We had our 3 lbs of European bees delivered, many are now dead inside the flow hive at the base. We noticed because the under takers are carrying them away. Should I clean them out or do I let the bees do this job? If I am supposed to clean them out what is the best way to accomplish this? The queen is most probably still in her excluder as they eat to free her. Thanks! PS I know there are many dead as I looked under the removable tray.
Hi there and welcome! I’m wondering if you’ve taken a bee class or done some reading here or elsewhere about bees and beekeeping? The Flow hive makes harvesting easy, but there is a lot to learn about bees and their life cycles, and skills to gain in order to keep your bees. Connection to local beeks in your area is key.
Meanwhile, you’ll get tons of info here as well as great advice and support. Let me try to help with what you posted:
When was this?
Yes, if they are dead inside the hive then the colony will take care of them.
What the queen is in is called a queen cage. A queen excluder is the flat screen-like or gridded piece that came with your kit and goes below the super to allow only workers through, and excludes the queen so she doesn’t lay eggs where you want only honey. If she’s still in the queen cage, I presume you installed your package within the past 1-3 days. She should be released by the third day. If it is still this soon after install, your super should not be on. If it’s long ago enough to have seen that your brood box is fully drawn and about 80% packed with brood, food and bees, which has to be the case before the super can go on, then the queen couldn’t still be in her cage 
It would be good to confirm that your setup is correctly assembled, and these bees are not getting stuck below the slotted piece at the bottom. I don’t have an F2 but lately we’ve seen some new users with assembly problems leading to bees coming out into the lower area of the hive and not able to get out or back up, so they die.
@Bianca or @Freebee2 from the Flow team have helped sort equipment assembly issues out if that might be the case.
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Not being funny but the question I asked is not being answered. My bees didn’t do well travelling for 5 days from Georgia. The hive is assembled correctly, and yes I used the incorrect term “excluder” so again. I have many dead bees on the metal base. The colony is working to remove them. Do I help or do I let them do it themselves? Delivered yesterday, hence why I said Queen still in her “excluder” corrected too Queen cage!
Feel free to watch my video describing how I assembled the Flow hive 2 and look for mistakes! Flow hive 2 assembly
Most reputable suppliers will replace a package if there are a lot of dead bees in it. Mann Lake even supplies a little tape measure for you to check how deep the layer of dead bees is in the transport container. More than a certain depth (somewhere between 1 and 2 inches, depending on the container type), and they will send another package. Sorry if you don’t have that option this time, but if you need a good supplier next year, I can recommend them without hesitation.
Let the bees do it. If you try to help, you will just disrupt them more.
I would only intervene if the hive entrance is blocked with dead bees. In that case, you would need to take the brood box off the bottom board and sweep the dead bees into a trash bag or compost container.
I would also take the Flow super off the hive, unless you are just using it to make space for a feeder. It looks like you have the inner cover on top of the brood box (below the super), so I guess you are using it to cover a feeder. Otherwise, that is a lot of space for a new colony to heat and defend, as you may know. Especially if you have lost a lot of bees. I would only put it back on when the brood box is almost full of drawn comb, food and brood and is bursting with bees on every frame. 
Meanwhile, keep feeding them, watch the entrance for signs of blockage and try not to disturb the colony unless you have to. 
Regarding “more reputable suppliers” does that include “Mountain Sweet Honey” they couldn’t have cared less and told me I was insured. When I questioned the lady about having to wait another year her reply was “ yep” nothing we can do but thanks for calling! I asked for a supervisor to call me back, I wasn’t surprised when the phone didn’t ring.
The super is on as you stated, to make room for the mason jar and sugar water solution. We used a 1-1 mix with distilled water.
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Never heard of them, sorry. Among the “reputable suppliers” I have used:
Mann Lake Ltd
Kelley Bees (now part of Mann Lake)
Olivarez Honey Bees (but they now mainly sell only to commercial beekeepers, except for queens)
A member of my local beekeeping club, who is a commercial beekeeper with very strong ethics
There are a lot of sharks out there, and I am very sorry if you encountered one of them. However, the situation may be rescuable. Just watch, be gentle and keep feeding until they are established. We will try to help you through this. If you can find a local club, they may be able to help more. I know the pandemic is making things difficult, but sometimes there are workarounds even for clubs.
Probably because you are in Southern California and they are out in Georgia. They seemed reputable many videos I watch on this side of the country get their bees from Georgia which is most probably them. Would have preferred FL bees and will make sure next time they are local.
Mann Lake is across the whole lower 48:
Their Italian bees would be perfect for your climate.
Didn’t mean to cause any frustration, I know you have valid concerns 
I asked when your package had come to get a gauge on other possibilities - the more details we know, the better answers you’ll get. I guess my answer about letting the bees clean up the deadies got missed - but Dawn hopefully cleared it up for you! Sorry you’ve had a bad time with the supplier & hope your bees bounce back well!
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Our apiaries are located throughout Georgia. Our bee hives are managed by natural organic methods and we are licensed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture. All our bees come with a Georgia Dept. of Agriculture Health Certificate. I will look into them, if they are shipped by truck from a state far away, no thanks if they use USPS.
Mann Lake use UPS overnight. At least that is what I am getting next week
Plus the bees come with a Dept Ag health certificate
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Thanks for all the input, appreciated. We actually released the Queen today. Reasons being, the dead bees and the weather in Florida is supposed to change to thunderstorms for two days starting tomorrow. Will keep you posted.
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