# Wax Moth Crashing Hive



## Carolina-Family-Farm (Aug 2, 2005)

I've got two hives at a friends house that I haven't checked in a while, today I stopped in to check the hives and one had wax moths. I couldn't find the queen or any evidence of her (no brood or eggs) but there are still a pretty good number of bees in the hive. 

There are very little stores in the hive, a small amount in a super and maybe two frames in the brood box. I would like to at least save the bees that are left. What would be the best way to proceed at this point?


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## BjornBee (Feb 7, 2003)

Take the weak hive away from the site a good bit. Slide the other hive to the middle of where the two hives are sitting. (Assuming they are sitting side by side. If they are close together already, you may not even need to do this.) Then shake all the bee from from the weak hive and let them fly back to the location. They will bum rush the remaining hive and will assimulate into that hive. They will not be displaying robbing behavior and will no doubt be accepted into the hive.

Then take the other hive and freeze the comb for a couple days. Then reuse in a split if thats your choice.

You will save the bees and get a chance to stop the destruction of the comb. Any other way for me is time consuming, less efficient for the bees, and the comb will continue to be destroyed.


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## Carolina-Family-Farm (Aug 2, 2005)

BjornBee"

Your Late!

But I still appreciate your reply and advice.


There was still several pounds of bees in the hive and I really didn't want to loose them. After I made this post and didn't get any replies I called Fatbee Man in Georgia and he gave me the same advice as you just posted. I replaced the old hive with a Nuc box and a frame of bees and brood and shook them out early this morning. All seems to be going well  

At lunch time the Nuc box had a large beard of bees hanging from it, I placed all the old frames in the wax melter,I'll clean em up later and try the wooden ware again with the next split.

Thanks.


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## mnist (Jun 16, 2003)

I had something similar to this -- a month ago I was putting supers on what seemed to be happy healthy hive. Today I checked and found

-no queen
-no brood
-no honey stores 
-wax moths galore with cocoons (devastated half the lower brood box)
-only a few brave bees left, trying to chase out the earwigs  

So my question is -- how to destroy these pests so they can't hatch? 

I don't have a freezer bigger than what came with my refrigerator and hubby wouldn't take kindly to that ugliness mixing in with the ice cream.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>So my question is -- how to destroy these pests so they can't hatch?

Buy some Bt at the local garden center. Mix with water and spray the combs.


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## Carolina-Family-Farm (Aug 2, 2005)

Heat of 120°F (49°C) for 40 minutes will kill all stages of wax moths. I didn't try to save any of the combs, just not worth the risk of having a second case of Wax Moths. The very worst frames went into the fire barrel, the rest went into the wax melter.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

If they are badly webbed up, I would scrap them. It's a lot of work for the bees to clean out a lot of webs.


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## shylock3 (Jun 8, 2006)

I recently bought some old empty hives, I've been cleaning them with a pressure washer. It cuts the old wax moths or their residue off, it also work on the frames, but rags them out quite a bit. Has anyone else tried this?


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## mnist (Jun 16, 2003)

> Buy some Bt at the local garden center. Mix with water and spray the combs.


Thanks for all these answers! I don't feel quite so alone and . . icky  

Mike, what is Bt? and is that easily available at garden centers?


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## mnist (Jun 16, 2003)

> Heat of 120°F (49°C) for 40 minutes will kill all stages of wax moths. I didn't try to save any of the combs, just not worth the risk of having a second case of Wax Moths.


hmmm A little googling showed me that a parked car with closed windows heats up to 122 degrees in about 10 minutes









Guess I'll bring some garbage bags and do a little wax moth "barbecue-ing" tomorrow. And because I'm such a softy, I'll shake out the surviving bees so they can go live in my other hives


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## NW IN Beekeeper (Jun 29, 2005)

[hmmm A little googling showed me that a parked car with closed windows heats up to 122 degrees in about 10 minutes]

You might make yourself a wax melter instead!

Consider putting those frames in a big roaster pan and then into the bags just in case they weep wax!


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>Mike, what is Bt?

Bacillus thuringiensis 

aka Certan

> and is that easily available at garden centers?

Yes.


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## Gene Weitzel (Dec 6, 2005)

> and is that easily available at garden centers?

Try asking for "Safer Catapiller Killer".


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## mnist (Jun 16, 2003)

So you're "Certan" that it'll work?  

I have to tell you I tried cooking them in garbage bags in the parked car but when it was time to go to work I nearly passed out from the ghastly smell those things put off.  

It's kind of a sickening sweet rotten smell. Bad enough having to go back to work after the long weekend, but *man!* I had to drive with all the windows open!

(the bug-filled frames were still securely taped into garbage bags and left to fester in the daytime sun until I get some Certan)


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## iddee (Jun 21, 2005)

Mnist, You're in NJ. Just put the whole mess in a shopping bag, fold and staple a cash register receipt to the top, and leave it on the back seat with the window down while you are at work. It will not be there in the afternoon.


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## mnist (Jun 16, 2003)

> Mnist, You're in NJ. Just put the whole mess in a shopping bag, fold and staple a cash register receipt to the top, and leave it on the back seat with the window down while you are at work. It will not be there in the afternoon.


Haha! good one! and I work in *Trenton* too! But even if I clipped a $10 bill to the bag, nobody would pick it up. Some people may be dishonest, but they're not crazy  

--Madeleine in NJ


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## beeznbeaks (Jan 25, 2013)

When taking the weak hive away for the shake and return, Whats condidered a "good Bit" ? 1 mile ? or 100 yards ?
Thanks !


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