Stop Counting Winter Losses

An unexpected bee-science

One of my Clan Beekeeper members on my Skool.com platform just shared a career-changing video with me. I HAVE to share with you what I learned because it has changed the way I do winter.

First, to give credit where credit is due: This member’s name is Brittany, she runs her own Homesteading YouTube channel about bees and chickens. Check her out here!

So the video that Brittany shared was posted on YouTube by the BetterBee channel. And believe it or not, the video is over two years old! So this isn’t “new” news I’m learning but it is new to me.

The video is Dr. David Peck interviewing Bill Hesbach about The Condensing Beehive. What’s that? It’s a way to manage our colonies in a much more natural way that mimics a honey bee colony in a tree cavity AND improves winter survival rates but it’s also a way to manage them year-round.

I have alway believed that moisture was a problem in my beehives if I wasn’t doing anything about it. So to “fix” what I thought was a problem (moisture) I installed ventilated quilting boxes filled with cedar chips.

The idea is that colony warmth is maintained while wet air is allowed to wick away, thus keeping a dry colony safe from honey bee hypothermia.

I was wrong!! (read to the very end to see the solution)

According to Bill Hesbach, by ventilating my beehives I am keeping my bees in survival mode all winter long when they should be in rest and recovery mode.

So what is the alternative? It’s actually much simpler and way less work than the heroics I have been going through. Here it is:

By creating a well-insulated top with NO ventilation, I am mimicking a tree cavity and here’s what happens as a result:

• The dew point above the winter cluster is raised, thus NOT allowing condensation. The top stays dry and warm.

• A higher CO2 level. CO2 is not great for humans in large quantities, however it is excellent and even designed for honey bees in the winter. CO2 acts as a sedative for bees, lowering their metabolic rate, thus also lowering their average honey consumption over winter.

• Higher CO2 levels are NOT favorable towards Varroa mites!! (I haven’t studied how it affects them yet).

By ventilating my hives I was also ventilating the naturally-occurring CO2 AND causing my bees to need MORE honey to get through winter.

The Solution is right here: (watch my video about it here)

• Step #1- Stop ventilating your hives (I know what you’re thinking but keep reading).

• Step #2- Create a well-insulated, non-ventilating top cover to run on your hives year-round (It works in every season, just ask the bees that live in trees).

• Step #3- Maintain one small hole for your bees to come and go from at the bottom (this can be done by keeping your entrance reducers on permanently, this will also help against robbing).

• Step #4- Keep your hive bodies on a screened-bottom board and let the bees do the ventilating.