how to make a ova beehive treatment tool

How to make a beehive plan?

Beehive Project Plans. 1 Bottom Board/Floor. Cut parts A-D to length on the miter saw. Center a 3/4 in. wide x 3/8 in. deep dado on the sides (A). Fasten the sides to the end ... 2 Entrance Reducer. 3 Hive Bodies. 4 Honey Super. 5 Frames. More items

How to apply beeswax to an unfinished hive?

By melting them together… no more clumps. Even when the mixture cools, there are no clumps of beeswax, it is one unified blend. melting beeswax with linseed oil. You are now ready to apply the mixture to the exterior of the hive. A brush or a rag work equally well. Remember to apply a thin coat to the unfinished wood of your hive.

How do you make a bee hive handle?

Press foil tape into the rabbets in the hive body ends. Cut a 3/8 in. deep x 3/4 in. wide rabbet into a 22 in. long 1x3 on the table saw. Crosscut the four 5 in. long handles (H) out of the 1x3. Center the handles on each face of the hive body, 1-1/4-in. down from the rabbeted edge.

How to clean a beehive with oxalic acid?

Prepare a trickling solution of oxalic acid. Soak your absorbent material in the oxalic acid solution you prepared. Open up the beehive and place the absorbent material with oxalic acid in the hive. Wait until the oxalic acid is released in the beehive and remove the absorbent material.

How to use oxalic acid in a hive?

Dribble Method of Using Oxalic Acid. In the dribble method of using oxalic acid, the acid is mixed with warm 1:1 sugar water (equal parts of sugar and water). Then, the mix is sucked up into a syringe applied between the frames in the hive – directly wetting the bees.

What is the best way to kill mites in beehives?

A naturally occurring substance, oxalic acid, is an effort to step away from the use of synthetic chemicals in beehives. It has shown to be very effective at killing mites when used correctly with no damage to the honey bee colony. When varroa mites arrived in our country, the face of beekeeping changed forever.

How to vaporize oxalic acid?

The most popular method of using oxalic acid is – “ oxalic acid vaporization “. A small amount of Oxalic Acid crystals are placed on a special wand. The wand is inserted into the hive and heated to vaporize the crystals. There are many types of wands available to purchase.

What is the best way to control varroa mites?

Oxalic acid is an organic compound that aids beekeepers in the fight against varroa mites. With the use of a special heating wand, Oxalic Acid Vaporization is one of the best tools for control varroa control. A naturally occurring substance, oxalic acid, is an effort to step away from the use of synthetic chemicals in beehives.

Can vaporization damage a varroa?

It may also damage varroa mouth parts. With vaporization we are not trying to coat the bees, rather we are injecting the heated vapor into the hive. As the vapor cools, small crystals are left behind on the bees, comb and hive walls. As worker foragers come and go-they will be exposed to the crystals.

Can you inhale oxalic acid in a vaporizer?

This is an overview of one way to use oxalic acid with a vaporizer in your bee yard. Please use appropriate safety gear to protect your skin and lungs. Do NOT inhale the vapor – do not.

Is OA good for bees?

Oxalic Acid (OA) has been used by European Beekeepers for many years. With reports of 90-99% efficacy in killing mites, they found it be a useful tool in the fight with varroa. It was only approved for use in the US in 2015. Products available in stores are labeled for use in beehives. Some beekeepers use generics too.

Tips to Remember

When building a beehive you may be confused about so many things in the sense of what to and what not to do. Below are some tips that will guide you and help you in deciding on what to use, what to do and what not to use and what not to do.

Parts of the Beehive

As we take note of the parts of a beehive you will have an idea of where each specific part of the hive goes, which will guide you in making your beehive. So let’s not waste much time.

Alternative

There are two main alternatives you can go for if building a hive on your own is definitely not part of your plan. You can either buy a hive.

Final Thoughts

People who have gardens and appreciate the importance of bees in the natural environment may seek to keep bees of their own. Bee boxes, or hives, today are designed to encourage the health of the bee society as well as make it easy for the beekeeper to remove the honey from the hive with the least disruption possible.

How tall are honey bee hives?

The hive bodies contain the comb frames. The height is standardized at 9-1/4 in. which makes building one out of dimensional lumber very easy. You can have two deep hive bodies (one for the brood or family, one for the food) and then continue with the honey supers (see below) above.

How many bees are there in a hive?

Modern beekeeping attempts to revert to a less industrialized way of obtaining honey by utilizing smaller colonies, usually between 10,000 and 30,000 bees and the whole operation is based around the hive.

What is honey super?

Honey Super: This is where the surplus honey is collected. This is your honey, the stuff you can harvest from the bees. You need to leave the honey in the deep hive bodies for the bees to survive. Supers are identical in design to the deep hive bodies but are slightly shallower.

How tall is a super bee?

The typical sizes are 5-3/4 in. tall or 6-5/8 in. tall, known as an Illinois super. You’ll only need one honey super during your first season of beekeeping but can add two or three for the upcoming seasons. Frames: Bees build their honeycomb into the frames.

What is an inner cover?

Inner Cover: The inner cover is a tray with a hole and small notch used for ventilation. Screened inner covers have gained popularity because they provide great ventilation with no fuss. Outer Cover/Roof: Just like the roof on your house, the outer cover protects the bees from the elements.

Do you need foil tape for rabbets?

We added foil tape to the rabbets on these boxes. Gary told us that the foil tape isn’t necessary, adding “I like a piece of metal in the rabbet. It doesn’t necessarily make the frames come out easier, but it makes it easier to scrape the wax and propolis (a resin-like material) from the rabbet when the frames are out.

How long does it take to cure a beehive?

Treatment of one hive takes more than 10 minutes. Additionally, significant time is lost between successive beehive treatments. The vaporizer must be allowed to cool before acid is put in the pan for the next use. Beekeepers may use a bucket of water to cool the acid pan faster between hive treatments.

Where is the vaporizer in a beehive?

This method of oxalic acid application puts a heat source in your beehive. The vaporizer must be positioned in the beehive, at the bottom, and close to the center. If there is beeswax near the vaporizer, it may get ignited by the hot acid pan and cause a fire in the beehive.

What is a vaporizer kit?

The kit is used for the vaporization of the oxalic acid inside the hives which is a proven method to kill tracheal and Varroa mites. The vaporizer is made with the highest level of quality, durability, reliability, functionality, usability, and expandability.

What is the Scott Bee Farm v15.12?

It is a full kit that comes with an organizational tool box, safety gear, and treatment supplies. It is no doubt more expensive that the rest of the items on the list, but you’ll get everything that you’ll ever need to get rid of those annoying varroa mites. Further, the kit is made in the USA.

What is an oxalic acid vaporizer?

The Oxalic Acid Vaporizer DIY Kit is designed to treat varroa mites fast and easy. It is an effective tool that even a beginner in the beekeeping industry can use. The vaporizer is made from high-grade aluminum with a wooden (oak) handle and 10 feet of wire (12 gauge). It is ready to be used the moment you open the box.

What is the best way to treat varroa mites?

Of all the methods, the chemical approach is the most common practice to treat varroa mites. Chemical measures come in two forms: synthetic and naturally occurring chemicals. Synthetic chemicals include pyrethroid insecticide as strips, organophosphate insecticide also as strips, and Manley’s Thymol Crystal as food. On the other hand, naturally occurring chemicals include formic acid as pads or vapor, powdered sugar to be sprinkled on bees, essential oils like mint, lemon, and thyme, sugar esters, oxalic acid as vapor, mineral oil also as vapor or direct application, and natural hops in strip applications. These chemicals are proven varroa mite treatments, however, proper application is required to avoid the development of mite resistance.

Where are varroa mites made?

It is considered as one of the best oxalic acid vaporizers that you can find on the market. It is manufactured in Switzerland and now available online or at the nearest beekeeping equipment stores. The vaporizer is great for beekeepers with over 10 hives or to someone who simply wants the best treatment for varroa mites.

How to build a bee hive?

How to Build A Honey Bee Hive – Step by Step 1 choose a hive plan or style – download and print several copies 2 gather your materials 3 cut out materials closely following directions – size matters 4 assemble parts with nails and good wood glue 5 purchase frames, wax foundation or any parts that you chose not to build 6 paint your beehive with exterior latex paint to preserve the wood

What is the measurement of a bee hive?

In general, the measurement of 3/8″ is considered bee space. Modern bee hive plans will be developed with respect to this measurement. Whether building the parts or buying them, assemble your hive parts correctly, paying special attention to inside measurements.

Why do beekeepers use top bar hives?

Some beekeepers feel this hive design is a more organic approach to beekeeping because bees build their own comb. You may produce some honey in a hive of this style. But, top bar hives are not usually associated with large honey harvests.

What is a frame bee box?

Frames are removable parts that fit inside the bee boxes. They make it possible to inspect sheets of honeycomb without tearing the hive apart. You can buy plastic frames but wooden ones are most common.

What is the most important thing to know about building a bee hive?

However, there are few important details that you need to know. One of the most important aspects of hive construction is having a plan. Properly built beehives require attention to detail and correct measurements. Building a bee hive is NOT the same as building a bird house or even a dog house.

Why do beekeepers check for queen failure?

Checking for signs of queen failure or disease help insure colony survival. Routine inspections are also made to check for problems with pests such as: Small Hive Beetles or Wax Moths . They can cause hive failure.

Can bees cause hive failure?

They can cause hive failure. In order to know what is happening inside the hive, you have to look. Hives that are not constructed to the proper measurements make inspections much more difficult. Don’t feel that making your own beehive is something you must do. The first year of beekeeping can be confusing.

How long should I wait to remove honey supers before putting them back?

Another an important note! Remove honey supers before applying oxalic acid and allow at least 14 days before putting them back, so that acid is cleansed from the hive, thus avoiding honey contamination.

When to apply oxalic acid?

Or, more accurately, when there is very little capped brood. For this reason, oxalic acid is often applied in late fall or over the winter.

Is summer a good time to apply oxalic acid?

The remainder are in a capped cell - out of the reach of oxalic acid. Therefore, the summer is often considered a less-than-optimal time to apply oxalic acid, since only a small percentage of the Varroa in the hive are "reachable". But that doesn't mean it cannot still be an effective treatment, as we will see below.

Is Oxalic acid effective for vararroa?

This has been seen over the years many times as well-established treatments decline in their effectiveness. Oxalic acid remains a popular and largely effective treatment, when used intelligently and only as needed.

Can you use oxalic acid for beekeeping?

Click here to see the EPA label for the use of oxalic acid for beekeeping (scroll down to see the label). In short, protect your eyes and your hands, at least. Many beekeepers use oxalic acid, so with the appropriate procedures and caution, such as the use of a respirator, it's perfectly simple to use safely.

Can oxalic acid harm bees?

Any treatment applied indiscriminately can harm your bees and this is certainly true with oxalic acid. The approved use of oxalic acid in the hive - using the documented procedures and cautions - will be just fine. But don't deviate from that, since overuse can indeed be harmful to your bees.

Can you squirt oxalic acid on bees?

The dribble approach involves the use of a syringe to squirt the oxalic acid mixture on bees between the frames. The contact with the mixture doesn't harm the bees, though they will likely consume small amounts, which can cause mild harm. But, given the dose, this is quite acceptable.

What is the best treatment for varroa?

Oxalic-glycerine strips for varroa treatment are becoming more and more popular as beekeepers look to better long-term, eco-friendly methods of fighting this pest. As varroa becomes more resistent to synthetic treatments, oxalic acid is proving a consistently reliable option. Large commercial beekeepers have been using OVA board/oxalic-glycerine ...

What size are BKF hive strips?

Hive World is the exclusive stockist for BKF in New Zealand. Size of the strips is 38mm wide x 380mm long.

How to dissolve oxalic acid?

Dissolve the oxalic acid by heating the solution. Place strips in a large bin or other plastic container and leave to absorb the solution. Dry the strips before using in the hive. There are quite a few You-tube video’s available showing how to do this, including the following from Kirwee Bees: ...

Is beeswax combustible?

It is combustible at that point. You can melt the beeswax and linseed oil in a double boiler or you can melt it in a pan on the stove, but at a low temperature setting. You could also melt the beeswax separately, but it will begin to harden in clumps once the cool oil is introduced to the pan.

Is beeswax good for wood?

As far as beeswax goes, it has been used as a wood conditioner for ages. It helps keep wood from drying out and also protects against moisture. But before you create your natural finish, please be aware that there are a few potential issues when working with linseed oil. (For me, the benefits far outweigh these issues).

Is linseed oil beeswax safe for bees?

unfinished hive with cloth and linseed oil beeswax mixture. Add this recipe to your natural beekeeping arsenal. This mixture is non-toxic to bees, provides moisture protection, acts as a wood conditioner, and wood preservative.

Tips to Remember

• When building a beehive you may be confused about so many things in the sense of what to and what not to do. Below are some tips that will guide you and help you in deciding on what to use, what to do and what not to use and what not to do. The great thing about making your own beehive is that you can fit it to your budget and work with what you ha...

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Tools Required

Parts of The Beehive

Alternative

Final Thoughts