well. I used bamboo sticks and cut down strips of foundation, 2cm in the grooves wheld in place with melted wax. I also tried the triangles left by tearing out the wires. I haven’t noticed which they...
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    Refractometer issues

    Great advice, thank you Courty
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