# Hive gone, some comb, leave it or get rid of it?



## jennifertullis (Apr 24, 2016)

Well went to check TBH and found the bees have left ( this after checking Sun, removing queen cage ,honeycomb fell off bar one, but they were doing well). We are going to re-hive( is that a word?) We are 1st year bee keepers. There are two bars with comb on them. Should we get rid of the comb for the new bees or leave it as starter?


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## Apismellifera (Oct 12, 2014)

Bummer, package abscond. Leave the comb. Maybe rig a queen excluder for the first coupla weeks 'till they've got settled to prevent this again?


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Leave it.


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## Chuck Jachens (Feb 22, 2016)

My question is why did the comb break? Comb on top bars is fragile when it is new, too hot, or not held so the comb is always vertical.


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## Apismellifera (Oct 12, 2014)

Chuck, you're hallucinating. No mention of broken comb. Check your meds. ;-)


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## Jon Wolff (Apr 28, 2013)

[honeycomb fell off bar one]
I, too, assume that means a comb broke off a bar. 
Keep the comb for your next package to give them a head start. Queen excluders can help, but also keeping up the bottom board if you have screened bottoms with boards that can be lowered.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

This was the question:

"There are two bars with comb on them. Should we get rid of the comb for the new bees or leave it as starter?"

I assume the question is in regards to the bars with comb on them, not comb that fell off of them...


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## Apismellifera (Oct 12, 2014)

Uh, off to check my meds. Read that post a dozen times and did not see that line.


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## Chuck Jachens (Feb 22, 2016)

I read "honeycomb fell off bar one" to mean it broke. 

And no, I have been taking my meds and they are the right ones :-}


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## jennifertullis (Apr 24, 2016)

Ok Thank you all for the info!! I read on the "rules" I'm not supposed to thank everyone in an individual thread, but thanks!!( sorry new to the forum world as well). Yes the comb fell off the top bar. No it was not hot. In Ohio and it's cold. Our bars were prewaxed( not sure if this is good or bad) and hubbie"scored" them thinking it would give bees a better "hold". We do not have a "bottom bar " on this hive. Came w a screened bottom and " varroa mite boards" but no movable bottom board. We are getting another package May 8. I will research the bottom board and see what's up. I know what a queen excluder is but haven't researched this aspect!! Again many thanks and any more info is useful. 

Apismellifera I'm glad that your meds are right Same to you Chuck Jachens Can't thank you all enough!!


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## Chuck Jachens (Feb 22, 2016)

For the first year I would not use a queen excluder in a a top bar hive. You want them to build comb and make stores for next winter. In the future, a honey wall will keep the queen to the brood area of the hive but not always. 

Bottom board configurations is something that requires a lot of research because there are so many opinions. After you read up on the subject, observe how your hive(s) deal with the different conditions. If the bees are doing fine, then leave hem alone. If moisture builds up inside or there is excessive bearding, Etc, then figure out why and what adjustments can you make to help the situations. Remember to make small changes then observe over time to see if it makes a diffence, good or bad. Many things you do will create new problems but you are dealing with a complex system. 

Most of the time the bees will fix your mistakes if you leave them alone.


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## Apismellifera (Oct 12, 2014)

Thanks for taking my stoopidity with humor. I just hate it when I get all self righteous and I'm dead wrong. LOL


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## john beeman (Feb 28, 2016)

Total Jerk.......Take your meds ??? Who do you think you are. This person was just looking for more information to help you...May you be stung X 10 ! On the lips


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## Apismellifera (Oct 12, 2014)

Whoa, there, pardner. I wuz just ribbin' Chuck and HE didn't take any offense so why should you? I stepped right up to my mistake, no need for you to git yer panties in a twist.


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## jadebees (May 9, 2013)

Y'all need some calming honey and chamomile tea, to wash down a tablet of some calming type meds.😜

A screened bottom can cause absconding, if light / air leaks past it. Bees just dont take to drafts well.


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## jennifertullis (Apr 24, 2016)

OHH, I wonder if that is the problem. There are no bottom boards. A screened bottom but covered with a sticky board. So the is a wind shield in place. I just re-hived yesterday and there are some dead bees in the bottom of the hive, which I just put up a new thread on that! Oh boy I sure hope that this package makes it!!! We have done research for 6 months but I'm thinking it wasn't enough.There's a huge difference between theoretical and practical knowledge!!
Love this forum. Thanks for all of the help everyone!!


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## Arpolis (Aug 26, 2013)

This year I had a package abscond and a cutout hive abscond in two different langstroth hives. In both cases they had screened bottoms. I was lucky and was able to find the bees both times. Added plywood or a solid inner cover to the two screened bottoms and now the bees are happy. I think a solid bottom is important for starting a new hive.


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## Jesse4 (Feb 23, 2017)

Arpolis - I know this is an older thread but have you found that screened bottoms with a tight bottom board still cause absconding? I am building my first TBH (brand new beek as well so fingers crossed) and just bought 1/8" hardware cloth before reading a lot on this forum about people not liking it and preferring solid bottoms. I felt the added ease of being able to remove the bottom so I can count varroa Mites would be helpful so I was going to leave it but this is the first time I've heard of it causing a swarm to abscond so I wanted to double check. Thanks.


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## Arpolis (Aug 26, 2013)

Sorry for responding so late. Twice I have done screened bottoms and just added a solid board bellow. Both of those were langstroth hives. That seemed to work just fine. I think the point is to not have light shine up into the hive. If you can stop that I think you will be fine.


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## trishbookworm (Jun 25, 2016)

We built with a screen - but it is a horizontal hive not a Kenyan - and I deeply regret it. I can't put a jar on the bottom of the hive easily for feeding, because it pushes the screen down. I can't easily pull it out because it is so big. Bees get between the solid bottom and the screen and so did yellowjackets, despite my best efforts, so I will be using a piece of wood and nailing that end closed. :/

If you are building a Kenyan, the screen part is way narrower and probably won't be an issue for setting a jar down. The wood flap to close it is a lot more solid for blocking light/air flow if you need that, so that's good. 

I have 2 of 4 horizontal hives still kicking, and one has a screened bottom board (closed the whole summer and of course winter) and the other doesn't. I never saw bearding for the hives that had solid bottoms, FWIW.


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