I am a new buzzer and have cobbled together 3 WBC hives for my 3 colonies. About a month ago I was given a brood and a super for one of the WBCs. As a good beekeeper I scorched the insides of the boxes and noticing abit of active woodworm was advised to use Cuprinol clear.
On trying to find this at my local hardware store I came across a simular product called Blackfriar Gold star seal on special offer certainly half the price of Cuprinol clear.
I even phoned blackfriars customer service before purchasing their product to check that the useage would be OK for what I intended it for. I was told that it would be fine but to allow it to air dry for at least 48 hours. Over 2 weeks later at last I was going to put it to use.
I was putting a new nuc into my WBC on Friday evening feeling happy that at last they needed more space and as the nuc had been sitting right next door to the WBC did not think there would be a problem. All was well until I put the glass crown board on the brood box. There was all of a sudden mass panic watching through the glass with alot of wings flapping and to my horror at the entrance bees were piling out on their back with their legs in the air as though they were in pain. The longer I watched the more I was concerned so decided to put them back into the nuc box again.
while doing this I noticed that the remaining bees wings and bodies on the frames were all sticky from the uncapped honey and even the clipped queen looked as though she was suffering from the same problem.
Within half an hour of them back in the nuc box calm had descended once again and by the following morning the workers were busy pulling out the dead and tieding up.
My only thought behind this disaster was the BLACKFRIAR GOLD STAR CLEAR--- Has anybody else experienced this contamination problem or can advise what else it might have been.
On trying to find this at my local hardware store I came across a simular product called Blackfriar Gold star seal on special offer certainly half the price of Cuprinol clear.
I even phoned blackfriars customer service before purchasing their product to check that the useage would be OK for what I intended it for. I was told that it would be fine but to allow it to air dry for at least 48 hours. Over 2 weeks later at last I was going to put it to use.
I was putting a new nuc into my WBC on Friday evening feeling happy that at last they needed more space and as the nuc had been sitting right next door to the WBC did not think there would be a problem. All was well until I put the glass crown board on the brood box. There was all of a sudden mass panic watching through the glass with alot of wings flapping and to my horror at the entrance bees were piling out on their back with their legs in the air as though they were in pain. The longer I watched the more I was concerned so decided to put them back into the nuc box again.
while doing this I noticed that the remaining bees wings and bodies on the frames were all sticky from the uncapped honey and even the clipped queen looked as though she was suffering from the same problem.
Within half an hour of them back in the nuc box calm had descended once again and by the following morning the workers were busy pulling out the dead and tieding up.
My only thought behind this disaster was the BLACKFRIAR GOLD STAR CLEAR--- Has anybody else experienced this contamination problem or can advise what else it might have been.
