Top Entrance?

[Terri Yaki]

My mentor's hives all have top boards with entrance holes. He flips them over to make the entrance above or below the board depending on the need. This is the first I've heard of this and my top covers do not have entrance holes on them. The board frames are not very thick and the board is dead center so if I cut entrance holes in them, they would not be as tall as they are on the entrance reducers but they would be tall enough for bees to make it through. What's the scoop on these things?

[Salvo]

Hi Terri,

It may be that you are referring to a *notched* inner cover, an inner cover with maybe a one inch notch cut out of the frame of that cover, only on one side of the plywood.

My understanding has been that notch is to facilitate air exchange, a *chimney effect* so to speak. Air enters the boxes from the bottom, either the entrance or the screen bottom board. That air flows upward, through the frames, and exits through that notch as well as the (usually ovel) hole in the top dead center of the (usually) plywood sheet.

Those notches could be entrance points, but that is not their primary use.

Somebody has expounded on this exact issue here:

https://bushfarms.com/beestopentrance.htm

Have a nice day!  

Sal

[Terri Yaki]

OK, that sounds good. He said that he turns that notch down when feeding to prevent invading bees from coming in the top, it forces them to come in through the hive, where they would more likely get tended to. In that case, the shortness of the notch is not so important. Should I make notches in them?

[Michael Bush]

I only have top entrances and I don't use inner covers.  I recommend you have them small.  Like not more than 2".  I'd probably do about 1-1/2".

[The15thMember]

I use bottom entrances, and I find I use the notches hardly ever.  I don't use inner covers on all my hives, because some have migratory covers, and I also have one inner cover that doesn't have a notch (it's identical to the other one I bought at the same time, so I think the notch just got missed at the factory), and I've never been like "dang, this is the one without the notch, now I can't do this or that thing".  I do use moisture quilts over the winter for humidity control though, which takes care of my ventilation during that season.  If I didn't have a moisture quilt, I'd definitely want the notch then. 

[Terri Yaki]

OK, so is it necessary to vent the top of the hives at all in the summer heat?

[Michael Bush]

Bees are opportunistic nesters.  They nest where they can find a cavity and they live with the conditions.  Nothing is necessary beyond a small enough opening that they can guard it and a large enough cavity that they can fit a colony in.  Is it helpful?  I think so.  Bees have an issue both summer and winter with getting rid of moisture.  When they cool the hive they evaporate water which creates moist air that needs to be replaced so that more water can be evaporated.  When they make honey, they evaporate water from the nectar.  When the eat honey to stay warm in winter they make two molecules of water for ever molecule of honey they consume.  When the moisture build up in winter it causes condensation that then often drips down on the bees.

Moist air rises.