Where to put the entrance hole in a nuc-box?

[user 20297]

Obviously (?) I'm planning for the entrance to go through the bottom of the wall on the short side, making it the (imprecisely-named), "cold way". I suspect that not many people would put it anywhere else and that recommendations to place it at the top or halfway up seem unlikely.
But how about putting it on the long side?

 

[Ian123]

Nothing to stop you putting it on the side but I suggest you think how you work the hive or location, maybe if your going to run two together? With small nucs particularly in Autumn insure the brood nest is by the entrance so if you have it up 1 end ensure that’s the end you push brood to.

 

[Erichalfbee]

My nucs are solid floors UFE. That seems to work nicely.

 

[Newbeeneil]

I made up a nuc size bait hive last year with a hole about 10oclock on the long side. It seemed to make little difference over the 4weeks I left them in there apart from the brood being just inside the entrance.

 

[Little_bees]

Nothing to stop you putting it on the side but I suggest you think how you work the hive or location, maybe if your going to run two together? With small nucs particularly in Autumn insure the brood nest is by the entrance so if you have it up 1 end ensure that’s the end you push brood to.

I divided a brood box the other year to use for swarm control when I ran short of nucs. I just put a disk entrance on each of the 2 long sides and divided it five frames each.
It worked perfectly well.
Have to say I haven't used it for overwintering though.

 

[Ian123]

I divided a brood box the other year to use for swarm control when I ran short of nucs. I just put a disk entrance on each of the 2 long sides and divided it five frames each.
It worked perfectly well.
Have to say I haven't used it for overwintering though.

Really shouldn’t be an issue I’ve wintered lots in divided broods and even single 5 frame nucs often doubled up under a single roof. When dividing broods if done right and using slim seconds frames you’ll get a 6 and five frame set up.

 

[Little_bees]

I've not needed to use my divided brood box for winter because by then the poly nucs are mostly all freed up.
I was just saying that if the 2 clusters were then close to the entrances they'd lose the benefit of being against the warmer centre wall.

 

[derekm]

Obviously (?) I'm planning for the entrance to go through the bottom of the wall on the short side, making it the (imprecisely-named), "cold way". I suspect that not many people would put it anywhere else and that recommendations to place it at the top or halfway up seem unlikely.
But how about putting it on the long side?

Make the entrance in a separate solid floor and make it low down as practical and make it a tunnel entrance. Heat transfer, the ability to stack and defence.

 

[Ian123]

Sometimes they will migrate towards the central wall sometimes not. If one side gets full sun you’ll often find 1 colony right up against that side, ignoring the divider. On my doubled up 5 framers there’s 2x18mm walls and likely a mm or 2 gap between so no benefit and they do fine. Here’s a pic of 2 small 1s taken a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Bazzer]

Obviously (?) I'm planning for the entrance to go through the bottom of the wall on the short side, making it the (imprecisely-named), "cold way". I suspect that not many people would put it anywhere else and that recommendations to place it at the top or halfway up seem unlikely.
But how about putting it on the long side?

I use entrances on the short side witha back to them so the bees have to move downwards to enter the hive - this works very well in late summer to minimise wasp problems - I now very rarely lose a new nuc.

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[Michael Palmer]

Make the entrance in a separate solid floor and make it low down as practical and make it a tunnel entrance. Heat transfer, the ability to stack and defence.

What is a tunnel entrance?

 

[Erichalfbee]

What is a tunnel entrance?

Here’s one

wasp tunnel mark two

Thought they swarmed, Hugh or was the swarm that arrived from somewhere else? No the swarm came from elsewhere - so basically I have had 4 swarms in a dead straight line through my garden in 15 months now.

beekeepingforum.co.uk

 

[derekm]

What is a tunnel entrance?

A knot hole in a tree is small in diameter and has length. This dramatically changes its heat transfer properties, but it is even more dramatic in in its bee and wasp behaviour consequences. Stuff happens , lots of stuff.

 

[Nige.Coll]

Correx nucs have the entrance in the side.
The brood boxes I have split in half have it in the side. Not sure about the long side as my boxes are square.

I think you care more about where the entrance goes than the bees will. They never seem bothered where it is.

 

[Poly Hive]

I have some old as in 20 odd years old 5 frame poly nucs and some are short end and some long side openings and it don't make any odds at all. KISS

PH