Crownboard question.

[Jeff M]

Does a crownboard on a national hive need any bee space under it? Just wondering if I could use plain square of ply without a frame around it?

 

[Davelin]

From the bees point of view, not really.

However if you ever want to get the crownboard off again I suggest you make a rim or you will find it glued to every frame.

 

[idg]

It depends on how you have your hives set up. With top beespace or bottom beespace? If your frames are flush with the top of the brood box then you have bottom bee space. I.e the space is provided by the bottom of the next box. The problem comes when you add a QE or crown board. My frames are flush with the top of the box, so if I add a flat board there will be no space above frames (and I would squish half the bees). As I understand it there should be a bee space on all sides of each frame.

 

[Davelin]

Nationals are normally bottom bee space so yes flush with the top of the box.

There will be bee space around the sides and bottom of the frames for the bees to get to the other side, so they don't need to go over the top. In a wild colony they fix the comb to the roof.

As I said, the problem, apart from squashing bees when you put it on, is that they will propolise the board to every frame.

 

[Finman]

From the bees point of view, not really.

However if you ever want to get the crownboard off again I suggest you make a rim or you will find it glued to every frame.

What about crushed bees?

 

[Finman]

From the bees point of view, not really.

.

What about crushed bees, or Queen?

 

[Davelin]

See my second response posted 2mins before yours!!

 

[itma]

Nationals are normally bottom bee space so ... the problem, apart from squashing bees when you put it on, is that they will propolise the board to every frame.

Nutshell upsum.