# mini mating nuc stands



## gregstahlman (Oct 7, 2009)

i am currently in the process of welding together our stands for our styrofoam nucs. the holding tray is made of galvanized and the post is 1 in square tubing that is 4 ft long.


----------



## Brooklyn (Nov 14, 2009)

Greg,
Very nice. You guys have been hard at work. Just like your bees

:thumbsup:


----------



## Broke-T (Jul 9, 2008)

How do you arrange these in the mating yard? How far apart? Do you strap them on with bungee cord?

You obviuosly work them standing up. How do you tote the cells and queen around?

Johnny


----------



## gregstahlman (Oct 7, 2009)

haven't really decided on how we are going to scatter these yet. our wood mating nucs are placed in rows of 10 inside the woods with a little bit of canopy to provide shade. they are placed about 4-5 ft apart. we might try this with the styrofoam boxes also or we may place them along some tree lines. with the way the weather has been, we will have plenty of time to think about it. i carry my queens around in one of those carpenter waist pouches. empty cages in one pouch and full ones in the other. i can usually get about 15-20 queens in the pouch before i have to unload it. we cell the next morning after caging and the cells around placed in a carrying box.


----------



## Specialkayme (Sep 4, 2005)

Just curious, why do you put them so high up? Why not put them on these stands and have them be 1-2' off the ground?


----------



## gregstahlman (Oct 7, 2009)

after the post is driven in the ground the boxes are at a comfortable work height. after working hives for most of the day, i don't like to go and cage queens being bent over.


----------



## Specialkayme (Sep 4, 2005)

Lol, ok, makes sense.

It just seems like a LOT of extra materials, but it's still probably cheaper than back surgery


----------



## WilliamsHoneyBees (Feb 17, 2010)

Looks like they are built to last a lifetime too! Very nice!


----------



## bleta12 (Feb 28, 2007)

The nucs look very good. They look to be Apidea stile, made from Mann Lake. 
When you put them in the fields you should consider putting some weight on, in case of wind. I do put rocks on mine matting nucs.

Gilman


----------



## Jim Stevens (Jan 15, 2007)

Nice job Greg.
Jim


----------



## rrussell6870 (May 14, 2009)

Nice stands Greg. What kind of paint are you using on the Styrofoam nucs? We bought a few hundred of them to play around with, but were worried that some paints may melt or at least weaken the Styrofoam... thanks.


----------



## gregstahlman (Oct 7, 2009)

latex based exterior paint with satin finish. hear flat finish allows dirt to stick easily and i dont remember the reason for not using gloss. definately dont want to use an oil base paint, unless you want melt them down haha. with all the materials and my cheap labor, got about $12 per stand.


----------



## KevinR (Apr 30, 2010)

Thought you made up a giant pile of wooden mating nucs?

Trying both, or did you get tired of making sawdust?


----------



## gregstahlman (Oct 7, 2009)

also made some wood ones this year. heard some good things about the styrofoam nucs so thought we would give them a try


----------



## Honey-4-All (Dec 19, 2008)

Hi Greg,

What are you going to do to keep these things from blowing away? If you have any wind in the area you are destined to bee picking them up off the ground endlessly unless you devise a way to "keep" them in place.

As I mentioned to you befroe we have about 4 k of those nuc boxes. Light is nice except when it come to a low weight to surface area ratio where wind is a concern. 

Height will keep the skunks, raccoons, and all the other critter at bay nicely. 

Want to to give me a quote on 1000 stands that will hold 4 boxes?

Might want to buy some of the $20 queens myself. Since their high already they might give my hives the little extra buzz they need . opcorn:


Hope they work for you. Phil


----------



## gregstahlman (Oct 7, 2009)

i dont know if we will use anything to fasten these down of not. i set out 3 stands the other day when it was a little bit breezy. i put 1/4 lb worth of weight into each box and no boxes where blown off in a 24 hr time period. we dont get much with here in spring


----------

