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Thread: Porter bee escapes

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  1. #1

    Default Porter bee escapes

    I have put a clearer board on and 2 porter bee escapes but the bees are not moving.

  2. #2
    Senior Member
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    Hopefully this link will provide you with an answer.
    http://beespoke.info/2015/08/05/porter-bee-escape/

  3. #3

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    Thanks Lindsay, that's very helpful. I will give them a little more time. If that doesn't work I will check for drones. Jane

  4. #4
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    I prefer a rhombus myself, much quicker and no moving parts to jam up. Although even they haven't been as effective in this hot weather. I presume that the bees are seeking out the heat from the main hive below the clearer board, but when it's been as hot overnight as many nights this year they don't bother.

  5. #5

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    Been having similar problems. I have a slab of insulation on the hives year round - I keep meaning to try removing it when the clearer boards are on, my thinking being that the supers would and cool and they would be slightly more inclined to seek out the warmth below the board.

  6. #6
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    Not such a daft idea....I have poly crown-boards and roofs Doh!
    Now where are those old wooden ones...hmmmm.

  7. #7

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    I may have also made a mistake of keeping a half drawn super under the clearer board perhaps reducing the smell of the queen pheromone in the brood box.

  8. #8
    Senior Member Mellifera Crofter's Avatar
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    I’m not sure that removing the insulation will help to cool down the supers.

    I think removing the insulation might have the opposite effect as it also insulates the hive from outside heat and helps the bees to maintain a constant temperature inside the hive.

    Kitta

  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mellifera Crofter View Post
    I’m not sure that removing the insulation will help to cool down the supers.

    I think removing the insulation might have the opposite effect as it also insulates the hive from outside heat and helps the bees to maintain a constant temperature inside the hive.

    Kitta
    Yes indeed - it depends on the relative temperatures between outside and inside and whether the hive is in direct sunlight or not and what colour it is painted, and whether or not the sun makes an appearance that day and so on.

    My usual (I say this as if I have been doing it a while) strategy is to put boards on in the evening and then remove supers first thing the next morning. In that scenario the supers would be substantially warmer than the surrounding air and they can only cool faster with the top insulation removed, especially as this then exposes the mesh I have blocking the feed holes on most of my crown boards.

    I agree that if trying to clear during the day in the height of summer it might have the opposite effect.

  10. #10

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    So the reason for the board not clearing became apparent on the removal of the board to find the porter bee escapes had jumped out of position when placing the heavy supers on top. image2 (1).JPG image1 (1).JPG

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