I’m in Bend, Oregon at 3,500 feet. Summer temperatures vary from lows of 34 F to highs of 100 F. Of the 2 slots on the Flow Hive bottom board, how do you decide which to use? Ventilation vs protecting the hive from chill?
Hi there @Porter & welcome! The more I study and keep bees, the more I believe we should limit openings for airflow to sizes and locations the bees can control themselves, and not do too much to alter their internal setup once it’s in place. I’d leave the slider board in the upper slot at all times, in your situation, to approximate a solid bottom board. This is because both heating and cooling happens more efficiently in a closed space with a controlled amount of ventilation. If you have a strong population and robbing isn’t a concern, you can open the entrance and maybe add an upper one if your stack is tall. You can provide shading on the outside such as shrubbery or an umbrella that will cut down on direct sun through summer months, and always keep a source of water handy for your bees. They collect it not only to drink, but to “air condition” the hive, using a pretty sophisticated fanning system.
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Welcome William,
I’m up here 20 ms SE of Seattle in the foothills. Your high desert does get hotter n colder than Puget Sound. I’ve spent a lot of time with my family in the Bend/Redmond region.
Our Flow-fives to have double slots for the SBB slider. I keep mine always in the upper n open or close main entrances on my 9 hives as I see possible robbing or yellow jacket attacks.
As Eva has wrote Bee’s can keep hives cool ususlly their own ways. Just keep a supply of water close. They use for A.C. n in pollen/honey processing.
Enjoy n stay in touch …
Gerald
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Eva, Gerald,
Thank you! I appreciate your insight and your take on this question😊. My board is in the top slot; I’ll keep it there, and consider restricting my entrance, and add a little more shade.
Take care,
Bill
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