# Inspection, how many bars removed at a time?



## Beethinking (Jun 2, 2008)

Heather,

When inspecting my own hives I generally inspect one, move it to the far side, inspect the next and butt it up against the last bar I inspected. This way when putting everything back together I can pick up 2-4 bars at a time and get them back in place. It also leaves less bees exposed during the inspection process.

Best,
Matt


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## bigevilgrape (Aug 21, 2008)

I take out like three bars from the back to give me some working room. Like this... 
vvvvv___------ (V's are comb and --- empty bars. 

Then I inspect one bar at a time. When I'm done with the bar I place it twards the back of the gap like this.

vvvv___v----
I keep the bars up next to each other as I place them back in because I find it makes it easier to put back together when I'm done. If you have comb on all of your bars you can use a makeshift comb stand to hold two or three while you inspect the rest. I havn't had that happen yet tho.


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## Merlinspop (Nov 4, 2010)

bigevilgrape said:


> Like this...
> vvvvv___------ (V's are comb and --- empty bars.


What a GREAT way to make it visual! I was having trouble trying to come up with words.


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## heatherbee (May 10, 2011)

Thanks for the input, and great visual! When I did my first inspection, I removed most of the bars and put them across a milkcrate. That worked okay, but there were too many bees in the air, which made me too nervous to really look at anything. I will try your suggestions this time and see how it goes. I think I'll use 2 milk crates and put the bars between them so I can see better too. 
Thanks again everyone!!


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## blist (Jun 15, 2010)

I'm not a veteran but I remove a few empty bars to make some room, then inspect one at a time and and put it towards the back so that there is a gap between un-inspected and inspected comb, I slide them back up in groups if at all possible, this keeps the bees pretty much together and I have very little bees flying around.

I'm sure this will become different once the hive is actually full though (won't be able to easily remove 3 bars).


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## Adam Foster Collins (Nov 4, 2009)

I usually move one at a time - unless the hive is full to the end. Then I might remove a few bars at the back and set them aside to have room to work. But then I move one at a time from there. You do require a few bars of room in order to work easily.

Adam


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## DeeAnna (Nov 5, 2010)

When a hive has empty bars, it's easy to deal with the bars you remove to make an "inspection gap" -- just set them to one side. When there is comb on all the bars in the hive, what solutions have folks come up with to deal with the set-aside bars?


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## Beethinking (Jun 2, 2008)

DeeAnna,

Rarely do any of my hives have comb on all of the bars -- and if they do I would harvest ASAP so that they have some more empty bars! If you've got a follower board you'll have at least one bar's worth of a gap between combs for inspection purposes. 

Best,
Matt


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## DeeAnna (Nov 5, 2010)

"...I would harvest ASAP so that they have some more empty bars!..."

Uh, hey, good point, Matt. That will be an easy (and delicious) solution! 

Okay, um, then let me ask a related question -- What are ways to securely support a bar, if one wants to use both hands to, say, fix the comb or take a picture? I've seen a few pics of top-bar holders, but some seem too flimsy and others are built like a Sherman tank. Helpful spouses are sometimes in short supply.

--DeeAnna


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## heatherbee (May 10, 2011)

Yummy! I agree, DeeAnna, some holders do look flimsy. I plan to use 2 overturned milk crates until I can get one built (when I did my previous inspection, I used one, but couldn't get a good look at the bars, it was very sturdy).


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## DeeAnna (Nov 5, 2010)

Nice idea, heatherbee. Thanks!


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## bigevilgrape (Aug 21, 2008)

I have some buckets that used to hold bubble gum. Similar to the milkcrates idea. The buckets came from someone at my office.


IMG_0188 by bigevilgrape


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## heatherbee (May 10, 2011)

That works too, bigevilgrape!


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Generally I pull the farthest one out (expecting it to not have comb), and then a few more, so I can see up into the hive and then pull one right next where I think the cluster is...


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## AuntBee (Apr 26, 2011)

Okay, um, then let me ask a related question -- What are ways to securely support a bar, if one wants to use both hands to, say, fix the comb or take a picture? I've seen a few pics of top-bar holders, but some seem too flimsy and others are built like a Sherman tank. Helpful spouses are sometimes in short supply.

I'm new to posting so I'm not really sure I'm doing this right. My husband built a really nice and simple bar holder from scrap metal for me to use. If someone can explain to me how to post a photo on here, I'll upload one. My image doesn't have a URL so the "add image" button doesn't work.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Usually I just put them at the other end of the hive where I removed the bars. Otherwise I flip them upside down and set them on something flat (the lid, the hive next door, the bars a the front that I don't plan to remove).


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## AuntBee (Apr 26, 2011)

When you flip it, do you do it quickly or slowly rotate it around? Does it make the bees mad? I don't want to get my girls stirred up.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>When you flip it, do you do it quickly or slowly rotate it around? Does it make the bees mad? I don't want to get my girls stirred up. 

You go on the axis that leaves the comb perpendicular to the ground. Slow is fine. The bees won't even notice.


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## AuntBee (Apr 26, 2011)

I think I have figured out how to post a photo of the bar hanger my husband made from scrap metal. I can either hang the bar with the comb down or stand it upside down on the hanger. (Tried that for the first time this morning.) It makes it a very convenient height for inspecting the comb and taking pictures. It could be made from lumber as well, if you're not lucky enough to be married to a welder. Just in case the picture doesn't work right, here is a link for it: http://auntbeesbees.shutterfly.com/pictures/11


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## DeeAnna (Nov 5, 2010)

Thank you, Michael and AuntBee. I will give the "flip it upside down" method a try, being careful to orient the comb during the flip so it doesn't break off the bar. I can also see a separate frame might be helpful someday -- I like your free standing version, AuntBee. Here is another frame that would be easy to make and sits on the hive top or other flat surface: http://topbarhive.blogspot.com/2006/05/what-is-ktbh.html

Relating to the OP's question, there is a good FAQ from about 1997 that I believe was mostly written by Marty Hardison, in collaboration with other TBH beekeepers of the time. The FAQ is available here: http://kandykasts.com/top_bar_hives/jim_satterfield/TBH_Beekeeping/tbmgmt2.htm and can be found in various other places on the internet. Some of the info is dated, but a lot is still appropriate. Detailed info about inspecting a hive is in Section III, Question 5, about in the middle of the FAQ. Here is a useful quote (my words are in [ ]):

"...Starting at the rear of the hive, ... I remove a couple of bars [placing them in a holder if they contains comb], then work forward toward the brood area, shifting the inspected bar to the rear. Only a small gap of a couple of bars is necessary to give plenty of room to remove bars. Often there is a small amount of comb attachment to the sides at the upper two inches of the comb, but the attachments are easily freed with a hive tool. If the bar is then place on a cradle, the rough sides where the attachments were can be trimmed smooth with scissors after which the bees are less inclined to reattach the comb to the sides. This is especially true if the wax is
scraped from the sides also. Rarely there may be a few places where a comb is attached to the bottom of the hive in which case the hive tool will free it also. All of the wax scraps go into the solar wax melter...."


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## David LaFerney (Jan 14, 2009)

DeeAnna said:


> When a hive has empty bars, it's easy to deal with the bars you remove to make an "inspection gap" -- just set them to one side. When there is comb on all the bars in the hive, what solutions have folks come up with to deal with the set-aside bars?


Harvest some honey! If all you have is uncapped, keep it in the fridge. Try taking a nice comb of open nectar to a potluck. MMM MMM good.


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## DeeAnna (Nov 5, 2010)

I would love to do that for our annual Labor Day party. I hope the bees will oblige!


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## berkshire bee (Jan 28, 2007)

If my hive (started late) gets to the point of needing a place to put combs during inspection, I'll just screw a couple of pcs of 3/4 x 1" wood to the sides so that they stick out the back end, thus "extending" the box


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