What is a Varroa Screen for?

[Polyanwood]

I bought 3 of these superb bargains (Ha, ha, ha) in the Thornes sale, having decided that I am going to move the bees onto varroa floors in the wooden brood boxes in the Spring, with a plan to put them back in the poly hives (which have solid floors) in the autumn.

They were Langstroth varroa screens allegedly, but they are not proper Langstroth size. They are 19.5" x 14". What are they and what are they for??

 

[Bcrazy]

I have just looked in the Thornes catalogue and can't find any varroa screen.
Can you take a photo and show us this screen, then we might be able to tell what and how it should be used.

Regards;

 

[BKF Admin]

Is it a travel screen ?

Did it say "varroa screen" in the catalogue?

 

[Bcrazy]

No admin it only mentions Varroa floors, Varroa test tray and thats it.
Regards

 

[Polyanwood]

It was in the sale.

I wondered if it was supposed to be used as part of IPM to brush icing sugar through so no bees get a big lump on them?? But why is is not Langstroth sized?

Will ask one of the technical operatives to help me take photo. Also promised photo of the occasional bee suit.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

Are you like my Wife - buy something that's cheap and then decide what to use it for afterwards??

 

[BKF Admin]

Dave Cushman site says "What is a varroa screen"?
"Just another name for an OMF".

 

[Polyanwood]

Thanks admin. That was what I thought when I ordered them, but I thought I must have had a mad moment when they turned out not to be fit for purpose. Thornes are saying that they think that they probably sent me the wrong size, varroa screen, so we are trying to work out how to get the useless things back to them and they will send me the right size. I think the right size would work as a low tech OMF. I will just put the sticky insert on top of the mesh when I want to do a mite count. Will have to sit hive on a piece of hardboard to do thymol treatment as there is no tray.

 

[Polyanwood]

Now Thornes say that they are the right size, and how you use them is that you put them on top of the solid floor inside the hive. I am not impressed. How is that going to work? The wood is about 1.5 cm thick and it is in a U shape around the rectangular mesh. So if I put the bottom part of the U at the front, then that will significantly narrow the entrance and reduce ventilation and if I just put the wire edge at the front, they are going to fly under it, and have to come back out, or worse , get confused or cold and cluster in that narrow gap.

Unless I can improve the virtually non existent woodwork skills and make them into stand alone floors, this is not going to work.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I think the idea of these things is that you reverse your floor,so the normal entrance is at the back,this allows you to put a paper test card in from the back to test the mite drop.if this is what you have.your new front entrance is above the steel reinforcing strip,and no bee's can get in underneath.

https://secure.thorne.co.uk/popup/health15.htm

 

[gavin]

Ahh .. a penny is dropping. I think that I just sent you a message in Another Place.

Your Langstroths are polystyrene? Then maybe you have a floor that isn't like the normal plain wooden floor, perhaps with a narrow entrance?

Imagine a plain wooden floor, just a sheet of ply with a U-shaped edge made of three strips of wood. Now rotate it through 180 degrees and place the Varroa screen on top, with its open end of the U facing forward.

You now have a solid floor, space to slip in a sheet under the mesh to catch Varroa from the back, and bees can only exit forwards on top of the mesh.

Mites fall through the mesh, and bees can't get at them.

But ... your polystyrene floor might be different?

all the best

Gavin

 

[Hivemaker.]

A quite effective way of converting a standard wooden floor into a varroa floor ,which you can monitor mite drop,you could then block off the space in the rear with a strip of timber,or foam if you wished. Easy to make,as its only a square of mesh with three laths,cost about ?3.00 each to make.

 

[Bcrazy]

My poly floors are OMF and I have a white small tray that fits under the mesh and is the proper tray for collecting debris, which slides in and out.

Regards;

 

[Poly Hive]

I have never seen or heard of a poly hive with a solid poly floor. What make are they please?

PH