Mouse Guards-when to put on or not bother?

[Etton]

When do most beekeepers put on mouseguards?
Also how frequent do mice invade a hive if none fitted.
I'm wondering if its an acceptable risk to not bother?

 

[alfazer]

Depends on the temperature, but for me it's around mid October. I wouldn't risk not doing it because they make a real mess inside. However, I now make my own plastic castellated mouseguards which remove much less pollen than the metal type.

 

[Beefriendly]

Depends how bad the mouse problem is where you are.
In my area I don't bother, had one mouse in umpteen years. Lots of cats around!
Others, I hear, are less fortunate and have mice problems so use guards.
If in doubt put them on.
As to when; you need a reply from someone who uses them.

 

[enrico]

I have only had mice once. Never again. Ruined a good hive, disgusting things, chewed all the wax, defacated everywhere. Unusable afterwards, for the price of pinning a mouse guard on the front..... No contest.
E

 

[drex]

I usually put my guards on with the first frosts.

 

[Poly Hive]

When the bees are still active and they certainly are here, then they can defend the hive.

When they cluster though its a different story.

My Swienty polys have a built in mouseguard due to the entrance height.

Other makers of poly have chosen larger entrances and some might think darkly this has been chosen to keep selling "bits" to the consumers....

I will be putting mine on in the next month for the Nucs and hives which need protection.

PH

 

[Millet]

I don't need mouse guards as they can not fit through the 8mm entrances i use all year round.

 

[madasafish]

Mice would struggle to enter my bottom entrances...w/o mouse guards...

 

[Erichalfbee]

When do most beekeepers put on mouseguards?
Also how frequent do mice invade a hive if none fitted.
I'm wondering if its an acceptable risk to not bother?

In my traditional floors I have bee-space-high reduced entrances for winter so no mouse guard
The underfloor entrances don't need one and you can leave them wide open all year

 

[user 6228]

Make like a tree in the forest where there are no mouse guards except those with a stinger - high stand, highly insulated hives.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Make like a tree in the forest where there are no mouse guards except those with a stinger - high stand, highly insulated hives.

How are those "tree" hives doing Derek?
I'd love to know what sort of summer you had with them

 

[Into the lions den]

When do most beekeepers put on mouseguards?
Also how frequent do mice invade a hive if none fitted.
I'm wondering if its an acceptable risk to not bother?

If you have old fashioned deep entrances then get them on now, but they really are a PITA and a lot of pollen loads get knocked off the legs and abandoned.

3/8" (up to 12mm) entrances are too shallow for mice to get in. If you can get the first joint of your little finger into the entrance then you need a mouseguard, its a fairish approximation of a mouse skull depth.

In our experience of you use a deeper entrance and do NOT guard it you will have at least 30% of them with mice in them, and its very damaging to both the gear and the bees overwintering. Its worst where there is a lot of leaf litter after autumn and very little risk if you can get a disused silage pit or the likes for a site (they are great btw...easy to drive in and little suntraps).

 

[user 6228]

If you have old fashioned deep entrances then get them on now, but they really are a PITA and a lot of pollen loads get knocked off the legs and abandoned.

3/8" (up to 12mm) entrances are too shallow for mice to get in. If you can get the first joint of your little finger into the entrance then you need a mouseguard, its a fairish approximation of a mouse skull depth.

In our experience of you use a deeper entrance and do NOT guard it you will have at least 30% of them with mice in them, and its very damaging to both the gear and the bees overwintering. Its worst where there is a lot of leaf litter after autumn and very little risk if you can get a disused silage pit or the likes for a site (they are great btw...easy to drive in and little suntraps).

btw 3/8" =9.535mm

 

[fatshark]

Mice would struggle to enter my bottom entrances...w/o mouse guards...

Stop tittering at the back Smethers ...

 

[Into the lions den]

btw 3/8" =9.535mm

oops, agree with above...dud post at this hour after a long day.................measured a couple of ours outside and they are 8 ro 10 mm. Interestingly they are from 2 makers and my father specified 3/8". Not had wooden floors made for a very long time indeed.

 

[Millet]

Did some thick brain dead member mention 8mm earlier..

 

[user 6228]

How are those "tree" hives doing Derek?
I'd love to know what sort of summer you had with them

One has failed - no queen the other 4 seem fine....

 

[Plenty of honey]

When do most beekeepers put on mouseguards?
Also how frequent do mice invade a hive if none fitted.
I'm wondering if its an acceptable risk to not bother?

Mine go on as soon as the summer harvest is finished. We make summer splits starting a week or so after the harvest (early August). Part of the process is putting on the mouse guards on when the split is complete.
in my mind its a good tool. In a colony thats just lost may be a third to a quarter of its nurse bees, it can only be a good thing. It may helps against robber bees, helps as an entrance reducer, and if the colony is temporarily compromised, like the queen unfortunately goes off in the nuc ( and this does happen occasionally, because you just cant spend hours making nucs) it helps give the colony less stress during a difficult period.
We also have a severe dearth and colony that is weaker for various reasons, can loose the battle without entrance reducers from robber bees, wasps or hornets. Our ivy has just started, so all bees are being nice to each other now. May remove the mouse guards for a few weeks, but their a useful tool in other ways, not just mice!, however i would never not have them fitted after October, lots of mice here, they run a mock and certainly will lead to a colonies demise during the winter.

 

[Poly Hive]

I am now in a very small rural village with an abandoned plot for sale on one side a neighbout on the other and open fields at the rear.

One of our sheds holds the mower and so on and for some reason is highly attractive to mice. I learned the lesson last winter and have been running three traps since then baited with peanut butter.

On aver age every morning at least one mouse and often 3. Seems we need more owls as not heard one since last November when we moved in.

PH

 

[Swarm]

Make like a tree in the forest where there are no mouse guards except those with a stinger - high stand, highly insulated hives.

Not helpful to erect staging each apiary visit