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How often to check swarm traps?

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rgennaro:
Hi everybody
I am in the process of placing some swarm traps. Some I will put them around my property and I can check them regularly. But I am going to put a few over at a friend's property in the hope of catching a swarm from a colony that lives in his barn and seems very strong and healthy (discussed in a previous post). It's a 10-15 minutes drive to his property. How often should I go check the traps? The swarms (if caught) may or may not have to be relocated.
Thanks
Rosario

Nock:
I check mine usually once a week. Sometimes every other week.

JurassicApiary:
Similar to Nock, I usually check them once a week for ones close by my property and every other week for distant ones.


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Bob Wilson:
I agree too. Once a week.
The reason I do that is if a colony moves in the day after I check, that gives them only a week of building in the swarm box, before I return for another check. That is short enough to remove them before they build too much in the swarm box and make a mess of things.

If they have just moved in, then I transfer them to a hive immediately.
If they are building but have no brood, then I know to come back in a few days when they have brood.
If they have already set up brood, then I move them to a permanent hive.

I recently helpd a guy with a swarm trap that had been occupied for 4 weeks. It was a two man job moving the colony into a hive box. Every single frame was filled with comb, but then had more comb hanging from the bottom of it. Fortunately, it was mostly cutting out and rubber banding brood comb into additional frames, and even that was mostly straight built. If it had been cross comb, or if there had been a lot of nectar, it would have been a royal mess.

Ben Framed:
If you were to use (traps) as those used by Jeff Horchoff Bees of Saint Francis Abby it would not be a worry.  Jeff uses regular 10 frame deeps with frames included. Never a worry about a mess. I suppose you could wait 2 weeks or longer, depending on your schedule. Jeff catches some years 40 or more swarms.

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