Hive Honey consumption over the winter by weight

[tjc1]

I posted this first in another thread, but thought that it might be an interesting topic thread on its own -

Anyone here keeping track of actual honey consumption by hive weight loss? I have weighed both my hives (both made of 3 ten frame mediums with an empty insulation super on top) and they have been almost identical - here are the numbers so far:

September 30 - ca 115 lbs.
November 20 - ca 95 lbs.      =  (about 0.4 lbs/day)
January 11 - ca 84 lbs.          = (about 0.21 lbs/day)

Would seem to indicate lower consumption with colder weather, but also of course a dwindling population over that time.

[Dallasbeek]

That supports what I said/asked about in another thread.   Thanks

[Van, Arkansas, USA]

Tjc1, you have posted the most useful information.  Thank you, Sir.  I would like to know about the weather in Plymouth, MA.  I realize you are far northeast,  however your location is next to the ocean.  So could you provide an average temperature range, such as lows single digits on average or does the ocean influence very much.

The Gulf of Mexico has tremendous effect on adjacent states, just south of me, 150 miles makes a huge difference, 30 degrees F difference.  What I am asking is: does Pacific have warm currents that effect your immediate area, or do you freeze and stay frozen such as Michigan. 
Blessings

[Dallasbeek]

Massachusets is closer to the Atlantic and the Gulf Stream sweeps up the eastern Atlantiic, close to the UK. 

[Van, Arkansas, USA]

I mean Atlantic, not pacific.

[Dallasbeek]

Yeah, it's late in the day and we all get confused.  Have a good weekend, friend.

[tjc1]

Here are the averages, tho they can vary quite a bit. This fall/winter we had very warm weather through mid December, then we got slammed with the last two weeks of temps in the 0 to teens range. We do have a warmer tendency here on the coast due to the effect of the water and the Gulf Stream, tho we can get lots of stormy weather and snow, too, depending on how the northeast storms come in.

Climate Plymouth - Massachusetts ?C | ?F
                           Jan   Feb   Mar   Apr   May   Jun
Average high in ?F:   39   42   48   58   68   77
Average low in ?F:   18   20   26   35   44   54
Av. precipitation in inch:   4.49   4.09   5.63   4.76   3.94   3.9
Days with precipitation:   -   -   -   -   -   -
Hours of sunshine:   -   -   -   -   -   -
Average snowfall in inch:   11   10   7   1   0   0

                            Jul   Aug   Sep   Oct   Nov   Dec
Average high in ?F:   83   81   74   64   54   44
Average low in ?F:   61   60   52   41   33   24
Av. precipitation in inch:   3.66   4.02   4.13   4.49   4.76   4.49
Days with precipitation:   -   -   -   -   -   -
Hours of sunshine:   -   -   -   -   -   -
Average snowfall in inch:   0   0   0   0   1   7

[Dallasbeek]

I stand corrected on the location of the gulf stream.  I've now looked it up and see that it's much more complex than I thought.  It apparently splits and splits again, and, like a giant complex of rivers, affects the western Atlantic, in addition to the eastern Atlantic, even down to the coast of Africa before circulating back northward.

[tjc1]

Decided to back and look at last year (2016-17, first for which I have regular weight measurements) and found the following honey consumption:

Oct. 8 - Nov. 13 = 6 lbs or 0.17 per day
Nov 13 - Jan 11 = 8 lbs or 0.14 per day
Jan. 11 - Feb. 19 = 12 lbs or 0.31 per day
Feb 19 - March 18 = 10 lbs or 0.3 per day

I checked and for all of those months the average temps were warmer than the stats listed in the post above, especially in regard to the low temp averages which were considerably higher.

[Van, Arkansas, USA]

Tjc1. You are incredible with your data, record keeping.  I am very impressed.  Data as you have posted is very useful.  I bet you are a very organized individual.  I will make a donation now to Beemaster, to show my appreciation.   Thank you.
Blessings

[Van, Arkansas, USA]

Tjc1, question.  What kind of honey bees do you manage, itialian, Carniolan etc... Some strains are known for small winter clusters.  Do you have a strain known for small winter clusters?
Blessings

[tjc1]

They are Italians as received as packages from Georgia originally, but both hives have since replaced their queens. Yes, I like to be pretty organized, Van. I wish that I started taking weights earlier, and more consistently, which I plan to do going forward. I also find the great information provided by the other beeks here to be so helpful, and am glad if any info I can share is of use to others.

[Vance G]

Latitude 46 40 n change.  For several years I weighed my wintering colonies.  Nov thru Jan, my bees lost 8-9 lbs per month with some exceptions that used more and were used up as frames to make splits.  February consumption ramped up considerably but I start feeding pollen mid month.  So check for starving colonies in February and you can often  save the greedy.