Lost two colonies

[Hivemaker.]

Well i have, and only after oxalic,for last two winters,bee's at the moment are far more healthy and stronger without it,plus six years of not using oxalic, only thymol and formic after the first resistant mites arrived, they were also far stronger. As you say if you don't like,don't use. I also know many who have never used it,there bee's are just fine,and not crawling with varroa either.

 

[Finman]

,
After all these questions I do not wonder if you have in Britain 30% winter losses.

You have not at all beekeeping knowledge in Britain. And you say that it is your national difficult weather. Sigh.

 

[Finman]

I also know many who have never used it,there bee's are just fine,and not crawling with varroa either.

Yes, here is much beekeepers too. No one need to use it but it has nothing bad when you use it.

I just read today why Canadian hives have had 33% winter losses. They have unsucceeded in their varroa killing. "Legal" stuffs did not affected.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Goodnight young man, must be around 12.15 in Helsinki,past your bedtime.
I must go drink some more chinese tea...lol

 

[Finman]

Goodnight young man, must be around 12.15 in Helsinki,past your bedtime.
I must go drink some more chinese tea...lol

Yes, it wakes you up early to make new hives and business.
Don piss to your bed. Believe your internal voice...

 

[Hivemaker.]

[Believe your internal voice..[/B]

I have an external one.....it's called a wife.

 

[Finman]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jltdIXuml44

 

[plumber]

Hivemaker

how do you administer the Formic acid

 

[MuswellMetro]

Had a talk on this today at my BKA by the summer bee inspector, his veiws was that most Beeks use to much oxi

most in his veiws just dump 50ml...5ml x10 frames but put it all on the brood..over kill in his opinion...if the brood is over three frames plus the inner of two others , then it should be

2.5ml,F 5ml,BF 5ml ,BF,5ml BF,5ml F 2,5ml....so 25ml per hive not 50ml, he thinks it is double of the require doss is an over use of oxi that is cuasing some of the hive losses

 

[Hivemaker.]

Formic via nassenheider evaporator at one time,but also with absorbant pads placed on top of brood frames,similar to mitaway 2.
Hopefully MAQ strips will be available soon,sound good,seven day treatment,depends on price though.

 

[Finman]

Had a talk on this today at my BKA by the summer bee inspector, his veiws was that most Beeks use to much oxi

most in his veiws just dump 50ml...5ml x10 frames but put it all on the brood..over kill in his opinion...if the brood is over three frames plus the inner of two others , then it should be

2.5ml,F 5ml,BF 5ml ,BF,5ml BF,5ml F 2,5ml....so 25ml per hive not 50ml, he thinks it is double of the require doss is an over use of oxi that is cuasing some of the hive losses

here we see again a self maid procedure which is based only on DIY opinion.

UK have tens of different self made procedures.

ORIGINAL recipe is that for Langstroth give 40 ml to one box hive and 50 ml to 2-box hive. in one box hive 4 ml/gap and in 2-box hive 5 ml/gap

I gove to 10 hives 100 ml dosages. Clusters became wet and dispersed along walls. After 2 days cluster were again OK and no hives died.

Black macic will never die oh boy!

.

 

[Finman]

,seven day treatment,depends on price though.

Mites are under cappings and treatment does not affect there. How it works in only 7 days?.

Mites are under drone cappings longer time.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Because formic can kill mites under the cappings.

http://www.miteaway.com/html/saving_the_honeybee.html

 

[Finman]

Yes, so it seems. In this research it killed all free mites and 90-95% of capped mites.
http://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/varroa/FAFumigat.pdf

 

[Repwoc]

Looks good. The kit is cheap enough:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Formic-Acid-E..._Pet_Supplies_Bee_Keeping?hash=item414d34b425

The acid is more pricey, but as only a little is used I guess the per hive cost is minimal:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Formic-Acid-8...Equipment_Lab_Supplies_ET?hash=item1e596be896

Anyone know where to get the HBH (Honey-Bee-Healthy)? It seems to be needed to minimise queen loss. Perhaps thymol would work as well.

 

[RoofTops]

I'm not sure about that evaporator. It says it fits on the bottom of a brood frame - but formic acid vapour is heavier than air so it needs to be above the brood frames, like the Nassenheider. I use 60% formic acid as do most other people I think - the 85% one in the second link will do the job but nastier to handle and the risk to the bees likely to be greater. I would dilute it first.

 

[plumber]

any one used this system from Canada

http://www.mitegone.com/

 

[RoofTops]

A J cloth or a bit of cardboard does the same job. The problem with formic acid is it is very temperature sensitive, too cold or too hot makes a big difference to effectiveness. The Nassenheider gets around this to some extent in that the amount of wick can be changed depending on the temperature. However, I have just chosen a warm period in the past and squirted the acid onto a bit of cardboard.

You can get pads inside plastic bags, or make them yourself, which you cut away a section to expose. The principal is the same - exposing the acid on some sort of absorbant material to allow it to evaporate.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Best to also make sure the formic is food grade,when i needed some i bought it from Albion chemicals in Bristol,but the smallest quantity they would sell at that time was 25lt drums 85%, which you dilute down to 60%.

 

[plumber]

I get my chemicals from this firm most are via ADR carrier which bumps the price. but if you use other matierials as I do they just add it to the pallet or put it on the top of an IBC.

http://www.bonnymans.co.uk/index.php?l=product_detail&p=225

http://www.bonnymans.co.uk/index.php?l=product_list&c=34