# Best feeder for 5 Frame nucs



## johnmcda (Aug 10, 2015)

I put an empty nuc box on top of my nucs and feed with an inverted bottle feeder with 1/16" holes drilled in the lid. With the feeder enclosed, I can add honey bee healthy and not have to worry about robbing.


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## Swampsquash (Oct 25, 2014)

This is how I've been doing it...I put a 1.5 inch hole in nuc lid and I use glass half gallon mason jars with 2 or 3 little holes in the middle of the lid and place it over the hole....with the heavy jar I never have issues with them falling off and if they do, I've never had one break. I like this because with only a few holes I find they take the syrup a bit slower....I used to feed and then in a week the entire nuc was packed with syrup. Now they actually build up more and get to raising more brood. (At least this is what I'm seeing this spring so far) I also put a full frame of honey in each nuc, so I am really just feeding sugar syrup to stimulate brood rearing....if you have a light nuc and need them to store alot of syrup I would probably use john's method. I love the mann lake frame feeders but I don't want to lose the frame the feeder takes up.


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## Harley Craig (Sep 18, 2012)

the BEST feeder is a frame of honey from your stronger hives. feeding nucs can lead to dead nucs in a dearth.


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## Swampsquash (Oct 25, 2014)

Harley Craig said:


> the BEST feeder is a frame of honey from your stronger hives. feeding nucs can lead to dead nucs in a dearth.


:thumbsup: Couldn't agree more! NTM much better for the bees gut


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## Kamon A. Reynolds (Apr 15, 2012)

When we don't have extra frames of honey we use a division board feeder love them. We don't use 5 frame nuc boxes but use a 10 frame box with a division feeder and add frames as needed


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## JSteuer (Aug 11, 2015)

Thank you for the info


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## mmiller (Jun 17, 2010)

For my 5 frame nucs I like to use a division board feeder during the summer. I then replace the feeder with a frame of honey going into winter. It saves a lot of time when feeding compared to filling jars. I fill the 1 gallon feeders half full or less because you can plug 4 frames with syrup pretty fast if not careful.


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

johnmcda said:


> I put an empty nuc box on top of my nucs and feed with an inverted bottle feeder with 1/16" holes drilled in the lid. With the feeder enclosed,


This can be a problem during a nectar flow. The bees may fill the open cavity with comb, honey and brood. Be careful.
I tried using covers with holes drilled to accommodate mason jar style lids. The jars rested on top of the nucs. I liked this ok....lots of clean up as the jars got moldy inside and the bees propolized the holes in the lids. Then after a couple of seasons the covers began to leak when it rained....so......
I now use nuc top feeders. I have two types. One is a wooden feeder with a float and the other is a plastic feeder. Both work well for me.


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## phyber (Apr 14, 2015)

I know this is taboo, but I use an entrance feeder (when weather is permitting), and then fashion a bit of screen over the rest of the opening as a robber screen.


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

I've got +/-15 of these. They work wonderfully and I'd recommend them.

http://www.betterbee.com/pc_product_detail.asp?key=80D219AD2C944B248C699C979980D1F2


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## Robbin (May 26, 2013)

D Coates said:


> I've got +/-15 of these. They work wonderfully and I'd recommend them.
> 
> http://www.betterbee.com/pc_product_detail.asp?key=80D219AD2C944B248C699C979980D1F2


That says it's for 6 frame nucs, will it fit a standard 5 frame nuc. The description didn't say that.
Thanks


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## RichardsonTX (Jul 3, 2011)

I like a division board feeder from Dadant.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

Fatbeeman hive top feeders here.


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## Colobee (May 15, 2014)

Inverted 1 qt mason jars. ~400 mg of citric/Vit C retards spoilage. New/xtra lids are pretty cheap. Wide mouth jars, so I can almost fit my paw in to wash them, completely cover a "standard" IC hole so NO stray comb building. Pretty cheap at ~$1 per jar/hive

You're going to have to pick one or two methods & go with it. No one has mentioned "baggies"...


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

Robbin said:


> That says it's for 6 frame nucs, will it fit a standard 5 frame nuc. The description didn't say that.
> Thanks


Yep, it says 6 but it fits a 5 with no problem. All my nucs are 5 frames wide. It's got about 1/2" that overhangs both sides but the ledge comes in enough that it works just fine on a 5 frame nuc. It's a really safe way to feed them lots of syrup for the winter.


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## J.Walters (Sep 24, 2015)

Quick top feeder cut in migratory lids... Use a custom whole drill bit (available at Menards) to cut the hole in the lid that fits tight with a little wax on the ring. A quart container 5 to 6 pinholes in the lid, invert the jar, and off you go. You can monitor how much they take and fill when needed. After you done feeding them, switch out the lid with an inner cover and telescoping lid.


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## AstroZomBEE (Aug 1, 2006)

J.Walters said:


> Quick top feeder cut in migratory lids... Use a custom whole drill bit (available at Menards) to cut the hole in the lid that fits tight with a little wax on the ring. A quart container 5 to 6 pinholes in the lid, invert the jar, and off you go. You can monitor how much they take and fill when needed. After you done feeding them, switch out the lid with an inner cover and telescoping lid.
> 
> View attachment 23183


I use the above mentioned method....


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## J.Walters (Sep 24, 2015)

AstroZomBEE said:


> I use the above mentioned method....
> View attachment 23184


That's exactly what my apiary looks like at the winery!!! very nice AstroZomBEE


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

J.Walters said:


> Quick top feeder cut in migratory lids... Use a custom whole drill bit (available at Menards) to cut the hole in the lid that fits tight with a little wax on the ring. A quart container 5 to 6 pinholes in the lid, invert the jar, and off you go. You can monitor how much they take and fill when needed. After you done feeding them, switch out the lid with an inner cover and telescoping lid.


I do that for newly captured swarms and weaker hives than need some consistent food and I can monitor intake. I find they can empty the jar too quickly if they're and established nuc. I prefer the top feeder for overwinter feeding because I can hit each with 3/4 of a gallon of syrup every other day for 7 days (4 times total) and they're loaded for winter bear. For that amount of syrup via my jars I'm filling everyday for almost 2 weeks and that's assuming weather cooperates. I alternate another set of nucs with the same feeders on the off days. Huge time saver for me.


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## dott (Aug 1, 2015)

JRG13 said:


> Fatbeeman hive top feeders here.


+1 for fatbeeman feeders, just made up 4 nucs and 4 10 frame feeders


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## Groundhwg (Jan 28, 2016)

dott said:


> +1 for fatbeeman feeders, just made up 4 nucs and 4 10 frame feeders


Saw one of dott's nuc feeders at our last beekeepers meeting. Very nice job! Seems it would work well and not lose any bees. Think they would work well on any hive body; nucs, 10 frame, or 8 frame. Would just have to adjust dims to fit.


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## j.kuder (Dec 5, 2010)

this one holds a quart almost zero drowning


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## JWChesnut (Jul 31, 2013)

1. Mason jar feeder in a borehole on the top cover. 
-- I don't put the hole in the center, but in a back corner -- if the jar leaks the cluster doesn't get soaked. Solid and bored top covers are interchanged by sticking a scrap of roll roofing over the cover to seal the bore hole. I'll also just stick a solid jar lid in the hole.

2. I have 5 frame medium nucs, when I double stack these I use the "2 frame" plastic division board feeders with bent hardware cloth ladders. This yields 8 comb frames in the double stack, and can be broken down to a "8 frame medium" starter hive -- which is in insane demand in the hobby market due to its constant promotion by the "gurus".

I have some division board feeders hacked with a wood vertical division (siliconed in). I put sub on one side and syrup on the other -- I make the sub very wet (as it is contained). Don't fill the feeder capacity to prevent fermentation in the sub. No hive beetles in my region.

3. I make mating nucs in the 5 frame medium boxes with 3 frames and a 2 frame division feeder. Some of these get "promoted" to sales nucs, but most are queen mating boxes only.

In my region, feeding weak hives leads to Argentine ant invasion. The mating nucs are hung from fenceposts on a cross arm, and I use "Tanglefoot" to isolate the boxes from ants. The sales nucs are mostly on stands made of EMT tube and wood cross bar. The EMT is tanglefooted.

In the early spring, robbing is not an issue. In my region by June, feeding weak nucs is an invitation to rob out. The mating nucs have a screen with an entrance the size of a pencil hole stretched into the screen stapled over a 3/4' borehole in the face of the box. The sales nucs have a screen stapled over the entrance (a bore hole) and fold over from the top to make a primitive robber screen --- and a bee gate when the boxes are loaded into someone back seat.


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## Lburou (May 13, 2012)

Tanglefoot....hope that info is as priceless as it seems at first glance....Thank you!


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## Groundhwg (Jan 28, 2016)

j.kuder said:


> this one holds a quart almost zero drowning
> View attachment 23209
> View attachment 23210
> View attachment 23211


JK,
I that a stocking you are placing over you feeding tray? Do you just place over you feeder?


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## j.kuder (Dec 5, 2010)

Groundhwg said:


> JK,
> I that a stocking you are placing over you feeding tray? Do you just place over you feeder?


yep






knee high 10 pair in a box for $5 something. glad bowls you can also use deeper bowls that hold around a half gallon. I use a 3inch rim spacer or you can use an empty nuc box. plus size stockings.


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## Lburou (May 13, 2012)

Multitasker tools are what I like. I have used a ML pro feeder this way:


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## JWChesnut (Jul 31, 2013)

Lburou said:


> Tanglefoot....hope that info is as priceless as it seems at first glance....Thank you!


Some folks just use trailer bearing grease, the tanglefoot is less "petrochemical". You can make a pretty good copy of Tanglefoot with Petroleum Jelly and liquid laundry detergent.

Set the tanglefoot band under a lip to catch fewer bees.


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## j.kuder (Dec 5, 2010)

j.kuder said:


> yep
> View attachment 23214
> knee high 10 pair in a box for $5 something. glad bowls you can also use deeper bowls that hold around a half gallon. I use a 3inch rim spacer or you can use an empty nuc box. plus size stockings.


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## DirtyLittleSecret (Sep 10, 2014)

Some marbles come in handy for keeping the stockings and bees well fed.



j.kuder said:


> View attachment 23223
> View attachment 23224
> View attachment 23224
> View attachment 23225


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

One quart plastic mayo jars with several holes melted in the lid with a hot needle. FREE
Fill it and set it over the inner cover hole. Add an additional empty super over jar then cover. Just make sure the inner cover notch is down for ventillation.


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## johnmcda (Aug 10, 2015)

I see a good number of drown bees with the top feeders and I've used ones with floats, ones with screens, plastic ones, etc. So far I haven't had a problem with comb in the open cavity.


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