Which is worse -- too little beespace or too much beespace?

[ugcheleuce]

Hello everyone

As a new beekeeper designing my own hive, I'm trying to keep beespace in mind (and by that I mean specifically the space between the sides of the frames and the side walls of the hive, not the space above and below the tops and bottoms of the frames). I'm quite concerned that I'll get the measurements wrong and that I'll end up with either too much space or too little space. I know that either too much or too little space is bad -- too little space leads to bees glueing the frames to the walls using propolis, and too much space leads to them glueing the frames to the walls using wax comb. I don't want to "plan to fail", but I may have to anyway. So my question is: which is worse: if the bees glue the frames using propolis or if the bees glue the frames using wax comb?

[By the way, I use 22 mm wide frames with either hand-spacing or castellation spacing, so the frame tops are never less than 8-10 mm from each other. This means that the question of frames being glued to each other is not an issue for me.]

My guess is that wax comb would be the lesser of the evils, because one might be able to wring the frame free, or otherwise use a long knife to slice it free. Frames that were glued to the walls using propolis, on the other hand, will be impossible to loosen without breaking the frame, I think. Do the bees fill the glue comb with honey as well (i.e. if I have to slice such a frame free, will there be lots of honey leaking out all over the hive)?

What are your views on this? If my hive building skills are not yet so good that I'm guaranteed to avoid either of these options, which one should I err on the side of?

Thanks
Samuel

 

[pargyle]

Bee space is 6.5mm to 9.5mm in round measurements so if you pitch for about 8mm then you won't go far wrong if your accuracy is not spot on. The space you really want to be within these tolerances is the gap between the outside of the frames and the inside of the hive and the easiest way to get this is to use a frame as a template, add an 8mm strip of timber to either side of the frame and make the box a tightish fit to your template frame. Making sure that you get your box square ....

 

[ugcheleuce]

The easiest way to get this is to use a frame as a template, add an 8mm strip of timber to either side of the frame and make the box a tightish fit to your template frame.

This is such a simple yet elegant solution that it's just not funny. Thanks.

 

[enrico]

That's pargyle all over.......simple yet elegant!
E

 

[pargyle]

That's pargyle all over.......simple yet elegant!
E

One of these days you will meet me at a Convention or Honey show and realise just how far from the truth you can get !! Nice thought for Xmas though, thank you - I'll hang on to it ....

My solutions are usually based on a complete inability to measure anything accurately ...indeed, measure anything at all ! Any success I have in building something is a mixture of luck and the right size materials to start with !!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

That's pargyle all over.......simple yet elegant!
E

Well maybe the first bit

 

[pargyle]

Well maybe the first bit

DEFINITELY the first bit .... elegant ? Mr Blobby in a bee suit !

 

[Travelator]

I'd agree that propolis in the wrong place is much more of a disaster than comb in the wrong place, so better to err on the side of slightly too much bee space.

As for what happens to the brace comb once it's built... bees don't build comb for fun, they quickly fill it up with honey and/or drone brood.

My bees quite often build extra comb between frame tops and ill-fitting queen excluders, and they'll also slip an extra comb in if the frames are too far apart. Never really had a problem with them building between the frame edge and the wall - I don't think that's a very tempting site for them because it's too far away from the centre of the colony.