why

Beekeeping & Apiculture Forum

Help Support Beekeeping & Apiculture Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
The old style unmodified nationals dont have this slightly odd, less than a beespace gap at the bottom.
I'm with Irish guy, why ?


I'm referring to the BS modified National !
VM


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
The old style unmodified nationals dont have this slightly odd, less than a beespace gap at the bottom.
I'm with Irish guy, why ?

Could have been one of the reasons why they modified them? The thing to do would be to fill in the gap and then see if it is not needed.
 
It is bee space as mentioned. Without it the bees would have a field day propolising your frames to the underside of the box. If the space was to big then they would have a great time attaching with brace comb. It's hard not to squash bees but the smaller the quantity the better as it can spread disease. You may think it's not needed on the bottom box but then it may not be the bottom box one day.

:iagree:
Without beespace at the bottom there would just be the odd crack showing daylight (unless your Hives are engineered to tolerances to the far end of a fahrt) thus bees would propolise it all up making it a right pain to separate the boxes/frames. by putting beespace there they tend to leave it alone - you get some propolisation granted, but not as much as if they were flush (that's the theory anyway!)

If you ever realise there are three different siized National boxes, viz: shallow, deep and extra deep.

What they might be used for is up to the individual beekeeper.

But what's that got to do with the question?
 
Without beespace at the bottom there would just be the odd crack showing daylight (unless your Hives are engineered to tolerances to the far end of a fahrt) thus bees would propolise it all up making it a right pain to separate the boxes/frames.

You would need to just raise/separate the upper box complete with lower frames attached, and release the end of each frame in turn, while keeping the box held up....or just use a club hammer and bolster to separate the boxes.
 
I know this thread has been at rest for a while but thought that the following paragraph from Manley's 'Honey Farming' would be worth adding to the general discussion, specifically with regards to the old style national construction mentioned by mbc.

The metal end method of spacing frames is in my opinion one of the most objectionable features of the British equipment. Combs so spaced, since these spacers contact only at the level of the top-bars, can swing when travelling, unless held down tightly on the rabbets which support them. This, in turn, makes it usual for the bee-space between the frames of the different stories to be allowed below the frames, so that the top-bars shall be flush with the hive walls. Then the bottoms of the super walls rest on the ends of the frames and hold them securely in place, but when we wish to lift a super, the lower edges of the super walls are stuck to the top-bars of the brood frames, and the latter are liable to be raised with the super.
 
I agree with that bit about raising the frames below when you raise the super. Since I managed to have honey spilling out of frames in a lower super because of this I even carry some blocks of wood to insert under one side of the top super, allowing me to go round to the other side and check for frames from the bottom box in case they are attached. The blocks of wood mean I don't have to lower the first side down to look at the second side and means less squishing.
 
if the bottom of the upper box was not recessed like that you would squash bees or trap them around the frame lugs.
 
why have this beespace?

look at the top of your photo. the lugs sit on runners in the recess formed. they should be level with the top of the box if on BBS. The box above (whichever sized box that is) would sit directly on top of the lugs which'd get propolised to the underside of the upper box.
a proper beespace all round the lugs stops this.
 
I agree with that bit about raising the frames below when you raise the super. Since I managed to have honey spilling out of frames in a lower super because of this I even carry some blocks of wood to insert under one side of the top super, allowing me to go round to the other side and check for frames from the bottom box in case they are attached. The blocks of wood mean I don't have to lower the first side down to look at the second side and means less squishing.
twist the box a quarter turn or so before lifting, you won't get that problem then
 
is it wrong that I like the crunchy, squelchy noise I hear when re stacking my boxes?
 
irishguy

You are going to put some runners on the top edge of that side wall for the frame lugs to rest on?

...that's why you need that space at the bottom
 
in a double brood,-

Forgive me for asking the obvious question, but what has it got to do with a double brood? Any other box above will have the same requirement, shirley?
 
"is it wrong that I like the crunchy, squelchy noise I hear when re stacking my boxes?"

no. except one day that crunchy squelchy noise will come from the demise of HM, not a disposable worker or drone.
 
is it wrong that I like the crunchy, squelchy noise I hear when re stacking my boxes?

Puts me in mind of the Perishers cartoon of yesteryear when Maisie squashed an Ant. Marlon told her the King of the Giant Ants would come and find her, causing her nightmares!
 
So will kids :D
Vm


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
is it wrong that I like the crunchy, squelchy noise I hear when re stacking my boxes?

Yes.
The bees trying to clean up squashed bee is just about the most efficient method possible of distributing any disease throughout the hive.
Bits of bee jammed between boxes leads to the sort of cracks that the bees will propolise. Waste of effort for them, and you.
It also wastes bees. Every little helps!
And one day it will be Q ...
 

Latest posts

Back
Top