Moving Bees - Mesh on nucs?

[petermcc]

Hi, I am moving 6 nucs 3 hours in my UTE to sell. Each nuc is a 5 frame wooden nuc.

I am wondering whether it is appropriate to put a mesh top over the nucs, or would it be possible for the nucs to get too cold?

I ask this because nucs are weaker than a full size hive and I was wondering whether too much heat would rise out the top and the bees not able to keep warm enough.

Each nuc currently has a 2 inch diameter hole in the front with mesh stapled over it.

It is autumn in NZ at the moment, and the temperatures are around 15 degress celsius, and can get up to about 19 on a good day.

 

[enrico]

I would make my own roof with a smaller mesh area. They can overheat quite easily if you close them right up. Before closing them up spray with water inside the hive. This gives them water to cool them down.
E

 

[petermcc]

That's what I was wondering, perhaps not a full mesh roof, but more mesh than just the front hole.

I was thinking of still going with a full mesh roof (because it is easier to make), but with a lid that could be attached to leave some mesh on the top exposed, perhaps around 20cm x 20cm.

What do you reckon?

 

[Travelator]

I would go with a full mesh roof on the basis that overheating is MUCH worse than chilling.

 

[petermcc]

What would be the signs / consequences of chilling? I am guessing you mean that some of the brood would die?

What I mean is that I would look at them every hour for instance, and if I could tell if they are too cold they could be partially covered over top of a full mesh top.

 

[drstitson]

look to the MB poly hive design - when a travel screen is on top the roof is reversed such that there is a narrow gap between the roof and screen. access for spraying water but not completely open to above.

 

[Poly Hive]

I would screen the top, if they get cool they will cluster. If they over heat they die.

PH

 

[Teemore]

If the tray of the Ute is open then there is going to be a lot of air circulating around the nucs when you are driving so you will not need a huge mesh opening on top of them. you could probably strap a piece of ply over the mesh to reduce the 'open' portion.

If the nucs are on mesh floors they will need even less mesh ventilation up top when you are moving them.

 

[alanf]

you could probably strap a piece of ply over the mesh to reduce the 'open' portion.

As for all these situations, consider what you can do if your initial calculations are wrong or conditions change. If you have too much mesh, you can always cover some of it. Use a cardboard box and tape if that's what you have to hand. If they are getting hot, adding more ventilation when you are half way there is not easy.

 

[Travelator]

Worst case scenarios:

- Overheating: around 50C wax starts to lose tensile strength and you end up with a sticky mess with most or all of your bees dead, including the queen.

- Chilling: some brood may die if the bees can't keep it warm enough (but it's not as if brood instantly drops dead at or below 36C - I think the temperature needs to be quite low for quite a long time). Adult bees will start to suffer really badly at 10C or below. They will do their best to look after the queen.

So you definitely have more to fear from overheating.

 

[user 6228]

a cheap PID controller (ebay) with thermocouple, and a very small computer cpu fan. The PID controller will also tell you the temperture. and you can set an over temp alarm

 

[petermcc]

Thanks for the comments. Very useful.

The UTE has a canopy, so could trap a lot of heat if it is a hot day. If that happens it would be almost impossible to ventilate and cool the canopy. That wouldn't be the end of the world because the trip is not that long relatively speaking.

At the moment though the weather is just as likely to be cold.

I will do full mesh and look out for cooling or heating of the bees and act accordingly, e.g. spray with water, or cover with some cardboard and duct tape.

Keep the comments coming though, very interested in your thoughts.

 

[petermcc]

Final outcome ... I put a full mesh top on all of them and was very glad I did.

It was a hot day, very hot in fact. We didn't leave till quite late in the day (not intentional) so they needed it to keep cool the whole day before travelling too.

I sprayed them with water quite a lot too.

One hive appeared to be cooked at the other end, the strongest, but surprisingly once the dead bees were removed from the top the hive was still active underneath and still stronger than the rest.

Putting my hand near the bottom entrance of that hive I could feel hot air streaming out. The bees trying to keep it cool enough. It is surprising how hot they get and how hard they work to keep cool.