Poly Hive's?

[Into the lions den]

Luckily not by MB - from their FAQ



Water based exterior smooth masonry paint is recommend for all surfaces other than the inside of the feeder.


lol........there you go...............................EXACTLY the opposite of what we do and recommend...............we use bog ordinary exterior gloss.....one coat................on all external surfaces.............and ONE generous well worked in coat of smooth masonry paint (the acryllic stuff) on the INSIDE of the feeder.

 

[newportbuzz]

Luckily not by MB - from their FAQ



Water based exterior smooth masonry paint is recommend for all surfaces other than the inside of the feeder.


lol........there you go...............................EXACTLY the opposite of what we do and recommend...............we use bog ordinary exterior gloss.....one coat................on all external surfaces.............and ONE generous well worked in coat of smooth masonry paint (the acryllic stuff) on the INSIDE of the feeder.

must go paint my feeders thanks

 

[Beeline]

Still not convinced from the feedback how one can remove the mould once the syrup turns to yuk. Surely once there is mould present (on the sides of the box) it has to be removed before adding more syrup. Does that mean transferring the frames to another nuc whilst you clean it out?

Anyway popped down to my local DIY and bought some 5mm plywood and cut some crownboards with feeder holes. Fondant now above.

I see what Itma means - they had glued the roof to the frames when I opened up.

 

[johnandyrob]

you could try adding thymol to your syrup

 

[Teemore]

Try dropping a small chunk(s) of fondant into the built in feeder - I did this last year in preference to using syrup with a couple of these poly nucs and it worked well. I did however put a piece of queen excluder into the "entrance" of the feeder. The nucs i overwintered had their feeders completely blocked off and were fed fondant in an eke.

 

[oliver90owner]

Seems to me, for some, it may be better to cut it out - would it then accommodate another frame (or dummy, or feeder frame)? Or would that make them too flimsy?

 

[Teemore]

Size wise it'll easily take a 7th frame with the feeder cut out - when i get a wee bit of time I will probably try this out.

 

[mbc]

?! I think you'd wreck the unit by hacking the feeder out. I dont think the floor level of the feeder is the same. The inside wall of the feeder adds considerably to the strength of the nuc. The feeder is wider than the frames. The feeder is quite useful for either feeding syrup or fondant.

 

[Les]

I am still undecided as to what to do about the feeder in my poly nuc but will probably keep it and only use it for fondant - and as it's warm and sunny I am now off to see the bees

 

[itma]

If one examines the entrance to the feeder, it has a really narrow slot through it, longer than the entrance is wide.
A thin piece of scrap plastic (as from an ice cream tub) can be cut to size, stuffed into the slot, and the entrance to the feeder neatly closed off.
And the 'modification' can be undone in a moment.


Now - what about modification of the entrance to the nuc itself?
What's involved in fitting one of those disc entrance closing/guarding thingies?
What is the easiest way of overcoming the awkwardness of the the original entrance being recessed?

 

[Stiffy]

If one examines the entrance to the feeder, it has a really narrow slot through it, longer than the entrance is wide.
A thin piece of scrap plastic (as from an ice cream tub) can be cut to size, stuffed into the slot, and the entrance to the feeder neatly closed off.
And the 'modification' can be undone in a moment.


Now - what about modification of the entrance to the nuc itself?
What's involved in fitting one of those disc entrance closing/guarding thingies?
What is the easiest way of overcoming the awkwardness of the the original entrance being recessed?

Have modified the entrance to most of mine with a "disc thingy".
I just traced around the inner triangular ie widest entrance of disc entrance and cut with a hacksaw blade. I then drilled a small hole and pushed through, bolt- washer- polynuc- washer -nut. The section I cut out was then further cut to match the silly recessed entrance and glued in.
Works a treat, next modification is to cut out the feeder and add another frame and use an eke.
S