SBB, should bees be allowed to easily fit through it?

I noticed while transferring bees into a Flow hive, the bees were easily going through the SBB. Is this a problem? I wonder if I should neatly cut a piece of ply to place over the SBB so bees don’t go through it?

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the mesh is quite small are you sure?

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Others who have had this issue noticed that the wire mesh was damaged or bent to make the holes bigger, often around the edge of the SBB. May be worth taking the brood box off and checking the spacing - should be just under 3 mm between wires. If it is 5mm or more, small bees will get through.

Hi Dawn, these gaps are more than 3mm. I noticed all these bees crawling around under the mesh while we were doing the transfer & making the video. We actually briefly videoed a bee chasing a SHB under it. Wilma & I are both senior citizens, so we could be confused.

The bees would not be able to get their heads through that mesh is is way too small unless there is a hole in the mesh or it has come away from the sides

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Either the wires need to be re-aligned by the hive owner, or a message with photos needs to be sent by them to info@honeyflow.com with a request for help with a solution.

Thanks Dawn, yes, I’ll let them know. I’ll check it out later when it gets light. I might take the core flute out. What’s happening is the bees are easily finding gaps to go through & trying to come back up again through small gaps.

I think the easiest short term solution would be to fit a piece of ply over the mesh.

If you have that option, I agree. The fit would need to be very good though - less than 3-4mm gap around the edges over the mesh.

It was relayed to me by another beekeeper that you should block off a SBB because bees can become confused after getting underneath the hive because they can smell the hive but can’t get back to them. Covering it while they are orienting themselves prevents the smell of the bees from going through the screen and prevents confusion.

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Once the bees are established Adam they should be OK

@Michael_Bush says something like this in his package installation video with Flow - put the corflute in the upper slot. I think I would close any gap with some tape too.

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That may very well be where I heard it. I have been talking to and reading and watching so many things I sometimes can’t remember were all the little bits and pieces came from.

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Thanks @Dawn_SD & @adagna, it’s all sorted. The people had the core flute in the bottom slot. I didn’t realize the top slot situated the core flute directly under the mesh. I put it there. As it turned out there were no bees under the mesh this morning, only a few beetle crawling over the core flute. The bees are happy, all’s well.

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Hi Jeff,

Because you noticed this, and I respect you greatly, I paid very detailed attention to my hive when it arrived yesterday. Unfortunately it was evening when I unpacked it, but today, I found this in the SBB, and it is my belief that these gaps are big enough for bees to get through them. I have some jewelers pliers, so I will reset everything, but I guess I can see why you like solid bottom boards! :smile:
http://forum.honeyflow.com/t/bees-between-the-bottom-screen-and-the-pull-out-board/5605/7?u=dawn_sd

All the best,

Dawn

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