Winter feeding?

[babsbag]

Just checked a hive today and the patty I gave them a month ago was all gone, nothing left but the wax paper. If you put a patty in leave the paper on the bottom and remove the top piece. This is the spacer I use, it is for mite treatments but I just put it between the boxes and it allows me to lay a patty on the frames and not have the bottom of the frames in the box above smash the patty. I don't use the cross bars and I tape the little holes on the sides with duct tape in the winter and leave them open in the summer if the hive is strong enough to defend a top entrance. They actually seem to prefer the top ones.

https://www.dadant.com/catalog/b10004-rim-spacer-kit

Does your hive have any honey in the second deep box?

 

[Alicia]

From what I can see i think so. These are the same naughty girls that built the comb across the frames instead ofwith the frames.
Found the Dadant site, have patties on order. Is there a reason u remove the top paper on the patties?

 

[Alicia]

@babsbag is the spacer ventilated?

 

[babsbag]

There are two little slots on each side where the cross bars go. Since I don't use the cross bars I close up the slots by wrapping duct tape around it. In the summer the bees use them for entrances. You could put the cross bars in and then no slots and no tape.

I remove the top paper as I think that the bees consume it more willingly if they don't have to eat through the paper.

 

[babsbag]

There are two little slots on each side where the cross bars go. Since I don't use the cross bars I close up the slots by wrapping duct tape around it. In the summer the bees use them for entrances. You could put the cross bars in and then no slots and no tape.

I remove the top paper as I think that the bees consume it more willingly if they don't have to eat through the paper.

 

[babsbag]

There are two little slots on each side where the cross bars go. Since I don't use the cross bars I close up the slots by wrapping duct tape around it. In the summer the bees use them for entrances. You could put the cross bars in and then no slots and no tape.

I remove the top paper as I think that the bees consume it more willingly if they don't have to eat through the paper.

 

[Alicia]

Do u have a link or pic of spacer? Can't picture it.
Have only been able to find covers

 

[babsbag]

The link is above but here it is again.

https://www.dadant.com/catalog/b10004-rim-spacer-kit

You could just rip some boards (or buy them) and build a frame, it is nothing fancy, just the size of your box and about 1.5" tall but could be less, just the thickness of a patty. 1/2" would be plenty. I used to just smash the patties onto the frames but this is so much neater. I bought them as I am lazy...not really...just too busy building a dairy.

 

[Alicia]

Thanks and sorry for being blind.
That's exciting about the dairy!

 

[babsbag]

Blind is fine...I do it all of the time.

Dairy is a lot of work and wondering why I chose retirement to do this. Crazy ??? Maybe !!!! (Probably)