Bees on the wrong side of the display window

Flow Hive
1

Hey,

This is my second summer with a flow hive. It’s been great, the bees are filling up the super with honey as we speak. My jars are ready and waiting. Spectacular to watch through the viewing window each day was they built the wax and now the honey is being deposited. So exciting… until today when the ladies turned on me because they were on the OUTSIDE of the viewing window when I took the over off!!!

For the first time ever I found bees inside the side panel viewing covers. On the wrong side of the Perspex. This is new, only today and on both sides. I’ve never seen it. It was a very very hot day in Melbourne yesterday. Just thinking that perhaps the Perspex panel warped in the heat to allow the bees to climb through?

But with many 40 degree days last summer this didn’t happen.

Has anyone else experienced this? I think I’ll probably need to smoke up and pull the flow frames out to re-seal the windows from the inside.

Don’t want to leave any gaps the shb can shelter in.

Thoughts?

Cheers
Ally

2

Hiya Ally, yes the perspex windows buckle, I’ve had some buckle and even one crack. It’s only the ones which were a snug fit when assembling. They don’t leak bees though and are usually filled with propolis. If they did leak bees I’d remove and shave the sides to give clearance in the rebate.

3

I agree with Skeggley that the perspex must have buckled from heat for the bees to get to the outside of the perspex. The perspex will only buckle if it is a tight fit in the rebate so I would cut or sand some off the edges and refit the window, the bees will fill any excess gap with propolis so don’t fear being a bit heavy handed. I haven’t heard of that happening before but in really hot weather it makes sense.
Cheers