Summer is definitely here down in the Florida Keys. The bees are bearding a lot…which I know is normal…but we decided to make a new bottom for them! My boyfriend made this and I think it’ll be perfect! I have no idea what kind of wood it is but it’s really heavy and pretty. Hope this helps them!!
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A good job wish you well and sure it will add to the ventilation. Two common causes of bearding is the hive is overheating or the colony population is too large for the hive.
Cheers
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Are you intending to use that on your flive? If so, just check to make sure it has a slight angle backwards (2deg or 4deg seems to ring a bell…but check). IF you don’t have the slight angle backwards it might give slight issues with drainage from the flowframe.
It looks good though. The wood, to my untrained eye, reminds me of Acacia…but definitely do not quote me.
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Hi Jamie,
Your son seems to have a rather advanced woodworking skilled. That’s an excellent job done on that SBBoard. How many tracks does it have for the slider?! I know my Flow SBB have a double slot (upper n lower) … I have several look a like SBBoards but they are only single slots… really doesn’t matter to me up here in Washington state. Get very warm in maybe later July n thru August but nothing like down in your Siuthern locations. I never lower or remove the conflux sliders except to check for mites or other issue (then I clean n replace until the next inspection)…
Nice to have a woodworker that skilled in the family. I’m not sure the wood species either … doubt it’s acacia … grain, color n pattern look wrong. It’s not Cypress … could be a hickory species. Grain looks similar… guessing your kid would have a better idea on that … Hickory is very heavy n a more southern US wood.
Let him know from me … he did an A-ok 
Job !!
You going to use with the slide in or out ? Just curious …
Cheers,
Gerald
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@jme19 Hey Alan, I didn’t see if Jamie said if she had a Flow hive or conventional, so that maybe confusing her. So just to make it clear to her, The lay back is for draining a Flow Hive is 4 to 5 degrees according to their literature. A conventional hive with Langstroth frames is as close to horizontal as you can get it.
Regards
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Hey guys! Thanks for the compliments and the input. And thanks, Peter, for your message! I definitely was confused 
a bit before I realized that a few of the responses were referring to the flow hives. I have conventional langstroth hives!!
Here is a pic of what they look like. Thanks again for everyone’s input. I didn’t have time to get the new bottoms on today but hopefully tomorrow we can get out there.
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Thanks Gerald! I’ll let him know 
It might be hickory. I’m not good with identifying different wood. It’s very heavy. It was scrap from a pile at a house that was being fixed up down here. Definitely sturdy wood!!
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Jamie,
Your hives look 
nice. I’ve got a mix of 8 n 10 frame Langstroth ( two are Flow-hives)… I also have 2 five frame Nuc’s also.
My 9 hives keep me busy right now. Once a month I do a very deep inspection n mite check. I’m always trying to stay ahead of the mite growth curve. So far this year the numbers are staying low but guessing that will change within the next month or so … How mites down there for you.
Got to go now,
Gerald
Hi Jamie, are you going to get time to paint in the art work near the hand grips or is that a bridge too far?
Regards
Hey Gerald.
So far so good with mites. However, this is my first season beekeeping. I’ve been on the lookout for them and I will continue to check every month and hope for the best. I don’t know others down here that keep bees so it’s tough to know. I saw some hives in someone’s backyard and was going to stop in and talk to them a little to see what their experience has been down here.
Have a great Sunday!
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I’m getting a lot of bearding on the entry to my new Flow Hive2 and I’m concerned the hive is getting too warm for the brood. Has anyone experimented with removing the small trim piece that covers the flow release valves (located at the top and rear of the Flow Super) as a way to increase ventilation in the hive? Thx.
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Hello Mathew, removing that cover might be too much ventilation for the hive, try a piece of wood to raise one end of the lid about 3/16" to increase the natural air flow. If bearding is still happening increase the lid to 1/4" and see how that goes. When the hot weather drops out remember to refit the lid in place. This is assuming the bearding is happening during the heat of the day and that is the reason it is happening and not the need for more space in the hive.
Regards
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You can always put an empty box on the hive too, as Rusty Burlew suggests… To increase space for fanning, ventilation etc… By the way, Mr Rusty has some training in physics and airflow, if I recall her previous posts about her significant other, and so her recommendations should be taken as having some knowledgable background scientific support. 
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Great information! 
Hi Jamie, you should have had a chat with the person that owns the hives. Most bee keepers will willingly share information and you could have got local info that is good to have. Go back and introduce yourself, ask questions and make a new friend.
Regards
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Hi peter! You are exactly right…and I ended up doing that after posting my message about it. I was riding my bike one morning and stopped in. He has a huge backyard with probably 50-75 key lime trees!! The hives are right in the middle. He gave me a jar of honey and you can definitely taste the key lime in it. Very cool. He was very excited to meet me and wants to check our hives together so I’m excited about that. He’s been doing it for years and says he knows a Few other beekeepers in the area that he can introduce me to.
Thanks for the encouragement!!!
Have a great weekend,
Jamie
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Meeting local bee keepers is a very good source of information and friendships. Good on you for going back and meeting him. Most bee keepers are only to happy to have someone interested in what their passion is. And it does become a passion that we willingly give our time to.
Regards