My hive is doing well and the frames are filling up! They have been bearding (see pic) and I assume more space is needed.
My plan is to add a brood box on top of existing.
Is it as simple as setting the 2nd directly onto the first and top with the original roofing?
Is the 2nd brood the correct choice over a super since this is the first year for the hive?
Cheers!
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What I would do is find what other bee keepers in your area do in regards to a single or a double brood hive Eric and follow their advice. If they advise a second brood box it is simply a matter of placing the second brood box on top of the present brood box and adding the frames. I always use wired frames and full sheets of bees wax foundation, the result will be less drone cells and straight comb.
Paint the metal roof with white paint to reduce the internal hive temperature which can also cause bearding in hot weather.
Cheers
I was a little worried about the heat. The other day I put a pop up tent over the hive…bad idea. Bees got very active and went crazy above the tent. I guess it impedes their normal traffic pattern?? Regardless, I removed it pretty quickly.
Is there a crown board under your telescopic lid?
Can’t you prop the tele-top up slightly to let some heat out? I thought that was how your USA style lids work…
Alternatively just put a slightly oversized piece of cement sheet on top of the hive with a spacer under it to make an air gap and a brick on top to hold it down.
Heat is a major issue in my sub-tropical climate and all my hives are painted white on all the exterior surfaces. I have also added roof vents to the front and rear of the roofs. To my thinking a bearding hive because of excess heat is an issue to come up with a fix. It is a hive not able to allow them to forage to their potential. If you can place a few shrubs against the hives in pots to give some afternoon shade that would be a help.
The pop up tent could be a good idea and maybe after a couple of days the bees would figure out to fly to and from the hive.
Try a match stick on top of the brood box on each edge to make a gap for the hot air to escape.
Cheers