Author Topic: weight of hive (Read 2272 times)

KONASDAD · « **on:** July 03, 2006, 08:58:51 pm »

Inspected my hive and added a second hive this week. When adding a slatted rack to older hive, I seperated the two deeps apart and placed on ground to make additions. The upper deep must weigh 75lbs easily. The lower deep weighs about 40lbs. I looked into upper. 4 boards all honey, both sides. White wax, see-through honeyand all capped. Other boards are brood, pollen and honey in a typical pattern. in various stages of development. Bottom deep is predominately brood w/ outer boards loaded w/ honey. Should I be manipulating any of these boards? I want to be set up for winter properly before any honey removal. Is this normal and healthy weight differential between upper and lower deeps.

latebee · « **Reply #1 on:** July 03, 2006, 11:14:24 pm »

Sounds perfect to me- for this time of year.Dont worry be happy!I might add another super or two on the top.

Finsky · « **Reply #2 on:** July 04, 2006, 01:04:05 am »

Quote from: KONASDAD

. Should I be manipulating any of these boards? I want to be set up for winter properly before any honey removal. Is this normal and healthy weight differential between upper and lower deeps.

You live here ? http://pix.epodunk.com/locatorMaps/nj/NJ_18206.gif

You have best summer now? What kind of honey flowers you have there?

Here in Finland main flow has just started. Canola blooms and fireweed blooms after a week. After 3 weeks honey show is over.

Now it is not time to think winter. It is time to look hives how full they are bees and honey. The hive weight nothing to bees. It means only that there are nectar around and bees has gathered it. When hive is now too full they will swarm and honey restrict the colony growth.

So give new room, extract capped honey away or put it on the top of bigger hive. 2 box hive is too small to handle honey flow. Give those one or or two box up and lift honey frames from brood area topmost.

Give to colony free combs that queen may lay so much as it is able. Don-'t use slatted racks or excluders.

Take care that they do not make queen cells.

.

Kris^ · « **Reply #3 on:** July 04, 2006, 09:24:58 am »

We're still having a good flow in our area, as far as I can tell. I have supers on all my hives except for the 2 splits I made June 13th. The hives I started from packages at the beginning of May have one, the rest have 2 or more. One hive has already outproduced what it made all of last year. The big time to pull supers seems to be mid-August. This is just my experience from 2 years past, though.

If you have both brood boxes full, or nearly so, I'd put on a super of foundation and another one in a few weeks, depending on how they draw the first.

-- Kris

Michael Bush · « **Reply #4 on:** July 04, 2006, 10:13:40 am »

Typically one has mostly brood and the other has mostly honey. The mostly honey one will always be heavier. If it's full of honey it will be 90 pounds. If it's just full of brood it may only weigh 20 pounds.

KONASDAD · « **Reply #5 on:** July 04, 2006, 10:45:33 am »

I added a super two weeks ago. Forgot to mention. They are just begining to draw out foundation on super, and I see bees working hard in my yard. I have been told that I am in the flow now, qnd w/ all the rain it should be a good one and a late one too! Just checking. Thanx a bunch