Coating inside with Beeswax

[TooBee...]

I seem to recall reading on the Forum somewhere, someone mentioned in passing that they were rubbing the inside of their hive with Beeswax, from memory this was either a poly hive or a homemade hive I think made from poly type insulation.

I'm just making up a couple of hives, and I am wondering if any members rub beeswax inside their hives before they place their bees in it, or is this something I shouldn't worry about, I think it's suggested if you're using it as a bait hive?

Would it not encourage bridging? Or will it help the bees accept the 'unatural' internal material of the hive? One of the hives I have built from insulation, the other from wood.

 

[Beefriendly]

Not a good idea...They prefer to seal every surface with a thin coat of propolis.
Wouldn't do anything to either except add bees.

 

[Murox]

I seem to recall reading on the Forum somewhere, someone mentioned in passing that they were rubbing the inside of their hive with Beeswax, from memory this was either a poly hive or a homemade hive I think made from poly type insulation.

I'm just making up a couple of hives, and I am wondering if any members rub beeswax inside their hives before they place their bees in it, or is this something I shouldn't worry about, I think it's suggested if you're using it as a bait hive?

Would it not encourage bridging? Or will it help the bees accept the 'unatural' internal material of the hive? One of the hives I have built from insulation, the other from wood.

The rubbing in of wax is not necessary really, they will propolis everything themselves. It was done to disguise the smell of new wood etc and to make bait boxes/hives smell more like home. The main thing is to air the finished hive for as long as possible (weeks anyway) to ensure all the glue/varnish/oil/paint etc vapours have completely gone before introducing bees.

I am curious -what sort of insulation have you built one from?

 

[Finman]

Not a good idea...They prefer to seal every surface with a thin coat of propolis.
Wouldn't do anything to either except add bees.

Bees do not coat polyhives with propolis. Never seen that after using them 30 years .
First time I hear that someone coat inner wall with bee wax.
Those youtube innovations.
.
What I have seen on polyhives' inner wall is a layer of dirt. When I boiled with lye polyboxes, that layer came off only with brushing.

I have wondered during years, why poly wall takes black mould? But it is the layer of dirt.

 

[SDM]

Wow , never seen propolis in a poly hive finman?
The inside of every one of my boxes is a yellowish colour from propolis. It shows up best when you compare them after a few months to a new box.

 

[Finman]

Wow , never seen propolis in a poly hive finman?
The inside of every one of my boxes is a yellowish colour from propolis. It shows up best when you compare them after a few months to a new box.

That needs imagination. Propolis is brown. Pollen is yellow. Of course walls have pollen. That I see. Especially front wall.

Even if I compare new to 30 years old boxes, I cannot see propolis layer. Perhaps dark mould I see.

I do not have mesh floors, it it has something to do with the thing.

 

[Julie in Ash]

I've seen tips about rubbing wax on foundationless frames to encourage the bees to build out from them. Usually Top Bars when I was looking at those. I believe I've also seen suggestions about rubbing wax in bait hives or to mask other smells.

We have Poly hives down the Association Apiary. They do propolis any gap or join in materials just like any other hive. The walls just look a bit grubby. I am not sure what the cause is. Not that I've studied the walls of Poly hives. Too busy looking at the Bees.

 

[Finman]

They do propolis any gap or join in materials just like any other hive.

Of course they do.

One summer was very hot. I made a ventilation gap between upper box and inner cover. They tried to close the gap with huge amount of propolis.

But why bees would cover all smooth surfaces with propolis, like frame sticks? I have not seen.

I have 50 years old wooden boxes and surface is a table saw rough. I see what means propolis covered. IT is covered here and there, but nothing wall paper like layer of propolis.

 

[linoleum bonypart]

I'm sure I read a scientific paper saying they propolise all internal surfaces and thus live in a propolis bubble... Part of their infection control..

 

[pargyle]

I paint the inside of all my new hives with a mixture that I make by dissolving propolis in methylated spirits. I just put hive scrapings or slumgum into a jar of methylated spirits .. leave it in the jar for a week or two, shake the jar occasionally - it takes a while to dissolve but the meths eventually turns brown. Strain the solids off and just paint the inside of either timber or poly hives with the 'propolis varnish'- I usually do two or three coats as the meths evaporrates almost instantly.

I usually leave the hives a day or two before putting them into use but I don't think it makes a lot of difference .. it gives a lovely 'bee smell' to the box and with a coat of propolis already on there it saves the bees having to do the work.

Stradivarius used propolis varnish to varnish the violins he made ...

 

[Hebeegeebee]

I'm sure I read a scientific paper saying they propolise all internal surfaces and thus live in a propolis bubble... Part of their infection control..

I recall that too. Makes sense.

 

[Finman]

I'm sure I read a scientific paper saying they propolise all internal surfaces and thus live in a propolis bubble... Part of their infection control..

But you have your eyes. That propolis hub means a rotten hollow tree in nature.

During 56 beekeeping years I have not seen any propolis hub in hives.

Infection control? Bees drink rotten water and feed their larvae. Think, where is infection control. Not at least in walls.

 

[Finman]

Tubla

 

[Beefriendly]

Bees do not coat polyhives with propolis. Never seen that after using them 30 years .
.

Quite right. I'd forgotten that...

 

[Ian123]

Years ago I was told my bees would die if I kept them in poly hives due to fumes lol ironically that winter I was cutting well established colonies out of old 55 gallon diesel/oil drums

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I'm sure I read a scientific paper saying they propolise all internal surfaces and thus live in a propolis bubble... Part of their infection control..

Tom Seeley has done some work on it, he mentioned it at the WBKA summer school at Aberystwyth last month.
He also agreed that the obsession with some in this country with their 'spring cleaning' was a ridiculous routine which probably did more harm than good - denuding a hive of all the health giving propolis the bees had worked so hard to coat the interior with.

.......but what does he know, I'm sure the skywegian troglodyte could put him right.

 

[Finman]

'spring cleaning' was a ridiculous routine which probably did more harm than good -

all the health giving propolis the bees had worked so hard to coat the interior with.
.

Spring cleaning = to take rotten bees off from bottom board.

I have never noticed that somebody takes away "propolis hub" . Polyboxes are the same as last autumn when I arranged them for winter feeding..

Actually bees gather propolis on summer, when I change the situations of boxes. In late summer they try to reduce too big entrances.

When the hive has 6 boxes, do bees cover only wintering box or all 6 boxes? Is the hub 6 boxes high?
Nothing will cleaned from walls in spring, unless they are not covered with poo.

I do not know any bee disease what propolis can heal. Nosema would be nice to heal.
.

 

[SDM]

I do not know any bee disease what propolis can heal. Nosema would be nice to heal.
.

Ascophera apis , DWV and Paenibacillus larvae have all been shown to be reduced by propolis

 

[Finman]

Ascophera apis , DWV and Paenibacillus larvae have all been shown to be reduced by propolis

Every hive has lots of propolis. Why don't those diseases then stop their existence for ever.

- Get an immune queen and you get totally away chalkbrood.

- In DWV you must treat properly varroa.

- In AFB cases you must sterilize the boxes with fire or with chemicals. Propolis is not in curing collection. Never heard or seen.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I'm sure I read a scientific paper saying they propolise all internal surfaces and thus live in a propolis bubble...

There's a few on here that live in their own little bubble.