Just received my new Harbor Freight "Merry Christmas Sale" catalog. Ames infrared laser thermometer for $17.99. Will that do the job of checking hive temp for cluster position?
Prehaps if you shot the laser beam straight through the vent hole into the cluster it might? What I am sure it will do, for example; if you are wanting to know if your hive is living, you can simply shoot the laser beam at the opening or maybe even the outside wall of the hive itself, and you should receive a temperature that is (higher) than the outside temperature verses the ground , a tree, for example. As I stated earlier, it was very helpful in locating the main part of the cut out hives through the wall. It was a few degrees higher on the wall where the cluster was located, but did not give me the true tempature of the cluster itself, being the laser beam was shot on the outside of the wall. As far as a true hive tempature, I would think, could only be obtained, with a thermometer placed behind the wall within the cluster. Or in your case within the hive. I would think that Ace's method will probably give you the most accurate inside temperature. But again, If you want to know if your hive is living, it should be a very handy tool. Simply walk by, shoot the laser beam and read the tempature. If higher than other outside objects, your hive is living. If tempature is the same, I would think dead hive.
Thanks Phillip