Silly Oxalic question

[aberreef]

I intend treating with oxalic acid in a few weeks time and just needed to check that I don't do anything stupid

This is my first winter with bees and they have been pretty inactive for a few weeks now due to low temps and generally miserable weather.

Now for the really noobish question Do I need to smoke the bees before opening the hive?

I'm figuring smoking will cause too much disturbance in cold weather but also don't want them taking to the air.

Cheers

Huw

 

[BKF Admin]

No need to smoke.
I do it on a frosty morning.

Coverboard off,5ml per seam of bees and coverboard back on.
They wont even know you have been in.

 

[aberreef]

That was quick

Thanks Admin, much appreciated

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

If I might be allowed to ask a question on the same subject please.

One of my hives is on two BBs and a super, I had to add the second BB in October as they swarmed three times. They have filled that BB as well and is a large colany, so I left as is, so they had plenty of stores for the winter.

My question is, when I come to treat this hive with Oxalic acid and assuming that they are clustered in more than one BB, should I take all the boxs off and treat them all, I will have no way of telling which box or boxs they are in, unless I do, right!!!

Many thanks, BKP.

 

[djg]

BKP

Last year, I treated double national BBs by setting up a space to set aside the top box temporarily and ensuring that everything I needed was close to hand and took off the top box, trickled on the 5mg oxalic per seam ASAP on the lower box and quickly put the top box back on top, took the roof and crown board off the top box and repeated the process before replacing the roof smartish. It didn't annoy the bees and seemed to be effective.

This year, I intend to treat the two out-apiary hives with oxalic trickle again and try an oxalic acid vaporizer treatment on the two in the home apiary. All are on single brood this year, though. Which raises another question : if I were to use vaporized oxalic on a double BB, would I simply apply the treatment twice ?

 

[Finman]

.
It is important that the hive has no sealed bood any more and then you may trickle it.
In bad case you may take the last brood of and cut them away from the comb.
Mites will die during next 4 weeks. If the hive carry pollen it probably has brood but of course you may take them off and kill by freezing.

I have done allways trickling via 2 boxes because they are often sealed together with burr. If you separate boxes like many advices, a lot of bees will squeeze between frames.

 

[RoofTops]

I agree, don't split double boxes as the bees can be spread between them. The acid trickled from above will drop down and reach the bees.

 

[iball]

I was told not to split the boxes because if the cluster is in the middle then that will also be split.

Ian

 

[For want of a better word]

Do not separate the brood boxes... checked a brood double of Greeks this afternoon using an endoscope. Bees clustered between and betwixt the two boxes. And some climbing up to the fondant.
one was a ? queenless and weak colony and were recently merged.

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

Thanks for all your advice people, this is how we learn....

 

[jimbeekeeper]

Best thing is to be set-up ready.

If you are using s syringe to trickle the solution on, practice before hand with water so you are straight into the hive..5ml per seam, lid back on.

Job done!

60 seconds or so, at the very most per hive.

And then maybe a slab of fondant as a late Chrimbo pressy

 

[sputnam]

I find that, even on a frosty morning, the bees aren't happy if I'm not very quick. Last year I used an automatic dosing syringe for the first time, Saved a few seconds per hive.

 

[SimonB]

Latest Beecraft covers OA treatment and the article's author recommends adding a needle tip to the syringe for better control. This will be my first winter with bees, I can't decide whether to treat them or not, assuming they're stil alive, I'm not hopeful, but I might do the treatment to give me an opportunity to find out.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Same article also recommends splitting double brood boxes to apply treatment - ah well, guess we've just got to make up our own minds which is best

 

[RoofTops]

You don't need a needle on the end - far too dangerous in my view and I've never had any problem with controlling the trickle.

Split brood boxes if you want but if you find they are spread over the gap between the two as has happened to me you will quickly learn that this is not a good idea. As they won't have been disturbed for months you may well find brace comb between the boxes and this squashes bees when you put them back together unless you spend time scraping it off - which is exactly what you don't want to do in the depths of winter.

Some writers seem to want to take something simple and make it as difficult as possible.

Lift lid, trickle about 5ml down every seam, replace lid. Job done.

If there were no bees in some seams the OA will just dribble out of the bottom of the hive. You won't overdose them.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Split brood boxes if you want but if you find they are spread over the gap between the two as has happened to me you will quickly learn that this is not a good idea. As they won't have been disturbed for months you may well find brace comb between the boxes and this squashes bees when you put them back together unless you spend time scraping it off - which is exactly what you don't want to do in the depths of winter.

Thats the conclusion I came to

 

[For want of a better word]

You don't need a needle on the end - far too dangerous in my view and I've never had any problem with controlling the trickle.

Wait untill you are pushing 70 !!

 

[MrB]

You don't need a needle on the end - far too dangerous in my view and I've never had any problem with controlling the trickle.

I was also wondering about the needle, so thanks for that!

 

[aberreef]

I'll borrowleaving a 50ml syringe from work so can do the whole hive with one fill.

Definately no need for a needle on the end of a syringe btw, it'll just make the flow from the syringe slower.