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Author Topic: Does OAV treatment need a screened bottom board?  (Read 942 times)

Offline rgennaro

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Does OAV treatment need a screened bottom board?
« on: September 11, 2020, 01:39:30 pm »
Hi everybody

quick question: Do you need to have a screened bottom board with a stick board to capture mites when treating with OAV? Or can you do it with a regular bottom board?

In other words does the treatment kill the mites, or just force them to slip off the bees and fall down (in which case you would want to trap them on the sticky board)

thanks
Rosario

Offline TheHoneyPump

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Re: Does OAV treatment need a screened bottom board?
« Reply #1 on: September 11, 2020, 01:58:43 pm »
OAV kills them dead as dust.  The bees will clear out them out just like everything else when clean and polish the bottom boards.  If you are curious, put a tray out front under the edge of the landing board.  Extending about 6" out beyond the landing pad.  See how many dead mites they toss off the doorstep.

Long answer to, No screened bottom boards are not required.
When the lid goes back on, the bees will spend the next 3 days undoing most of what the beekeeper just did to them.

Offline TheHoneyPump

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Re: Does OAV treatment need a screened bottom board?
« Reply #2 on: September 12, 2020, 10:02:00 pm »
Just for fun.  Here are pictures of the bottom board of a hive that was crashing from PMS. This hive was 6 boxes high packed with bees in August. Now they barely occupy one box. 
24 hours after OAV treatment.  None of what can be seen there is hive debris.  It is ALL mite carcasses.
When the lid goes back on, the bees will spend the next 3 days undoing most of what the beekeeper just did to them.

 

anything