your insulated hives are working wonders, and if the food stores are still super strong in Feb, then your bees are able to keep the hive much warmer with less effort, when they use less effort vibrating to generate heat they will eat far less than a hive that is constantly having to move to make heat.
Save your money. This “fluff” is not necessary. Treat your bees properly. This self proclaimed beekeeper didn’t treat last year and suffered 100% losses.
@@LycomingWarrior He's human, so he's going to make mistakes. He's learnt from his mistakes, and done much better. End of story. Also, this "fluff" _is_ him treating his bees properly. You can't be a good beekeeper if you don't understand that people in different climates need to adopt different strategies for optimal results.
Think about it. Bees nest in hollows such as tree trunks which are generally much thicker than a hive box and therefore far more insulated. The only problem with insulated hives can be moisture build up. I put a piece of blanket directly on top of my frames and then a large plastic bag which is held in place by the lid. Works a treat. In Korea everyone uses insulation so I never understood the fuss
Glad to see they are all alive and the new design works. Living in Canada I always believed in insulation, I do 3/4" on the outside and 2" on the top with a small top vent. Used this design for 5 years and I never lost a hive, until this year. Last year I made a big mistake and skipped the spring mite treatment. Everything looked great, strongest hives I ever had, earliest I ever harvested honey. Then July came and honey production slowed down. I thought it was the weather, too cold and too much rain. Then August came and there was noticeable drop in the number of bees. Inspections revealed high mite load, viral load and signs of PMS. Treated the bees mid/end of August but it seems it was too late. Half of them replaced their queens in September and failed to mate. Other hives had small clusters. So far lost 4/6 hives. I suspect I will be down to one hive after its all done if I am lucky. Never thought I would lose so many hives so quickly. Seems very similar to your story last year. Learnt a hard lesson will never underestimate mites or skip a spring treatment again.
I use quilt boxes with about 4 inches of pine sawdust/chips from Rural King. Two angeled down one inch holes on each side with screen over them. So far, so good with the moisture.
Great updates Michael Palmer did explain one off his interviews how import is installation polyester round the hives for the winter. In strong winter like you have is very important. I can't wait to see you spring updates Keep good work
I like the temperature probes from the POV that you'll never have surprise dead colonies, you'll know ahead of time if they go cold, and vice versa if they are warm they've gotta be alive :)
2 out of the last three years I had a bunch of deadouts where I lost all or all but 1 hive. Each time there was plenty of stores in the bottom of the hive. Bees moved up and never moved down to eat and starved and froze. This year I just stuck with 1 deep hive fed the crap out of it through December with sugar water and then swapped that out with the dry stuff. Last week all 4 hives were alive!!!!! I love your hives.
Really glad to hear that everyone is well, I can't even begin to imagine having to work in those conditions so really appreciate you sharing! Have a great day
Amazing Amazing Amazing! Do not let the AH's get ya down.. Love following you! Bruce In CT.. Our Bees from Autumn Mornings Farm are alive and Kicking! Thanks for the suggestion!
IMO, the inner covers are upside down. The rim should be down and the notch in the front of the hive. This will vent off the excess moisture. The moisture is rising through that little feed hole and keeping the environment between the inner cover and the insulation humid enough to promote mold growth.
@@vinofarm Fair enough. Just saying...I've been wintering bees on the Canada for almost 50 years. Always had an upper and bottom entrance. Bees winter nicely with no mold
@@michaelpalmer9239 I did the upper vent for 5 years. I’m trying something new. After putting in thermometers and seeing how wildly the temp fluctuate with open vents, I built these hives with no upper vents and watch the temps stay nice and steady year round. The idea is that the bees don’t have the swings in temp and can put more energy into brood rearing and foraging. They will survive with upper vents, but I believe they work harder to survive that way.
Been waiting to see this update. . Looks like you're having a successful Winter. Happy to see this. I truly believe what you said about insulation, my Poly Hive has shown the best data as far as temperature. Look forward to seeing where you go in the Spring.
I dream of my bees being in a cluster this winter. Just been soooo mild over here in Scotland. I run poly hives and get condensation above the crown board. This isn't an issue as the water mostly condenses away from the heat of the cluster and then runs down out the bottom of the hive. I have seen bees drinking their own sweet. If I use wooden give parts I do notice some mould building up.
The conclusion of super insulated hives requiring less honey makes sense. The bees will not have to work too hard to warm up the hive, hence needing less calories. Glad this is working out for you after what you went through last winter. Good luck man! Love your videos.
The insulation is a great idea. Opening the hives and cracking the propolis is a less than great idea. Be patient and the bees will take care of themselves if enough food is available and you've dealt with the varroa issue in the fall.
Your bees are looking great. I noticed the mold growing on the tops/bottom hive cover and on the frames of your first hive. I’ve never had it that bad but my covers did grow a bit of mold around the cluster. I switched the cover from wood to double bubble a few years ago and don’t have any issues anymore.
Wish you made a video of how you made your bee barn… I lost 8 of my 9 hives this winter. Decided to build some bee barns…. It’s taken me almost two days to complete one and it doesn’t look near as nice as yours. I definitely made several mistakes that took a lots of time to fix. Thanks for the vids!
I will. But the design is going to be changing a bit based on what I found this winter. Be patient. There will be multiple videos about these hives all year.
Good to see them working. In regards to the moisture, wouldn't the closed cell foam below the burlap prevent the burlap from absorbing the moisture from the air? Perhaps a central vent hole in the foam would allow the burlap to absorb the moisture without losing the heat (much the same as the central vent hole on a standard inner cover). Good to see the new design working for you.
Thinking you need to come up with a plan that takes that moisture out of the hives. Mold and moisture... cannot be good for the bees or your woodware. Wondering why the clusters seem to be up at the tops of the hives in early February I would have thought they would be lower on those huge frames of yours full of food stores. Use three 8-frame mediums on our hives and all of them (nucs included) are still down in the second or bottom box so all still have a full box of honey above with two months to go. In south central PA it's been an above average cold winter here. Have used insulation on hives since I started beekeeping only lost bees one year in 10 and that was a combo of mites and a warm winter so beekeeper fault for not giving an additional early winter mite treatment like OA. Lesson learned keep zapping the mites!
So glad to see a video from you again!! I’m thrilled your having a better winter. I love you new hive design and would pay money to have just one in my yard. Can’t wait to see what they do this spring!
Insulation as part of the external envelope is worthy and is at last being realised, but let us also consider thermal capacity. An aerated concrete external envelope has both insulation and thermal capacity. The second allows the heat of the day to be carried into the cool of the night and the cool of the night to be carried into the heat of the day. A really small access and ventilation hole at the top, rather than the bottom would allow the water vapour to exit before it condenses and causes nosema and/or acarine.
Just a thought here based on what I saw?? You need a rubber or silicone seal where the inner cover and upper box meet since the bees are not propolizing it. Cover up the bee escape too. That gap is located at one of the warmest parts of the hive. (cold, moist air is getting in) I'm using a 3M product called Silicone Seal Strip. It's for doors. It has a "flap" on it I just cut off but it is very thin and has an adhesive backing. Things are looking good for spring, Thanks for the video.
Yes, this is all part of the process. I’m watching what happens and will be tweaking the little design flaws for next winter. This is still version 1.0.
Hello from NW Iowa. Sooo glad this is working for you! I wrapped my 9 hives with faced R-11 insulation and layered as many rigid insulation in an empty honey super as I could above an inner cover. Average 3 layers. I did lose a very weak hive in January, but all are still hanging in there. I lost 6 out of 8 last year. I also have been feeding. Some are taking the sugar candy well, others not. I have no upper entrance this year. Most say this will cause condensation, but I just think it makes it worse....acts like a chimney sucking all that cold air upstairs. I also have screened bottom boards that are above a bottom board(Univ. of Guelph style) and are mostly closed. I also tried Eteinne's styrofoam/polystyrene entrance reducer. Work great! Love your channel!
The new design seems to have really done great for you. Good deal! You find your way and you stick to it. I was curious at the beginning about the length of the frames and possible propolis issues, but that proved out to be non existent when I saw your inspections this past season. The rest of the principles mimic the Layans which many seem to like. So good deal on the design that you made for YOUR operation, YOUR way, for YOUR bees, and YOUR peace of mind. Plus, stop opening your hives when it's cold!....That guy made me laugh and what a great reply you gave him. Classy and polite, you took the high road, good job.
Hi I’m also from Massachusetts appreciate all the hard work innovation you put into your videos they’re fun to watch and very informative especially for a beginner beekeeper like myself. I’m about halfway through building your latest design of the super insulated hives, But I do have a question regarding the Top box that you were going to use for winterizing your bees. In your latest video when you were checking your hives I noticed you did not use the top box. I was just wondering if you had Decided not to go with that design?
Things are changing a bit. That’s why I haven’t released any “plans” or build videos. I really wanted to experience a whole summer and winter with these to find the flaws in my design. I’ll be going over it in my next video.
Thank you for the fantastic work on your channel, I have found your ideas and their execution to be inspiring, innovative, and fantastic. would you be willing to share your plans on the insulated hive construction? have you thought of commercializing them?
I'm thrilled your "kids" are doing so well. I'll honestly say I'm not too surprised that the way you (re)built your hives proved successful. The principles are sound (at least to me) and a few (alternative) references I've read essentially say the same thing: insulation is key to maintaining stable temps. I'm wondering what your thoughts are on using a slated rack in your hives. The extra space and the "cover" over the interior side of the entrance should/would avoid dead bees blocking the entrance and act a little like a natural beehive (space below the entrance for debris, which the bees clean out in spring). Or am I way off?
Hi, Jim. Thanks for posting and I'm glad all the hives are surviving well. I noticed on your double nukes, you had cut up pieces of DuPont Styrofoam cut to shield the tops (and maybe the sides, as well) from cold? Do you have any schematics on how you cut and placed them? I bought some wooden nukes this year anticipating using them to keep down swarming but how did you insulate yours? I'm a new backyard beekeeper and want to start my first 2 hives this year, and certainly planning ahead for how to overwinter my hives. Your videos are so informative. I love the well insulated 'bee barns' and think the extended frames are the greatest innovation since sliced bread. Loved to see in one of your videos how the bees made a huge, round brood circle on them. I'd call that a great and successful design.
Congrats! Lookn good. I liked all the bees popping out of that fist nuk, very fiesty! Now we know what bee is for 'shut the door! Were you raised in a barn!?
Now that you follow the fully insulated theory, as I do, you can reuse those nice wraps you made and put 3-4” on top with no openings for new colony expansion.
Click bait, I became sad for a nanosecond thinking the bees were in trouble. Glad to hear they're doing well. PS: Joking about the click bait part lol.
Excellent update Jim well done. Yeah this outcome was almost a 'no brainer' (sorry haters). If JP is the whisperer, Jeff Horchoff the minister, Dirt Rooster the cavalier, and Ian Steppler the master? Then you sir (as stated last video) are the wizard!
Just curious... do your hive enough proper ventilation? Seems like a lot of excessive moisture to me and I didn't notice any upper venting area. Maybe I missed them.
Dear Vino Farm. I know you may not like the advise but the mold you have is not enough ventilation in your hives. Try to make 3-4 holes right under cover.
Thank you. I know what caused the mold. I’m trying to overwinter with no upper ventilation. A super insulated hive does not need upper vents. My mistake was one spot where the insulation did not cover, causing condensation to form and then mold. I’m going to explain it on a video and fix it when I remake these hives.
just curious... what made you eliminate the upper vent/upper entrance? I insulate pretty heavily, top bottom and sides, and have a quilt board to eliminate condensation. BUT I keep an "upper entrance" that acts as a vent (and an exit in deep snow) it works for overwintering here in CT. what made you eliminate the upper vent? just curious.
Thoroughly explained in this video: th-cam.com/video/UKXgIdHpedo/w-d-xo.html Nutshell: Super insulated hives need no upper vents. Non insulated hives need some vents. This was pioneered by Etienne Tardif. I had the concept in my head years ago, but I was doing it wrong. Etienne cleared up why it works and has lots of data showing it working.
Thanks, Vino, for sharing. You fed your bees with your home made sugar syrup. I tried make syrup - 2 parts sugar with 1 part hot water, and its all melt in syrup and then it got cold down and all syrup turned in massive sugar stone with big sugar crystals :( . What went wrong in my syrup making process?
You need near boiling water and you need to keep it hot until all sugar is completely dissolved. (Not just hot tap water.) Also, if it gets cold, you will get crystallizing and it can harden. I feed in October here in Massachusetts. Once we start getting temperatures near 32F / 0C, I take it off.
Thanks, Vino, for your kind reply, i really appreciate it. You are a kind soul and your bee keeping gets better and beeter, love how you improve your bee keeping skills. And i learn a lot from you. About haters - they just are jealous and envy, because you improve your beekeeping and you are a pure soul.
And about humidity in your hives cover parts - there is no isolation box over your hive covers (but there is a video where you made them as a part of your bee wintering, you did not use them?)
I don't see how your quilt box on the double nuc can work, because I don't see any vent hole to let the moist air up in to the quilt box... what am I missing?
Not a quilt box. The burlap is just extra insulation filling that oddball space. There are no upper vents or entrances in a super insulated hive. See my video (2 vids back) “I was wrong.” It’s thoroughly explained.
you said in your video that you did not feed them prior to winter .... so why are you checking on them then?,...... if they were low on food would you have fed them?.... then what is the ultimate purpose for NOT feeding prior to closing them up for winter.....
I thought this was pretty clearly explained in the video, but you might not have watched the whole thing. So here… They had nearly full brood boxes in October. I put syrup on all hives until they filled their boxes up completely and stopped taking any more around November 1st. I did not add sugar or fondant or winter patties or any other extra feed in the hives. They were wrapped up and left alone around November 1. They sat untouched for November, December and January. February 2 we had a day that was suitable for a peek to check honey levels. IF I looked into a couple hives and saw no capped honey at the tops of the frames, I would have provided emergency sugar or fondant. However, as this video shows, I saw PLENTY of honey and felt confident that I did not need to check every single hive. I did, however check the much smaller nucs. And they were fine, too. That’s it. I won’t need to open them again until we start getting much warmer weather. There are still two solid months of freezing nights and at least that long before there is any kind of forage so I may need to add food at some point.
There have been a few times over the years where it was very convenient to be able to drive the tractor right up to the edge of the bee yard (or right into it). The shrubs are surrounding the bee yard where 90% of the prevailing winds come from…. West, north and south. The Northeast corner is open. I could probably add more there at this point, but it hasn’t been at the top of my to do list.
I like the concept of brood minder, but not the price. Except perhaps as a novelty for one hive. However, once you decided to go that route, why would you open your hives? You spent all that money on equipment that tells you that there is no need to open the hive.
A thermometer and humidity sensor does not tell me how much food is in the hive. I can see that the bees are generating heat and humidity which is great. If the temps dropped suddenly, I would know they had died or were dying. At that point it would be too late to feed them. What I’m doing in this video is beekeeping.
Moisture because of no upper entrance. They can't mange a ventilation trough bottom entrance. Give them a horizontal pvc pipe on top- they will regulate moisture well. They will always vent pipe and in case of cold they are plugging up pipe by themselves. Always right moisture inside!
Beekeepers in Czechia have this flamewar ever since, insulated or not insulated, so I understand you very much. For example professional beekeepers calculate that insulated hive costs more, but you save on feeding and you have higher honey production. I do not want to argue on anything with you, because I see working apiaries with both insulated and not insulated hives, just three, I belive interesting, points: 1) Even when somebody is using not insulated hive, the top cover has always at least some insulation. In other words, the top cover insulation must be better than anywhere else. So the top is warmer and no condensation happens there. I belive that this is your problem with the mold on top cover. I see on the video that you have some insulation there, it just seems to me to be not enough or ineffective. 2) Look at this video, just look, it is in Czech: th-cam.com/video/tLt_2aQGDJE/w-d-xo.html He is showing there a water drinker, running from about mid February. Multiple sources say that bees are thirsty in insulated hives. He uses 37x30cm frames, walls are insulated 10cm and top cover 15cm polystyrene. 3) Just a question. Do your sensors read humidity? I have my temp sensors, just like you, on top bars and they read in January about 8°C and 80%. I use not insulated hives, several upper entrances with small mesh, so bees can easily propolise it to their needs and they keep it open, but top cover is 5cm polystyrene.
The plumber/hvac in me has never understood that concept. Insulation keeps temperature from shifting in or out through walls. Insulation does not make anything warmer or colder- it traps the current air in place. So in this application, it keeps the air the temperature the bees want to keep it at. This equals less energy because the temp stays constant once they warm it to the temperature they want- not a warm food consuming state. I also never understood top entrances in regards to thermal regulation. I think most people misunderstand. Etienne’s work was the first time ive seen an argument for the way i believe it should be done, and its done well. I really enjoy the effort you put in to this project for the rest of us.
I am using Broodminder sensors in both Apimaye insulated hives and wooden hives. Unsurprisingly, the wintertime internal temps are pretty much the same in either. During the winter, they are warming themselves/brood and not the hive itself. I am now wondering if an insulated hive could actually be a negative during colder temps. When the sun hits an insulated hive in the winter, one might assume that the insulation retains the previous night's colder air longer instead of allowing heat from the sun to warm the hive. Regardless, I am fairly certain the benefits of an insulated hive are better realized in HOT weather when the bees are trying to keep the hive itself cooler.
David wolfe. The factor you are missing is that the bees turn over their own air. As in they control what they push and pull for circulation. The temps arent dangerous, its the swing in temperature that used food
Top entrances are only really useful, when there is not much insulation in the first place, because then you get moisture build up which is bad. When there is ample insulation, then there is no need for a top entrance, because the constant warmth generation, and lower temperature differential, means that warm moist air can just be cycled back out the entrance without cooling down and condensing moisture before it can reach the exit.
Fabulous! So glad to see the old Balboa line is still rocking it! All the best Jim for the new year! Can't wait until spring to see an update on the bees and the barn!
I have experienced the same resource surplus in my heated hives. The girls don't seem to burn up as many resources when they don't have to work as hard to keep the hive warm. I am guessing it takes a lot of energy/food to continuously vibrate their thorax all winter long to generate heat. Thanks for the update. Your videos are always appreciated.
Insulation is king! Anyone that does any research (or understands insulation concepts) will learn that insulation is the way to go...even for bees. Etienne's research confirms what we have been saying. We have been using insulation on hives here in Texas to protect against the Texas heat. Bees are venting masters so they vent the hive to maintain whatever temp they want in the summer. In the winter the bees generate their own heat and the insulation just KEEPS the heat in the hive. This is another reason I do not create upper vent holes in my hives...I dont want the heat to escape! Bees are experts at venting and the hive opening is plenty. Great report!
@@LycomingWarrior I would not because I love that look. You can determine the R value if you know the type of wood and thickness. Assuming it is thicker than 3/4" I wouldn't bother. My long langs are 1.5" of wood on the sides and do great.
My only concern about the hives venting needs is all the mold build up. Mold = moisture which is bad for bees in winter correct? I love this style and think you are on to a great concept! I am just curious of what a solution for the mold will be while keeping the insulation. My future Alaskan hives appreciate all your hard work!
@@serenitywoods9752 Bees are masters as venting a hive so no chance for mold but I'm in Texas so our winters are nothing like Alaskan winters. Check out Etienne TH-cam channel because he is in Alaska as well.
I run over a 100 Poly Hives all single deeps...I use a piece of 4 mil plastic sheeting as a inner cover, I see the moisture the bees create on the inner side. That moisture is warm because the cavity is warm, that is their source of water for drinking thru winter and to start the brood rearing in Feb. Your insulated hives are great and correct but the moisture that they generate is being absorbed by the wood cover and causing the mold, you might think about a sheet of 4 mil plastic before the wood cover to keep that water available to the bees. One only has to think of a tree cavity, the bees seal them with propolis so the moisture is not absorbed by the tree but condenses so they can reclaim the water. P.S...Out of 116 I still have 116 alive in Northern Michigan.
Interesting. It looks like you can keep an eye on temperature and use that as a gauge for cluster health. No need to bother the hives unless someone goes abnormal from the rest. Cool discovery!
Exactly. Once I figure out a way to integrate the Broodminder scales into my hive stands, I’ll be able to monitor their honey consumption (hive weight loss) from the app and never have to crack the lids all winter!
Can’t wait to see this video!…great to see so many things looking good at this point. I know your only part way through the winter but your data in encouraging! I’m wondering if the moisture is coming in from between the upper box and the inner cover (above the colony). Perhaps a mitered joint will direct moisture out but that means mitering the inner cover. Maybe adding a piece of wood on the outside of the box that covers the joint and it zip-taped will help keep more moisture out. Either way you go, I’m excited to see how modify your builds. Bee Barns 2.0. Woo hoo!
I think they were a little upset with you for letting in the cold air, lol. But it looks like they are doing great. Things should be booming come spring!
So awesome! Congratulations! Regarding the condensation...my theory is that Etienne's setup is really only ideal for extremely cold winters. Specifically, the air tight tops of the hives. The colder the air, the less moisture it holds. So his hive tops likely stay more dry just because all of the ambient air is very, very dry. My hives are like yours, but even more insulated and air tight on top, and I was getting a lot of moisture in the tops. What I did to change this is I built a 1" feeding shim that is a spacer for food. Then added a quilt box full of wool (instead of burlap) and added vent holes for moisture to escape. I then added more insulation around the feeding shim and on top of the quilt box, but left the vent hole uncovered. Lastly an outer cover over that to keep the elements off. it's just like the vented eves in the attic of a house. The wool keeps warm air in and cold air out, but allows moisture to escape.
@@arogue469 Moisture needs heat to evaporate, but once it is evaporated, it will then concentrate on areas that are colder. Or it will also move to areas of lower moisture until there is equilibrium. It doesn't need heat to do this. This is how desiccant works and desiccant doesn't need heat to draw in moisture, nor does it need to be colder. This concept is how wicking works. The vaporized moisture is moving to areas of lower moisture. Then once it reaches the outside of the wicking material, it will either accumulate there or it will evaporate. It can pull the heat from the air around it to evaporate. Sheep have developed this over time and this is why wool can both wick moisture and keep the animal warm. On my hives the wool is sometimes damp on top, but completely dry and warm on the bottom. My hives are much warmer with the wool on them than without. They are also much more dry. So how is my thinking backwards?
Nice to see it's working as intended, but that mold isn't good, I would change those lids with clean ones and put the dirty ones in bleach.. why don't you try using silica gel bags to see if it can remove the moisture? The pro is that is reusable after drying, while the con is that it may cost a bit (here a 2.2lbs bag costs around 20$)
Moisture is not a problem for the bees. I just need to solve the mold issue which happened because the inner covers were not treated and they wicked water right up through the wood. I need to waterproof the wood or use a non absorbent material. The bees handle moisture and NEED water. The mold is mostly outside the living space, so it will be OK for a little while.
I just checked mine today (2/8), northern MN, about the same temperature as when you checked, I went into winter with 6 hives, now only have 2, one being about baseball sized and the other about 3-4 frames wide, the bigger of the two are in a permanently insulated hive with a quilt box made of 2" insulation and about 8" of burlap. , with 2 1/2 inch vents. This is also a long Lang style. I will be making more of this style hive and quilt box and forgoing the vent on top, although they are using it more it seems for their cleansing flights rather than the bigger bottom entrance, I suspect because they are closer to the side than the middle.
They don't have to eat to help keep warm, they're just using less calories with that insulation. If there is a direct correlation between how much you have to feed them and how well it's insulated this is really important science
Honey is firewood. If you live in a drafty house, you need to burn more wood to keep the house warm. If your house is super tight and insulated, you burn less wood.
@@vinofarm Absolutely; it costs us 1/3rd of what it did to heat our brand new house compared to the 19th century loft we were living in-and that’s all due to insulation.
So happy the look good. Was concerned about the heat loss upon opening. But with the stores and number of bees should be good. Thank you. Hope they all or at least most of them make it this year. Crossing digits for you.
With the water in the nukes situation. Could you put a drain in the back of each side with a plug made of something that can wick the water out but prevent bees using it as a door or wind blowing in?
Yes, I’m considering similar design mods. This is my first winter with super insulated boxes. I’m observing how they behave and will mod things before next winter.
More insulation = less food consumed. True, as long as you got cold winters. Where i live the winterz where cold 40 years ago, nowadays the winters are quite warm and then the food consumption on insulated hives will rise a lot. They'll start raising brood and takes a lot of food
Can you give your opinion on what went wrong with our bees? Im in southern canada on the border .today is feb 21, 2022. We treated for mites in sept, fed the bees till november . Witnessed them brining in pollen all november. Dec 1st started feeding them pro winter food . Two weeks later we stareted to see the bees starting to die and then the temperature dropped in -6 . We started getting 6, 10 , bees dead at the hive entranceway. Then we decided to look in side again . There were approx 200 dead bees up along the front hive wall . We saw two bees dead on top of the food so we believed , hoped that some bees were still alive . Well today was a mild day so we looked better at the hive. We didnt see anything moving and looking down in the hive with little light it was hard to see food. But they didnt eat much pro winter after the first two weeks. I made a rock of sugar yesterday and we left that there just incase but i do believe they are all gone. We brought the dead bees in and shook them around and found 6 dead mites in the approx 200 bees . Im so disappointed, it was our first hive.
your insulated hives are working wonders, and if the food stores are still super strong in Feb, then your bees are able to keep the hive much warmer with less effort, when they use less effort vibrating to generate heat they will eat far less than a hive that is constantly having to move to make heat.
Literally can't wait for the build video, these will be perfect for my first year keeping of bees in Alaska.
Save your money. This “fluff” is not necessary. Treat your bees properly. This self proclaimed beekeeper didn’t treat last year and suffered 100% losses.
Yes he lost 90 % not 100% one hive survived, he learned from it and has adapted better mite treatment processes.
@@blaahster what’s the difference? Don’t keep bees if you can’t take care of them. It is not a part time job.
@@LycomingWarrior He's human, so he's going to make mistakes. He's learnt from his mistakes, and done much better. End of story.
Also, this "fluff" _is_ him treating his bees properly. You can't be a good beekeeper if you don't understand that people in different climates need to adopt different strategies for optimal results.
Think about it. Bees nest in hollows such as tree trunks which are generally much thicker than a hive box and therefore far more insulated. The only problem with insulated hives can be moisture build up. I put a piece of blanket directly on top of my frames and then a large plastic bag which is held in place by the lid. Works a treat. In Korea everyone uses insulation so I never understood the fuss
Glad to see they are all alive and the new design works. Living in Canada I always believed in insulation, I do 3/4" on the outside and 2" on the top with a small top vent. Used this design for 5 years and I never lost a hive, until this year. Last year I made a big mistake and skipped the spring mite treatment. Everything looked great, strongest hives I ever had, earliest I ever harvested honey. Then July came and honey production slowed down. I thought it was the weather, too cold and too much rain. Then August came and there was noticeable drop in the number of bees. Inspections revealed high mite load, viral load and signs of PMS. Treated the bees mid/end of August but it seems it was too late. Half of them replaced their queens in September and failed to mate. Other hives had small clusters. So far lost 4/6 hives. I suspect I will be down to one hive after its all done if I am lucky. Never thought I would lose so many hives so quickly. Seems very similar to your story last year. Learnt a hard lesson will never underestimate mites or skip a spring treatment again.
Yeah, you’re describing my 2020. Ugh. All you can do is learn and adapt and get better next year.
@@vinofarm Yeah expensive mistake, will rebuild better this year. Does help to know though it can happen to others and it wasnt just me.
I use quilt boxes with about 4 inches of pine sawdust/chips from Rural King. Two angeled down one inch holes on each side with screen over them. So far, so good with the moisture.
Great updates
Michael Palmer did explain one off his interviews how import is installation polyester round the hives for the winter. In strong winter like you have is very important.
I can't wait to see you spring updates
Keep good work
So good to hear that the bees are doing well!! Glad to see the update!! Thank you for sharing as always!! 🐝🐝🐝
I like the temperature probes from the POV that you'll never have surprise dead colonies, you'll know ahead of time if they go cold, and vice versa if they are warm they've gotta be alive :)
you could make your division boards with a slope so both hives have a sloping floor for drainage.
All that is needed was a screened bottom board enclosed in the hive body. Wait until you see version 2.0.
2 out of the last three years I had a bunch of deadouts where I lost all or all but 1 hive. Each time there was plenty of stores in the bottom of the hive. Bees moved up and never moved down to eat and starved and froze. This year I just stuck with 1 deep hive fed the crap out of it through December with sugar water and then swapped that out with the dry stuff.
Last week all 4 hives were alive!!!!!
I love your hives.
Really glad to hear that everyone is well, I can't even begin to imagine having to work in those conditions so really appreciate you sharing! Have a great day
Amazing Amazing Amazing! Do not let the AH's get ya down.. Love following you! Bruce In CT.. Our Bees from Autumn Mornings Farm are alive and Kicking! Thanks for the suggestion!
I’m learning so much watching your videos. Maybe there’s value to opening the top ventilation holes to minimize the mold.
Looking great . I think your new hive design is going to be a blast an they are going to come thru winter very strong . Keep up the great work. Thanks
I would say the main point is that you have checked that all your hives are alive and well, mid-winter. And this is definitely good news! Well done!
great news!!!! thanks for the share!
IMO, the inner covers are upside down. The rim should be down and the notch in the front of the hive. This will vent off the excess moisture. The moisture is rising through that little feed hole and keeping the environment between the inner cover and the insulation humid enough to promote mold growth.
No vents. The concept of a super insulated hive is full insulation with only a lower entrance. I made a whole video about it two videos back.
@@vinofarm Fair enough. Just saying...I've been wintering bees on the Canada for almost 50 years. Always had an upper and bottom entrance. Bees winter nicely with no mold
@@michaelpalmer9239 I did the upper vent for 5 years. I’m trying something new. After putting in thermometers and seeing how wildly the temp fluctuate with open vents, I built these hives with no upper vents and watch the temps stay nice and steady year round. The idea is that the bees don’t have the swings in temp and can put more energy into brood rearing and foraging. They will survive with upper vents, but I believe they work harder to survive that way.
Been waiting to see this update. . Looks like you're having a successful Winter. Happy to see this. I truly believe what you said about insulation, my Poly Hive has shown the best data as far as temperature. Look forward to seeing where you go in the Spring.
We’re all learning every day. Just have to keep moving forward and adapting.
I dream of my bees being in a cluster this winter. Just been soooo mild over here in Scotland. I run poly hives and get condensation above the crown board. This isn't an issue as the water mostly condenses away from the heat of the cluster and then runs down out the bottom of the hive. I have seen bees drinking their own sweet. If I use wooden give parts I do notice some mould building up.
Thanks for the update. Your experimental design is rather interesting. Keep going!!!
The conclusion of super insulated hives requiring less honey makes sense. The bees will not have to work too hard to warm up the hive, hence needing less calories. Glad this is working out for you after what you went through last winter. Good luck man! Love your videos.
The insulation is a great idea. Opening the hives and cracking the propolis is a less than great idea. Be patient and the bees will take care of themselves if enough food is available and you've dealt with the varroa issue in the fall.
Your bees are looking great. I noticed the mold growing on the tops/bottom hive cover and on the frames of your first hive. I’ve never had it that bad but my covers did grow a bit of mold around the cluster. I switched the cover from wood to double bubble a few years ago and don’t have any issues anymore.
Hiii so happy to see y’all update
Very happy for you. May this year be a great success for you and the bees.
Wish you made a video of how you made your bee barn… I lost 8 of my 9 hives this winter. Decided to build some bee barns…. It’s taken me almost two days to complete one and it doesn’t look near as nice as yours. I definitely made several mistakes that took a lots of time to fix. Thanks for the vids!
I will. But the design is going to be changing a bit based on what I found this winter. Be patient. There will be multiple videos about these hives all year.
Good to see them working. In regards to the moisture, wouldn't the closed cell foam below the burlap prevent the burlap from absorbing the moisture from the air?
Perhaps a central vent hole in the foam would allow the burlap to absorb the moisture without losing the heat (much the same as the central vent hole on a standard inner cover).
Good to see the new design working for you.
That burlap is not for wicking moisture. It's just there to fill up the remaining air space at the top that insulation didn't completely fit into.
Thinking you need to come up with a plan that takes that moisture out of the hives. Mold and moisture... cannot be good for the bees or your woodware. Wondering why the clusters seem to be up at the tops of the hives in early February I would have thought they would be lower on those huge frames of yours full of food stores. Use three 8-frame mediums on our hives and all of them (nucs included) are still down in the second or bottom box so all still have a full box of honey above with two months to go. In south central PA it's been an above average cold winter here. Have used insulation on hives since I started beekeeping only lost bees one year in 10 and that was a combo of mites and a warm winter so beekeeper fault for not giving an additional early winter mite treatment like OA. Lesson learned keep zapping the mites!
So glad to see a video from you again!! I’m thrilled your having a better winter. I love you new hive design and would pay money to have just one in my yard. Can’t wait to see what they do this spring!
100 k sub soon, whaou you must be proud and happy !
It’s definitely a neat milestone, and I appreciate everyone who has clicked the button. I just want to make good videos.
Insulation as part of the external envelope is worthy and is at last being realised, but let us also consider thermal capacity. An aerated concrete external envelope has both insulation and thermal capacity. The second allows the heat of the day to be carried into the cool of the night and the cool of the night to be carried into the heat of the day.
A really small access and ventilation hole at the top, rather than the bottom would allow the water vapour to exit before it condenses and causes nosema and/or acarine.
Just a thought here based on what I saw?? You need a rubber or silicone seal where the inner cover and upper box meet since the bees are not propolizing it. Cover up the bee escape too. That gap is located at one of the warmest parts of the hive. (cold, moist air is getting in) I'm using a 3M product called Silicone Seal Strip. It's for doors. It has a "flap" on it I just cut off but it is very thin and has an adhesive backing. Things are looking good for spring, Thanks for the video.
Yes, this is all part of the process. I’m watching what happens and will be tweaking the little design flaws for next winter. This is still version 1.0.
Hello from NW Iowa. Sooo glad this is working for you! I wrapped my 9 hives with faced R-11 insulation and layered as many rigid insulation in an empty honey super as I could above an inner cover. Average 3 layers. I did lose a very weak hive in January, but all are still hanging in there. I lost 6 out of 8 last year. I also have been feeding. Some are taking the sugar candy well, others not. I have no upper entrance this year. Most say this will cause condensation, but I just think it makes it worse....acts like a chimney sucking all that cold air upstairs. I also have screened bottom boards that are above a bottom board(Univ. of Guelph style) and are mostly closed. I also tried Eteinne's styrofoam/polystyrene entrance reducer. Work great! Love your channel!
The new design seems to have really done great for you. Good deal! You find your way and you stick to it. I was curious at the beginning about the length of the frames and possible propolis issues, but that proved out to be non existent when I saw your inspections this past season. The rest of the principles mimic the Layans which many seem to like. So good deal on the design that you made for YOUR operation, YOUR way, for YOUR bees, and YOUR peace of mind. Plus, stop opening your hives when it's cold!....That guy made me laugh and what a great reply you gave him. Classy and polite, you took the high road, good job.
Great its worked
Hi I’m also from Massachusetts appreciate all the hard work innovation you put into your videos they’re fun to watch and very informative especially for a beginner beekeeper like myself. I’m about halfway through building your latest design of the super insulated hives, But I do have a question regarding the Top box that you were going to use for winterizing your bees. In your latest video when you were checking your hives I noticed you did not use the top box. I was just wondering if you had Decided not to go with that design?
Things are changing a bit. That’s why I haven’t released any “plans” or build videos. I really wanted to experience a whole summer and winter with these to find the flaws in my design. I’ll be going over it in my next video.
Would like to hear about your mold growth. Any ideas on mitigation?
Thank you for the fantastic work on your channel, I have found your ideas and their execution to be inspiring, innovative, and fantastic. would you be willing to share your plans on the insulated hive construction? have you thought of commercializing them?
Good job man!
Hi Adrian, For the moister, what if you put the burlap under the styrofoam? Just a thought, thank you, again for showing!
I'm thrilled your "kids" are doing so well. I'll honestly say I'm not too surprised that the way you (re)built your hives proved successful. The principles are sound (at least to me) and a few (alternative) references I've read essentially say the same thing: insulation is key to maintaining stable temps.
I'm wondering what your thoughts are on using a slated rack in your hives. The extra space and the "cover" over the interior side of the entrance should/would avoid dead bees blocking the entrance and act a little like a natural beehive (space below the entrance for debris, which the bees clean out in spring). Or am I way off?
The big like não for you my friend
Hi, Jim. Thanks for posting and I'm glad all the hives are surviving well. I noticed on your double nukes, you had cut up pieces of DuPont Styrofoam cut to shield the tops (and maybe the sides, as well) from cold? Do you have any schematics on how you cut and placed them? I bought some wooden nukes this year anticipating using them to keep down swarming but how did you insulate yours? I'm a new backyard beekeeper and want to start my first 2 hives this year, and certainly planning ahead for how to overwinter my hives. Your videos are so informative. I love the well insulated 'bee barns' and think the extended frames are the greatest innovation since sliced bread. Loved to see in one of your videos how the bees made a huge, round brood circle on them. I'd call that a great and successful design.
Congrats! Lookn good. I liked all the bees popping out of that fist nuk, very fiesty! Now we know what bee is for 'shut the door! Were you raised in a barn!?
Now that you follow the fully insulated theory, as I do, you can reuse those nice wraps you made and put 3-4” on top with no openings for new colony expansion.
Click bait, I became sad for a nanosecond thinking the bees were in trouble. Glad to hear they're doing well.
PS: Joking about the click bait part lol.
Is it worthwhile to check the dead bees for mites here?
👍👍
Excellent update Jim well done. Yeah this outcome was almost a 'no brainer' (sorry haters).
If JP is the whisperer, Jeff Horchoff the minister, Dirt Rooster the cavalier, and Ian Steppler the master? Then you sir (as stated last video) are the wizard!
Just curious... do your hive enough proper ventilation? Seems like a lot of excessive moisture to me and I didn't notice any upper venting area. Maybe I missed them.
No vents at all. I made a whole video about this concept two videos back.
I thought you built an insulated cover that fully went around the top box. No? I don’t see those in this video
Must like somebody pulling the roof up off your house to look at you All you eat just shoots out into the sky
I'm glad I live down south we don't have to insulate down this way
It’s because central Illinois got all your snow lol
Dear Vino Farm. I know you may not like the advise but the mold you have is not enough ventilation in your hives. Try to make 3-4 holes right under cover.
Thank you. I know what caused the mold. I’m trying to overwinter with no upper ventilation. A super insulated hive does not need upper vents. My mistake was one spot where the insulation did not cover, causing condensation to form and then mold. I’m going to explain it on a video and fix it when I remake these hives.
just curious... what made you eliminate the upper vent/upper entrance? I insulate pretty heavily, top bottom and sides, and have a quilt board to eliminate condensation. BUT I keep an "upper entrance" that acts as a vent (and an exit in deep snow) it works for overwintering here in CT. what made you eliminate the upper vent? just curious.
Thoroughly explained in this video: th-cam.com/video/UKXgIdHpedo/w-d-xo.html
Nutshell: Super insulated hives need no upper vents. Non insulated hives need some vents. This was pioneered by Etienne Tardif. I had the concept in my head years ago, but I was doing it wrong. Etienne cleared up why it works and has lots of data showing it working.
Just curious what you make your metal entrances from. I just found your videos and I'd love to try some of these ideas.
Amazon links in the description! I just cut them to fit my hives.
Thanks, Vino, for sharing. You fed your bees with your home made sugar syrup. I tried make syrup - 2 parts sugar with 1 part hot water, and its all melt in syrup and then it got cold down and all syrup turned in massive sugar stone with big sugar crystals :( .
What went wrong in my syrup making process?
You need near boiling water and you need to keep it hot until all sugar is completely dissolved. (Not just hot tap water.) Also, if it gets cold, you will get crystallizing and it can harden. I feed in October here in Massachusetts. Once we start getting temperatures near 32F / 0C, I take it off.
Thanks, Vino, for your kind reply, i really appreciate it.
You are a kind soul and your bee keeping gets better and beeter, love how you improve your bee keeping skills. And i learn a lot from you.
About haters - they just are jealous and envy, because you improve your beekeeping and you are a pure soul.
And about humidity in your hives cover parts - there is no isolation box over your hive covers (but there is a video where you made them as a part of your bee wintering, you did not use them?)
I don't see how your quilt box on the double nuc can work, because I don't see any vent hole to let the moist air up in to the quilt box... what am I missing?
Not a quilt box. The burlap is just extra insulation filling that oddball space. There are no upper vents or entrances in a super insulated hive. See my video (2 vids back) “I was wrong.” It’s thoroughly explained.
you said in your video that you did not feed them prior to winter .... so why are you checking on them then?,...... if they were low on food would you have fed them?.... then what is the ultimate purpose for NOT feeding prior to closing them up for winter.....
I thought this was pretty clearly explained in the video, but you might not have watched the whole thing. So here…
They had nearly full brood boxes in October. I put syrup on all hives until they filled their boxes up completely and stopped taking any more around November 1st. I did not add sugar or fondant or winter patties or any other extra feed in the hives. They were wrapped up and left alone around November 1. They sat untouched for November, December and January. February 2 we had a day that was suitable for a peek to check honey levels. IF I looked into a couple hives and saw no capped honey at the tops of the frames, I would have provided emergency sugar or fondant. However, as this video shows, I saw PLENTY of honey and felt confident that I did not need to check every single hive. I did, however check the much smaller nucs. And they were fine, too. That’s it. I won’t need to open them again until we start getting much warmer weather. There are still two solid months of freezing nights and at least that long before there is any kind of forage so I may need to add food at some point.
Where do you get the thin plastic hive covers, please?
I make them out of coroplast. This is a hive sleeve making demo, but it's the same idea: th-cam.com/video/u1q4K79jZQE/w-d-xo.html
Question… I’ve seen the straps you use to secure the boxes as a unit.. can you (or anyone) tell me about them, where to buy? Thanks
Lodi Metals. 2" Endless Loop Cambuckle Strap. Freaking awesome straps. www.lodimetals.com/2-endless-loop-cambuckle-strap
do you feed the bee barns at all in winter?
No. Watch this video: th-cam.com/video/XUzpzGorKSY/w-d-xo.html
News flash: Bees are pooping! Thanks for tuning in. 😂
So I am not sure if someone asked this already, or if you mentioned it before and I missed it, but why don't your shrubs go all around the bee yard?
There have been a few times over the years where it was very convenient to be able to drive the tractor right up to the edge of the bee yard (or right into it). The shrubs are surrounding the bee yard where 90% of the prevailing winds come from…. West, north and south. The Northeast corner is open. I could probably add more there at this point, but it hasn’t been at the top of my to do list.
@@vinofarm Thanks for the reply. I was just curious. Keep up the good work with your videos!!
I like the concept of brood minder, but not the price. Except perhaps as a novelty for one hive. However, once you decided to go that route, why would you open your hives? You spent all that money on equipment that tells you that there is no need to open the hive.
A thermometer and humidity sensor does not tell me how much food is in the hive. I can see that the bees are generating heat and humidity which is great. If the temps dropped suddenly, I would know they had died or were dying. At that point it would be too late to feed them. What I’m doing in this video is beekeeping.
Should someone tell bears hibernate?
Moisture because of no upper entrance. They can't mange a ventilation trough bottom entrance. Give them a horizontal pvc pipe on top- they will regulate moisture well. They will always vent pipe and in case of cold they are plugging up pipe by themselves. Always right moisture inside!
you mentioned you data for heat & you had strip thing's on top but no link's for it. 😒
I post the data regularly on Instagram. @vinofarm
@Vino Farm ok. I'm not on Instagram. What abt the strip thing that was on the top of your hives, is there a link to get the product?
@@AlleyCat-1 broodminder.com
Beekeepers in Czechia have this flamewar ever since, insulated or not insulated, so I understand you very much. For example professional beekeepers calculate that insulated hive costs more, but you save on feeding and you have higher honey production. I do not want to argue on anything with you, because I see working apiaries with both insulated and not insulated hives, just three, I belive interesting, points:
1) Even when somebody is using not insulated hive, the top cover has always at least some insulation. In other words, the top cover insulation must be better than anywhere else. So the top is warmer and no condensation happens there. I belive that this is your problem with the mold on top cover. I see on the video that you have some insulation there, it just seems to me to be not enough or ineffective.
2) Look at this video, just look, it is in Czech: th-cam.com/video/tLt_2aQGDJE/w-d-xo.html He is showing there a water drinker, running from about mid February. Multiple sources say that bees are thirsty in insulated hives. He uses 37x30cm frames, walls are insulated 10cm and top cover 15cm polystyrene.
3) Just a question. Do your sensors read humidity? I have my temp sensors, just like you, on top bars and they read in January about 8°C and 80%. I use not insulated hives, several upper entrances with small mesh, so bees can easily propolise it to their needs and they keep it open, but top cover is 5cm polystyrene.
Yes that is very true on insulating the top cover more than the sides you do not get condensation on the top it will go on the sides where it’s cooler
Haters will be haters and will always be haters 🤣
The plumber/hvac in me has never understood that concept. Insulation keeps temperature from shifting in or out through walls. Insulation does not make anything warmer or colder- it traps the current air in place. So in this application, it keeps the air the temperature the bees want to keep it at. This equals less energy because the temp stays constant once they warm it to the temperature they want- not a warm food consuming state. I also never understood top entrances in regards to thermal regulation. I think most people misunderstand. Etienne’s work was the first time ive seen an argument for the way i believe it should be done, and its done well. I really enjoy the effort you put in to this project for the rest of us.
I agree with you I also use the fundamentals of heating and air which I did as a job prior to retiring
This.
I am using Broodminder sensors in both Apimaye insulated hives and wooden hives. Unsurprisingly, the wintertime internal temps are pretty much the same in either. During the winter, they are warming themselves/brood and not the hive itself. I am now wondering if an insulated hive could actually be a negative during colder temps. When the sun hits an insulated hive in the winter, one might assume that the insulation retains the previous night's colder air longer instead of allowing heat from the sun to warm the hive. Regardless, I am fairly certain the benefits of an insulated hive are better realized in HOT weather when the bees are trying to keep the hive itself cooler.
David wolfe. The factor you are missing is that the bees turn over their own air. As in they control what they push and pull for circulation. The temps arent dangerous, its the swing in temperature that used food
Top entrances are only really useful, when there is not much insulation in the first place, because then you get moisture build up which is bad. When there is ample insulation, then there is no need for a top entrance, because the constant warmth generation, and lower temperature differential, means that warm moist air can just be cycled back out the entrance without cooling down and condensing moisture before it can reach the exit.
Fabulous! So glad to see the old Balboa line is still rocking it! All the best Jim for the new year! Can't wait until spring to see an update on the bees and the barn!
I have experienced the same resource surplus in my heated hives. The girls don't seem to burn up as many resources when they don't have to work as hard to keep the hive warm. I am guessing it takes a lot of energy/food to continuously vibrate their thorax all winter long to generate heat. Thanks for the update. Your videos are always appreciated.
Insulation is king! Anyone that does any research (or understands insulation concepts) will learn that insulation is the way to go...even for bees. Etienne's research confirms what we have been saying. We have been using insulation on hives here in Texas to protect against the Texas heat. Bees are venting masters so they vent the hive to maintain whatever temp they want in the summer. In the winter the bees generate their own heat and the insulation just KEEPS the heat in the hive. This is another reason I do not create upper vent holes in my hives...I dont want the heat to escape! Bees are experts at venting and the hive opening is plenty. Great report!
Would you insulate a tree trunk if bees were inside?
Tree trunk would be thicker than 3/4 pine
@@LycomingWarrior I would not because I love that look. You can determine the R value if you know the type of wood and thickness. Assuming it is thicker than 3/4" I wouldn't bother. My long langs are 1.5" of wood on the sides and do great.
My only concern about the hives venting needs is all the mold build up. Mold = moisture which is bad for bees in winter correct? I love this style and think you are on to a great concept! I am just curious of what a solution for the mold will be while keeping the insulation. My future Alaskan hives appreciate all your hard work!
@@serenitywoods9752 Bees are masters as venting a hive so no chance for mold but I'm in Texas so our winters are nothing like Alaskan winters. Check out Etienne TH-cam channel because he is in Alaska as well.
I run over a 100 Poly Hives all single deeps...I use a piece of 4 mil plastic sheeting as a inner cover, I see the moisture the bees create on the inner side. That moisture is warm because the cavity is warm, that is their source of water for drinking thru winter and to start the brood rearing in Feb. Your insulated hives are great and correct but the moisture that they generate is being absorbed by the wood cover and causing the mold, you might think about a sheet of 4 mil plastic before the wood cover to keep that water available to the bees. One only has to think of a tree cavity, the bees seal them with propolis so the moisture is not absorbed by the tree but condenses so they can reclaim the water. P.S...Out of 116 I still have 116 alive in Northern Michigan.
Interesting. It looks like you can keep an eye on temperature and use that as a gauge for cluster health. No need to bother the hives unless someone goes abnormal from the rest. Cool discovery!
Exactly. Once I figure out a way to integrate the Broodminder scales into my hive stands, I’ll be able to monitor their honey consumption (hive weight loss) from the app and never have to crack the lids all winter!
Can’t wait to see this video!…great to see so many things looking good at this point. I know your only part way through the winter but your data in encouraging! I’m wondering if the moisture is coming in from between the upper box and the inner cover (above the colony). Perhaps a mitered joint will direct moisture out but that means mitering the inner cover. Maybe adding a piece of wood on the outside of the box that covers the joint and it zip-taped will help keep more moisture out. Either way you go, I’m excited to see how modify your builds. Bee Barns 2.0. Woo hoo!
It seems like the insulation has reduced their energy consumption - which makes sense.... they have to burn less calories to create heat
I think they were a little upset with you for letting in the cold air, lol. But it looks like they are doing great. Things should be booming come spring!
For the nuks, you could just replace the bottom board so each side is angled correctly and still be level.
Face with a problem and you approached it like a scientist combined with an engineer. Kudos to you! BRILLIANTLY DONE!
Love your pfp!
So awesome! Congratulations! Regarding the condensation...my theory is that Etienne's setup is really only ideal for extremely cold winters. Specifically, the air tight tops of the hives. The colder the air, the less moisture it holds. So his hive tops likely stay more dry just because all of the ambient air is very, very dry. My hives are like yours, but even more insulated and air tight on top, and I was getting a lot of moisture in the tops.
What I did to change this is I built a 1" feeding shim that is a spacer for food. Then added a quilt box full of wool (instead of burlap) and added vent holes for moisture to escape. I then added more insulation around the feeding shim and on top of the quilt box, but left the vent hole uncovered. Lastly an outer cover over that to keep the elements off. it's just like the vented eves in the attic of a house. The wool keeps warm air in and cold air out, but allows moisture to escape.
Your thinking is backwards. Moisture can't escape without the heat to carry it.
@@arogue469 Moisture needs heat to evaporate, but once it is evaporated, it will then concentrate on areas that are colder. Or it will also move to areas of lower moisture until there is equilibrium. It doesn't need heat to do this. This is how desiccant works and desiccant doesn't need heat to draw in moisture, nor does it need to be colder.
This concept is how wicking works. The vaporized moisture is moving to areas of lower moisture. Then once it reaches the outside of the wicking material, it will either accumulate there or it will evaporate. It can pull the heat from the air around it to evaporate. Sheep have developed this over time and this is why wool can both wick moisture and keep the animal warm.
On my hives the wool is sometimes damp on top, but completely dry and warm on the bottom. My hives are much warmer with the wool on them than without. They are also much more dry. So how is my thinking backwards?
Nice to see it's working as intended, but that mold isn't good, I would change those lids with clean ones and put the dirty ones in bleach.. why don't you try using silica gel bags to see if it can remove the moisture? The pro is that is reusable after drying, while the con is that it may cost a bit (here a 2.2lbs bag costs around 20$)
Moisture is not a problem for the bees. I just need to solve the mold issue which happened because the inner covers were not treated and they wicked water right up through the wood. I need to waterproof the wood or use a non absorbent material. The bees handle moisture and NEED water. The mold is mostly outside the living space, so it will be OK for a little while.
So glad all the colonies are doing well 😊 Had similar news in my apiary... Yea insulation makes a huge difference !
I just checked mine today (2/8), northern MN, about the same temperature as when you checked, I went into winter with 6 hives, now only have 2, one being about baseball sized and the other about 3-4 frames wide, the bigger of the two are in a permanently insulated hive with a quilt box made of 2" insulation and about 8" of burlap. , with 2 1/2 inch vents. This is also a long Lang style. I will be making more of this style hive and quilt box and forgoing the vent on top, although they are using it more it seems for their cleansing flights rather than the bigger bottom entrance, I suspect because they are closer to the side than the middle.
They don't have to eat to help keep warm, they're just using less calories with that insulation. If there is a direct correlation between how much you have to feed them and how well it's insulated this is really important science
Honey is firewood. If you live in a drafty house, you need to burn more wood to keep the house warm. If your house is super tight and insulated, you burn less wood.
@@vinofarm Absolutely; it costs us 1/3rd of what it did to heat our brand new house compared to the 19th century loft we were living in-and that’s all due to insulation.
Look at them go happy to see that they are doing good 👍🏻 🐝🐝🐝🐝 moisture will happen but nothing what can’t be fixed
For the next hive design maybe put an plastic see trough cover under the isolation. This way you can see in the hive without opening te hive itself.
I’m on it!
Outstanding! Sister Santa got me 2 hives and all bee keeping equipment. I may keep her? Nucs should b ready in May i think? My adventure begains!
Good luck!
So happy the look good. Was concerned about the heat loss upon opening. But with the stores and number of bees should be good. Thank you. Hope they all or at least most of them make it this year. Crossing digits for you.
Nice hives! I hope to get hives on my farm this year or next. Thanks, from Beulah Acres Homestead.
❄🐝Good to see your thriving still in this chilly weather. Thanks for sharing friend.
Yeah, you have a Mold problem. might need to rework your top lid. might need to treat that piece to make it waterproof.
I’m observing results and will adapt for version 2.0. No worries here.
@@vinofarm thankyou for all you do and all your hard work... Bee love forever!!
With the water in the nukes situation. Could you put a drain in the back of each side with a plug made of something that can wick the water out but prevent bees using it as a door or wind blowing in?
Yes, I’m considering similar design mods. This is my first winter with super insulated boxes. I’m observing how they behave and will mod things before next winter.
More insulation = less food consumed. True, as long as you got cold winters. Where i live the winterz where cold 40 years ago, nowadays the winters are quite warm and then the food consumption on insulated hives will rise a lot. They'll start raising brood and takes a lot of food
Thank you for sharing your experience. Really happy to see your colonies doing so well. You're on to something with the insulation. Amazing
Can you give your opinion on what went wrong with our bees? Im in southern canada on the border .today is feb 21, 2022. We treated for mites in sept, fed the bees till november . Witnessed them brining in pollen all november. Dec 1st started feeding them pro winter food . Two weeks later we stareted to see the bees starting to die and then the temperature dropped in -6 . We started getting 6, 10 , bees dead at the hive entranceway. Then we decided to look in side again . There were approx 200 dead bees up along the front hive wall . We saw two bees dead on top of the food so we believed , hoped that some bees were still alive . Well today was a mild day so we looked better at the hive. We didnt see anything moving and looking down in the hive with little light it was hard to see food. But they didnt eat much pro winter after the first two weeks. I made a rock of sugar yesterday and we left that there just incase but i do believe they are all gone. We brought the dead bees in and shook them around and found 6 dead mites in the approx 200 bees . Im so disappointed, it was our first hive.
Congrats to you and all the awesome girls in their hives!! It is so nice to see them doing so wicked awesomely!!
Yay that's awesome. I like seeing innovation be rewarded.
I couldn’t agree more. I like to call it Vinovation!