# Walabot for seeing into hives?



## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

I've used stud finders that work with ultrasound. Don't have much use for them.

I have a thermal imager and it can spot studs in most cases. It can also spot bees, but to use it you need either a heavy overcast or shoot the image at night. The image should have a "short thermometer", i.e. there should be no especially hot or cold objects in the image (a warm hand or icy cold sky can cause autorange to make it insensitive to very small temperature variations, as can a low-emissivity surface such as an aluminum top cover. But if the image is set up well, you can easily distinguish between a live hive and a dead one, and spot where the cluster is.

I believe I've also been able to spot a colony in the wall of a house with it, but I did not attempt the cut-out so I can't confirm it.


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## tnnewbe (Mar 21, 2010)

I emailed the Walabot company about using in on a hive and they replied that the unit was make to look through drywall and would not work well looking through wood.
Ken


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## cbay (Mar 27, 2017)

How about something like this? https://www.amazon.com/Industrial-E...rd_wg=FGUvF&psc=1&refRID=HG8WS52M9SZ2H72MVTWW


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## tnnewbe (Mar 21, 2010)

I have used something similar to that from Harbor Freight. 
https://www.harborfreight.com/catal...,EAFeatured+Weight,f,Sale+Rank,f&q=inspection
most likely not as good but did what i needed it for.
Ken


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## hex0rz (Jan 14, 2014)

What's your ultimate purpose for this idea? Is it for cut outs? Otherwise, the ear against the hive works just fine...


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## tnnewbe (Mar 21, 2010)

I was looking at the bees after they entered the hive to see how they moved up into the hive boxes. I was experimenting with something that i needed to see how they handled.
Ken


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## BZB47 (Jan 27, 2016)

Thanks man! Sometimes the simplest solution is the best. I should have thought to e-mail them. You saved me a LOT of cost and trouble.


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## Steve in PA (Jan 26, 2015)

tnnewbe said:


> I have used something similar to that from Harbor Freight.
> https://www.harborfreight.com/catal...,EAFeatured+Weight,f,Sale+Rank,f&q=inspection
> most likely not as good but did what i needed it for.
> Ken


I keep seeing them for sale in the ads I get and wondered how well it worked. I would use it for automotive stuff as well, but I think it would be useful in the winter on checking to see what stores they have left or if the sugar blocks were gone.


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## tnnewbe (Mar 21, 2010)

Steve in PA said:


> I keep seeing them for sale in the ads I get and wondered how well it worked. I would use it for automotive stuff as well, but I think it would be useful in the winter on checking to see what stores they have left or if the sugar blocks were gone.


They work well for the price but the focal length is short so if you want to see something that is more than a few inches away you will be disappointed. Not sure it would be very good for checking your hive during the winter. I use a Flir camera that fits on my cell phone to take pictures of my hives. The picture along with lifting the back of the hive gives me enough information to know how they are doing. The picture tells me where the cluster is in the hive so I know if its at or near the top that they will be neading a sugar block even though the hive might be heavy.
Ken


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