# Screened bottom board..when to remove?



## ChrisH (Apr 25, 2012)

I have a new colony that I just started last Friday and they are doing well. I have a screened bottom board with the panel that is removable on right now so it is closed. When do you remove the panel so it is open on the bottom? Do you wait until a certain outdoor temp is reached or is it just based on mite control only?


----------



## AmericasBeekeeper (Jan 24, 2010)

You can leave it out in Georgia or slide it in during frost warnings.


----------



## [email protected] (May 12, 2010)

Over the last several years, I have started switching my 300 hives over to screened bottom boards. I make my own and don't even provide a panel to close it up. I regularly winter with the screen wide open. Here in CT, we see below zero winter temps and the bees do fine. I don't see a need for closing the bottom in any weather, especially in the South. While I recognise the benifit from mite fall, I am primarily interested in the increased ventilation to help controll chalk brood.


----------



## Slow Modem (Oct 6, 2011)

I only slide the board in to do a mite count. I leave it out the rest of the year.


----------



## waynesgarden (Jan 3, 2009)

Most of my hives here in Maine went through the winter with SBBs just fine without being closed up at all. Of course it was a mild winter and hardly even touched 20 below.

I'd say in Georgia, remove the close off board when you set the hives on the SBB and throw it away.

Wayne


----------



## psisk (Jul 21, 2011)

I make my own bottom boards also and I dont make any type covers. I use a piece of poster board slid in for mite counts. I dont do a 24 hour mite drop, just a powdered sugar dusting and pull the poster board out and count the mites. Then I make my decision to treat or just do more powdered sugar dustings. So far I havent treated and would like to keep it that way. 

psisk


----------



## geebob (Apr 4, 2011)

I leave the mite boards in for the first two weeks for package installs and swarm captures. In my case it was because I had a package and a swarm that both had significant numbers of bees living under the SBB. I have not had that problem since starting the packages with mite boards in.

Otherwise, I leave the mite boards open all year except when doing mite counts.


----------



## TIMER (Apr 17, 2011)

Here in Michigan mine are wide open year around with no problems.


----------



## Andrew Dewey (Aug 23, 2005)

As with many things in beekeeping there are multiple thoughts about screened bottom boards. Some people swear by them, other at them. I have tried them - every colony I had on them died - I suspect the reason being that I am close to the coast and we get a fair amount of fog. A solid bottom board and a reduced entrance limits ambient moisture getting into the hives.


----------



## scdw43 (Aug 14, 2008)

I live a hundred miles north of you in the mountains I never close mine, winter or summer.


----------



## ChrisH (Apr 25, 2012)

Thanks everyone for your input. After reading everyones posts I removed my bottom board sleeve. It is plastic and could be useful doing mite counts. The plastic material is the kind that people use to make yard signs with. When I removed the board this evening....I saw something interesting. It looked like and felt like dirty ear wax. Thoughts?


----------



## TheRatLover (May 13, 2012)

I just pulled out the plastic 'drawer' and found a dusting too. Some of it even felt soft and fluffy. Is this normal?


----------

