Ashforth feeder ?s

[AndreaW]

Want to put an Ashforth on my hive in next few days. First time I have used one so want to be sure I don't mess up!

My hive is put on a sloping paving slab so that it tilts downwards towards the entrance - should I put the Ashforth on in any particular way because of this, I am sure I have read something somewhere that implies I should but cannot remember where?

What is the best thing to use as a float in the feeding channel- I have heard of wooden floats or dried grass or twigs. What do people find works best?

I know to put the crown board on top with no gaps and to cover the holes in the top of the board.

Thanks

Andrea

 

[dpearce4]

have a look here

http://www. dave-cushman . net/bee/nashforth.html

 

[drstitson]

entrance to front otherwise bees won't have access to all the feed!

 

[huntsman666]

You don't need a float.

 

[Nose Ma]

As above - float not needed.

The entrance bit should be at the down end of your slope.

Note there is a bit of wood/plastic that sits as a little cover over the entrance bit. It gives the bees something to grip when climbing back - the crown board is a little too high otherwise.

Careful when you fill it if the slope is significant that it does not overflow.

I dribble a little syrup off the end of my hive tool down the gap onto the frames below, then put the little roof on, then the crown board, then the roof. Just makes sure the bees find the syrup.

NM

 

[WaxManSmokerBoy]

A cover over the weir should keep the bees from the feeding chute from ente ring the body of the feeder. Some allow the bees access once the level is all but gone. This is why the weir should be at the lowest end, so that the bees cannot enter the body while there is still a volume of syrup left, to get pushed into and drown in their enthusiasm or nudged by their mates.

As the weather gets cooler, the necessity for the bees to know that the syrup is there - sugar syrup has no smell - becomes greater. I thymolise my syrup and put a couple of drops of lemongrass essence into each 10 litre drum, so find little need to dribble syrup down to the bees to give them the heads up.

PS if you don't need 84kg of sugar for your winter feeding, you haven't got enough bees yet . . .

 

[AndreaW]

Thanks that really helps, will try it out tomorrow or Friday depending on weather

Why do I not need a float -am I missing something, I kept reading posts about drowning bees - or does that just occur if the crown board isn't covering the feeder body properly?

Thanks

Andrea

 

[newportbuzz]

i put some grass or similar float in the syrup chamber just incase as i once came back to a couple of thousand dead bees because of a gap.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Why do I not need a float -am I missing something, I kept reading posts about drowning bees - or does that just occur if the crown board isn't covering the feeder body properly?

Thanks

Andrea

Probably because the cover over the feeding area had been left off or wasnt completely over (speaks from experience).

Very pleased with my Ashworth, which I tried for the first time this week - bees seem to like it and less casualties than the green Mayzmore.

 

[drstitson]

my only suggestion/improvement would be to pin some plastic or metal mesh across the holes between the main feed reservoir and the bit the bees access. that stops them getting under and stuck when level drops.

 

[Arfermo]

have a look here

http://www. dave-cushman . net/bee/nashforth.html

The url does not work. Try this one http://www.*****************/bee/nashforth.html

You will note from the diagram on the website that there is a gap under the barrier to where the syrup is placed. That is very similar to the gaps that are present in my Millers feeders. That means that any tilt matters very little as the gap allows the bees to access where the syrup was before they drained it and the benefit is that they clean the whole thing up irrispective of any tilt. Why not level the site off a bit more anyway if you think it might be a problem? Wind blowing a tilting hive over could be one!!!

 

[oliver90owner]

Wind blowing a tilting hive over could be one!!!

Goodness gracious! Surely it won't be tilted that much! 5mm is enough.

 

[Rosti]

Andrea if you haven't committed yet consider the Miller design as well. The central access doubles the feed contact area and allows access from the centre of the hive which in cold conditions must be an improvement. It also allows you to only use one half and (if you keep the bottom tollerance to about 3mm) you dont have bee access to the syrup containers when empty - and more importantly any wasps that gain top access cant get into the hive.

 

[luckydunny]

Hi Arfermo
Could not get that URL to work either!

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Hi Arfermo
Could not get that URL to work either!

Use this http://www.dave- cushman.net/bee/nashforth.html

but remove the space in the middle

 

[Arfermo]

Hi Arfermo
Could not get that URL to work either!

I gave you another which has somehow been corrupted in transnmission. Just Google for Dave Cushman should do it.

 

[AndreaW]

Wind blowing a tilting hive over could be one!!!

Goodness gracious! Surely it won't be tilted that much! 5mm is enough.

No chance of that. Don't worry, it is sheltered on two sides and isn't tilted massively, just enough to stop pooling moisture, which it does

 

[Waxing]

Ashworth Catastrophe

Rather pleased today to use the smart-looking new Ashworth. Made 5 pints of 2:1 syrup & poured it into the main resevoir. Checked that the slotted barrier was pushed well down and the perspex type strip was correctly fitted over the area where bees climb over the bar to the narrow feeding trough.
I didn't see the need to fit any crown board over the feeder as the bees cannot get out above it so it is effectively itself a crown board.
Imagine my dismay, when following some advice about the super I'd left below the feeder, I examined the feeder after about 4 hours.
The main resevoir had many bees in it, about half dead and half tryiing to swim.
I could see through the perspex that the access slot from below had lots of eager bees therein and there were quite a lot on the bar they climb over and plenty of bees in the feeding channel. Looking through the slots from the resevoir side it looked as if bees were trying to get through the slots.
A right messy scenario to resolve. I replaced the feeder with a crown board & closed up the hive. It was not easy to get the many bees from all parts of the feeder without harming them. The syrup was an expensive waste & I cleaned up the feeder indoors once the bees were clear. I have no idea what caused the death by drowning of about 50+ bees.

Anybody know what the maximum width should be of the 4 slots (saw cuts)that allow the syrup to reach the feeding channel, please?

I have lost confidence in this feeder and will have to think very carefully before using it again.

Anyone had a similar experience?
Grateful for any advice.

 

[oliver90owner]

Slots?

Only requires a simple weir.

RAB

 

[melias]

Should one put a crown board over the feeder, or is the roof adequate on its own?