Instructions

 

Bottom Board Assembly Instructions:

 Materials:     

• 4 Flat Floor Boards
• 2 Slotted Side Rails
• 1 Thick Rear Cleat
• 1 Thin Rear Cleat
• 1 Package of Large & Small Nails
    

Tools Required:    • Hammer  • Good Quality Exterior Wood Glue

 

1.    Assemble the four flat floor boards by running a bead of good quality outdoor wood glue in each seam and press together to ensure the tongue and grooves are tight.

2.    Run a bead of wood glue down the groove in each slotted side rail and fasten one on each side of the floor boards by hammering one nail through the side rail into each floor board. *Be certain that both rails have the thick side of the groove facing the same way.

3.    Once the side rails have been nailed to the floor boards, find the one thin wooden cleat (no notches in it, just flat). Select one end for the rear of the bottom board (your choice which end). The thin wooden cleat will be placed on the end by gluing and nailing it in place with three small nails.

4.    Find the one thick wooden cleat (no notches in it, just flat) and repeat the same steps as in #3, but this time the thick cleat goes on the opposite side of the thin cleat you already have fastened to the bottom board.

 

5.    Now that you have completed your bottom board, the last thing to do is to make sure the entrance reducer block fits snugly in the opposite end of the bottom board. If it is too tight or won't easily slide in, sand one end a little bit with some sandpaper.

Good To Know Information:  The entrance reducer is used just after installing your package of bees (small opening only please) to make sure the bees can defend their new home from robber bees. The larger opening should be used 3 – 4 weeks after installing your bees and during times when the weather consistently drops below 55 F degrees at night. During the summertime, when the nectar flow is on, make sure to take the entrance reducer out completely to allow the bees faster departures and arrivals to gather more nectar.

 

 

Frame Construction Assembly Instructions:

 

1.    Lay out the different pieces into three groups – top bars (10), bottom bars (10) and end bars (20).
    
2.    Break out the thin wooden piece on the inner side of each top bar and clean out any residual wood with a sharp knife. This space will be used to hold the top of the foundation sheet. Save the thin pieces of wood that are removed. They will be placed over the top of the foundation and nailed into place.
    
3.    Assemble the frames as shown in the diagram.

4.    If you have been supplied with the split ended foundation pins you will need to drill out the middle two holes in each end bar. Use a 1/8" drill bit. This will allow for easy placement of the foundation support pins.

5.    With the frame laying on the work table with the slot in the top facing up, place the smooth end of the foundation sheet in the groove in the bottom bar. Place the top of the foundation sheet in the slot on the top bar with the wire ends pointing up. Then replace the wooden strip over the top of the foundation and nail into place with three small nails.

6.    Slide the support pins through the holes in the end bars so that the split ends of the pins cradle the foundation sheet on each side. The frames with their foundations are now ready to be placed in the hive body or super.

Hive Body and Super Assembly Instructions:

Materials:     

• 2 End Pieces 

• 2 Side Pieces 

• 1 Large Package of Nails
    

Tools Required:    

• Hammer 

• Good Quality Exterior Wood Glue

 

1.    Hive bodies and supers come in three common sizes for the Langstroth hive. The large is 9 5/8", medium is 6 5/8" and the small is 5 3/4" tall. These directions are the same for all three sizes.

2.    Locate all four pieces, two sides (longer pieces with the handle cutout) and two ends (shorter pieces with the joint lap corners.) Stand the two side pieces on end and run a thin bead of glue down the end of both side pieces (make sure both handle cutouts are facing the same direction). Place one end piece on top and nail it in place using the 2 1/8" nails in the predrilled holes. Repeat this on the other end and now you have a box. Make sure to wipe off any excess glue.

Good To Know Information:
Cypress hive bodies and supers like the one you have here, can last for several years with a couple of coats of good exterior paint on the outside. If you are looking for a showpiece hive, try sanding them down with 100# grit sandpaper and stain them with your favorite color wood stain. Make sure to put three coats of exterior polyurethane on them after the stain dries.

Hive Stand Assembly Instructions:

Materials:     

• 2 Long Side Pieces 

• 1 Rabbeted End Short Piece 

• 1 Front Beveled Alighting Board

• 1 Package of Large Nails
    

Tools Required:    

• Hammer 

• Good Quality Exterior Wood Glue

 

1.    Assemble the two long side boards with the rabbeted end rear piece by running a bead of glue down both sides of the end piece, and then drive two 2 1/8" nails through the predrilled holes on rabbeted end into the side pieces.

2.    Lay the beveled alighting board over the beveled ends of the long side pieces with the bottom flush at the bottom and sides.

3.    Once the alighting board is square with the two side pieces and the bottom is flush, nail each side with three 2 1/8" nails.

    *Note: Start the three nails in the alighting board with it flat on the table or workstation before placing it on the beveled end of the side boards. Glue will help keep everything in place.

 

Hive Top Feeder Assembly Instructions:

Included in Box:     • Top Feeder Insert  • 3 Phillips Head Screws  • 1 Screen

Tools Needed:
 
1. There are three screw ports on the top feeder insert. The arrows indicate where the screws need to be inserted. Note location before placing the screen. (Pictured at right.)

2. Take the screen and place it over the center divider of the top feeder insert. (Pictured at right.)

3. Make sure the screen fits down firmly into the groove at the bottom of the top feeder insert. (Pictured at left.) The screen must be centered properly on top of the insert so there are equal amounts on both ends of the feeder to prevent bees from gaining access to the reservoirs.  

4. Next, you will take your Phillips Head Screwdriver and apply one screw into the center screw port on the insert. Use pressure when screwing and turn until the screw is tight in the plastic and will not turn anymore. (Pictured at right.)  

5.    Now, insert a screw on the left and right sides of feeder in the same fashion. (Pictured of right.)

NOTE:  If there is a gap in the ends of the screen (as pictured on right) you will need to use a pair of Needle Nose Pliers to pinch the corners of the screen. Any gap will allow bees to squeeze through screen and into the feeder which causes drowning.

6.    If there is a gap use your pliers and pinch the wire of both sides of the screen to make a bee tight corner. (Pictured on left.)

Picture on right shows screen after the ends are pinched.

Congratulations! You have successfully assembled your Top Feeder Insert.

Inner Cover Assembly Instructions:

Materials:     • 3 Flat Roof Boards  • 2 Long Side Pieces  • 2 Short End Pieces (1 w/notch cut out)  • Package of Large Nails
    
Tools Required:    • Hammer  • Good Quality Exterior Wood Glue

1.    Assemble the three flat floor boards by running a bead of good quality outdoor wood glue in each seam and press together to ensure the tongue and grooves are tight.

2.    Assemble the frame by placing it on a flat surface. Place glue on each corner section and hammer in two small nails per corner to complete the frame.

3.    Once the frame and three flat floor boards are complete, run a bead of glue down all four sides of the frame and place the three floor boards in the inset and use five small nails across the top and bottom and two-three down each side to firmly secure the boards into the frame.

Large and Small Frames Assembly Instructions:

Materials:     • 1 Top Bar  • 1 Bottom Bar • 2 End Bars  • 1 Piece of Foundation  • 1 Package of Medium Nails

Tools Required:    • Hammer   • Good Quality Exterior Wood Glue

1.    Frames come in three common sizes for the Langstroth hive. The "large" is 9 5/8", "medium" is 6 5/8" and the small is 5 3/4" tall. These directions are the same for all three sizes.

2.    Assembly begins by putting a dab of wood glue on top of the two end bars and then snapping the top bar into the grooves on top of the end bars.

3.    Take the bottom bar and do the same as Step #1. Dab a bit of glue on the bottom end bar grooves and snap the bottom bar into the grooves on the bottom side of the end bars.

4.    Once the frame is secure, drive two small nails in the top bar into the end bar and two small nails from the bottom bar into the bottom of the end bar.

5.    Now the frame is complete. If you're using plastic foundation, snap it into place by flexing it just a bit to fit into the top and bottom bar grooves. If you're using wired wax foundation, you should either wire your frames horizontally or use support pins through the small holes in the end bars.

Nuc Installation Instructions:

Congratulations on the purchase of your new Nuc!  
 
In your Nuc (Nucleus Colnies), you will find five frames of drawn out comb, honey, eggs, larvae, sealed brood, pollen, and a caged queen. When your Nuc arrives, you will need to install it in your equipment as soon as possible.  If it is not possible to install it the day it is picked up, you will need to put it in a cool place out of direct sunlight until it can be installed. You will also want to spray sugar water through the vent holes once or twice, depending on the temperature where it will be stored.  
 
Installation
Follow these directions when installing the Nuc into your 8 or 10 frame equipment:

1.    Spray frames lightly with a sugar water mixture. This will keep the bees busy cleaning themselves and will discourage them from flying.  

2.    Insert the frames in your new equipment, in the center of the brood box.

3.    Place empty or drawn comb frames on each side of the Nuc frames, leaving enough space to place the queen cage in the center of the middle two frames.

4.    You will need to remove the cork in the candy end of the queen cage. Hang the queen cage candy side up. (NOTE: You will need to re-visit your hive 36–48 hours after installation to ensure the queen has been released. If she has not been released, you will need to manually release her by carefully removing enough of the candy so that she can exit the cage.)
 
5. Once the queen has been released, remove the cage.
 
Feed & Monitor
It is very important to feed your new colony for the first few weeks. You can feed the Nuc a mixture of sugar water or corn syrup. We recommend feeding our Pigeon Mountain BrandTM Feeding Stimulant to your new colony. Pigeon Mountain BrandTM Feeding Stimulant is 100% essential oils and will stimulate the colony. Water is also a vital part of your new colony. Be sure they have access to fresh water.  
 
Continue to monitor your colony every couple of weeks to ensure they are progressing, accordingly.

 

The best time to install a package is in the late afternoon or early evening.  Remove the wooden strips which fasten the packages together.

Wet the bees thoroughly with warm water.  This can be done with a hand sprayer or you may dip a large paint brush in a bucket of warm water and sprinkle the water on the bees.  This wetting prevents the bees from flying.

After removing the cover, take the sharp end of the hive tool, lift up and remove the small feed can, that was shipped with the package and the queen cage attached to the small aluminum tab. The remaining syrup in this can may be added to that which you have prepared for the bees.

When the queen and feed can are removed, place the cover over the opening in the top of the package. This prevents the bees from getting out of the package while you are disposing of the can.

You will notice that one end of the queen cage has some white candy in it.  Remove the cork from the candy end and punch a small hole about the size of a match through the candy.

Now suspend the queen cage in the hive, three or four frames in from the side of the hive.  Be sure that the end containing the candy is toward the bottom of the hive.  NOTE: IF THE QUEEN SHOULD ARRIVE DEAD, CALL US AT ONCE AND SHE WILL BE REPLACED!

Take the package cage containing the bees and bounce it on the ground.  This will jar the bees to the bottom of the package cage.  Pour about half of the bees in the package directly over the frames where the queen is suspended.

The next step is to jar the bees into the bottom of the package again and pour all of the remaining bees possible over the frames.  The bees on the top of the frames will find the queen almost immediately and begin to eat the candy and release her.

Place the package with the remaining bees in front of the colony and male sure that the hive contains all of its ten frames with foundation.

Next, place the cover on the hive.  This should be done very gently so that the bees are not crushed.  A little smoke on top of the bees will make them run down between the frames and make placement of the inner cover easier.

Your colony has a lot of work to do.  To help them secrete wax and build combs, be sure to use your feeder and keep it full of sugar syrup for at least the first six weeks.

Note the package cage laying in front with some bees still clinging inside.  Soon they will crawl out and join their sisters within the newly established colony.

The last stop in hiving your package is to lightly stuff the small entrance with a little green grass.  This confines the bees to the hive for a short time and allows them to become accustomed to their new home before they take flight.

The job is done, your colony is now safely housed and fed in its new home.  Success or failure will now depend on the care that you give the developing colony between the time of package hiving and the beginning of the first honey flow.

Do not disturb the bees to look for the queen for at least six days!!

Curiosity to see "how the bees are doing" disturbs the bees unnecessarily. The bees will make greater headway it they are left for at least four days without any disturbance.

Swarm Trap and Pheromones Information:

Parts:     • 1 Base  • 1 Lid  

Parts (Not Included):    • Wire       • Nails      • Pheromone Lures

1.    Cut or drill a 1 1/2" hole in bottom of trap (hole should be offset and not in center of lid.) (See Figure 2.)

2.    Place wire through all four lower grommets. (See Figure 1.)

3.    Push nails through at least two top grommets of the base and into the lid to secure together. (See Figure 2.)

4.    Punch two holes in top of lid with a nail and push a vial of pheromone snugly into each hole.

5.    Locate trap away from high traffic areas. Place trap 9–12 ft. above ground on a tree or pole and secure tightly to support with wire. (See Figure 3.)

6.    Monitor traps on a weekly basis and remove swarms.

7.    To remove swarm from trap – place sponge or insulation in the entrance hole on bottom of trap. Remove trap from tree.

8.    Remove nails from lid and dump bees into hive.

9.    Replace top and secure with nails. Hang trap in same location. Trap is now ready to catch another swarm.

    *Buyer assumes all risk and liability resulting from use of product.

About swarms...
Volume:  Although swarms can sometimes be attracted to bait hives of very small volume (9 liters), bait hives equal to or slightly larger than standard hive bodies (40-42 liters) seem to be preferred by both bees and investigators. Nevertheless, differences in the sizes of cavities "preferred" by the bees among several studies suggests further work is necessary.

Entrance Diameter:  Entrances can be either too small or too large. The preferred entrance size appears to be either 1"–1 1/4" diameter auger holes or its equivalent in area (3.2cm2). Smaller entrances might be insufficient for ventilation and larger  entrances may admit too much air, light or be too difficult to defend.

Color:  No one appears to have done any controlled experiments on preferred colors. My intuition is that tree bark browns and other dark colors will prove to be far superior to whites and all other light colors. Bees scouting bait hives not only measure the inside volume as shown by Seeley (1977, 1982) but inspect the outside carefully.

Height:  Although bees can be attracted to nest sites from ground level to tree canopies and cliff sides, the practice of many native peoples is to place bait hives 10'–20' up into trees. This practice has been thought to be a means of avoiding predators and protecting bees from ground fires and theft, but it may also be the best height for attracting swarms. Seeley (1982), Schmidt (1987) and many others have concluded that bait hives should be placed at least 10' above ground level.

Shade:  Honey bees seldom nest completely in the open. They seem to prefer visible but shaded nesting sites and bait hives that are placed within tree canopies or along trunks are more rapidly colonized than those in the open. There is evidently a delicate balance between too much and too little light. Natural nests are usually located along the forest edge and are seldom found deep within forests with closed canopies.

Direction:  Although beekeepers have various preferences for the directions of their colony entrances, no study of the orientation of bait hives has been done to determine which entrance direction is most effective in a given setting, e.g. direction of wind and sun at critical hours. If wind direction makes a difference, my guess is that the swarms will more easily locate upwind than downwind bait hives. Because natural cavities are located partly by scent (especially those previously occupied by bees) it might be valuable to situate each pheromone scented bait hive so that the prevailing wind passes across the entrance. Such a practice would facilitate movement of the scent downwind.
Pheromones:  Most of those who have used pheromones have placed them within the bait hives. However, because I have been able to attract in transit swarms to swarm boards, I believe effectiveness of bait hives could be improved by placing pheromones lures within the hive and underneath, as well.

Timing:  Bait hives should be placed in the field 7–10 days before you anticipate the beginning of swarming. Everything seems to happen at once during the swarming period and if you wait until you see your first swarm, you may find that you are too busy to get your boxes out. It won't hurt to start early.

Telescoping Outer Cover Assembly Instructions:

Materials:     • 2 Long Side Pieces • 2 Short End Pieces • 4 Flat Roof Boards • Package of Large & Small Nails • 1 Formed Galvanized Metal Cover

Tools Required:    • Hammer • Good Quality Exterior Wood Glue

1.    Assemble the four flat roof boards by running a bead of good quality outdoor wood glue in each seam and press together to ensure the tongue and grooves are tight.

2.    Assemble the frame by placing it on a flat surface. Place glue on each corner section and stand upright to hammer in the four large nails per end section in the pre-drilled holes.

3.    Once the frame and flat roof boards are complete, run a bead of glue down all four sides of the frame on the inset side and place the assembled four boards in the inset and use the large nails to firmly secure the boards into the frame.

4.    Flip the frame and top boards over and run a few beads of glue over the top of the roof boards and place the galvanized metal cover on top. Firmly secure using the small nails in the holes provided on the sides.    

*Note: If the metal top does not just slide on, tap the inside corners to bend the tabs in a bit.

Washing Instructions:

Hood and Veil
• The hood and veil must be removed before washing.
• Do not machine wash!
• Gently hand wash in cold water.
• Air dry only.

100% cotton Bee Wear, Children's Bee Wear and Women's Bee Wear
• REMOVE HOOD AND VEIL BEFORE WASHING
• Machine wash in water up to 140° F.
• Air dry only.

Ventilated Bee Wear for Adults and Children
Semi-Ventilated Bee Wear
• REMOVE HOOD AND VEIL BEFORE WASHING
• Hand wash in cold water with like colors.
• Do not bleach.
• Do not wring or twist .
• Air dry only.
• Low iron if desired.

Small Hive Beetle Trap Assembly Instructions

Indications:     Use this trap anytime beetles are present. However, since Small Hive Beetles (S.H.B.) are temperature sensitive, it will be far more effective during the late spring – fall when beetles are out of the cluster and most active.

Directions:      Included with your Small Hive Beetle Trap are wooden spacers needed to modify your bottom board, to allow the honey bees to enter and exit the hive while the Small Hive Beetle Trap is in place.
Before installing the Small Hive Beetle Trap, thoroughly clean and scrape, if necessary, any debris or burr comb from the bottom board that may interfere with the proper placement of the Small Hive Beetle Trap.
It is critical that the trap is level before adding the vegetable oil. Place trap on bottom and fill 1/2 with oil, purchased separately. Place cover on trap. Do not pour oil through the trap cover, as any spilled oil may cause bee mortality. At this time, you may reassemble your hive and start trapping beetles! Periodic cleaning of the traps is necessary. Check traps every 7 – 14 days.

Tips:     The manipulation of your colony will disturb the S.H.B. hiding spots causing them to move around in the colony and find the trap sooner.

Storage & Disposal:     After use, discard used oil in an approved manner. Clean traps and store away from direct sunlight and any pesticides.

CAUTION:     The active agent in the Small Hive Beetle Trap is ordinary vegetable oil. The same vegetable oil that you probably use for cooking or meal preparation in your own home. Hive Beetles, in seeking out a safe protected area in the Honey Bee Colony, migrate into the Small Hive Beetle Trap where they are caught in the vegetable oil reservoir. The thick oil coats them, resulting in suffocation and death. Use care when installing and removing traps. Honey bees that come into contact with vegetable oil may also suffocate and die. Never move a hive with the trap in place.