# first hive inspection do i need smoke?



## Jorn Johanesson (Mar 30, 2005)

beehive said:


> i will be inspection my hive tonight for the fist time since i installed the package sunday. do i need to smoke it or should i get sugar water and spray them as i open the hive to remove the queen cage and add the last frame to the hive?


If you put a very little essig in the solution this could work but keep the smoker as a bacup tool.


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## beehive (Jan 3, 2009)

ok sounds good, but what is essig?


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## kaisfate (Oct 6, 2008)

I smoked a week or so ago and it actually made my bees more agitated...not sure why


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## Jorn Johanesson (Mar 30, 2005)

beehive said:


> ok sounds good, but what is essig?


sorry it was german , it is vinegar

best regards


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## Hambone (Mar 17, 2008)

kaisfate said:


> I smoked a week or so ago and it actually made my bees more agitated...not sure why



Whats your fuel


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## beehive (Jan 3, 2009)

and what is meant by alittle? i would possibly use 1/2 a litter of sugar water how much vinigar would i add?


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## kaisfate (Oct 6, 2008)

Derek said:


> Whats your fuel


ummm, dried grass and pine needles...


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## Hambone (Mar 17, 2008)

I have read a few times that dried grass makes the bees agitated on the combs.


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## kaisfate (Oct 6, 2008)

Derek said:


> I have read a few times that dried grass makes the bees agitated on the combs.



well crap...I could have sworn I have seen videos of beekeepers using dried grass to get the smokers lit. hmmmm


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## Hambone (Mar 17, 2008)

kaisfate said:


> well crap...


Seen them use that too. 

I use pine needles with a splash of green grass on top as a garnish, and my bees love me. They just come up to the top look at me as to say “Hey Buddy” Then back to their business. Give it a try.


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## Jorn Johanesson (Mar 30, 2005)

beehive said:


> and what is meant by alittle? i would possibly use 1/2 a litter of sugar water how much vinigar would i add?


half a centi litter(a tea spon). I also put vinegear in my water source for the bees.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

Jorn Johanesson said:


> half a centi litter(a tea spon). I also put vinegear in my water source for the bees.


So pickled bee's?

I use wood pellets. They are the same ones my wife uses to line her birdcage so they get used 2x. Bird poop adds a bit of texture also.


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## daknoodle (Dec 8, 2005)

I've inspected with smoke and I've inspected without it. I will never inspect without it again. Just my 2 cents. I use a small chunk of the smoker fuel you can get at the bee supply companies is a bunch of grass in there as well.

Doug


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

If the smoke is too hot, or you smoke them too much (you only need a couple of puffs) it will agitate them. That's a pretty good sign you're making one of those two mistakes.


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## bwellbees (Apr 27, 2009)

When just adding syrup to top hive feeder, should you use smoke?


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## indypartridge (Nov 18, 2004)

bwellbees said:


> When just adding syrup to top hive feeder, should you use smoke?


I don't.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

I am adding some hardware cloth to my design. 

Basically I use 1/2-3/4 in ply with ripped strips 1/4 inch around the bottom side and 1x2 on each end. I think that is a pretty standard top. Then in the middle I have a 2 3/4 in hole I have a other 1/2 4x4 inch piece with a hole also drilled in it on top which keeps my mason jar from sitting to low. 

What I am doing on my next rebuild of the tops (I am constantly improving the design of my equipment) is add a piece of hardware cloth between the the pieces. This way the sugarwater can get in and the bee's cant get out when I pull the bottle to refill them and no smoke needed. I don't use a suit when I do it now but, that is risky and I have gotten stung when pulling a bottle.

I am sure they will be just as annoyed that I open a hole in the top of the hive but, I wont have to scrape any off the top when refiling it or duck when they dive bomb me on cool days.


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## kaisfate (Oct 6, 2008)

EastSideBuzz said:


> I am sure they will be just as annoyed that I open a hole in the top of the hive but, I wont have to scrape any off the top when refiling it or duck when they dive bomb me on cool days.


Maybe I have special bees, but every time I go in there the bees dont even seem to care. Maybe that will change later on, but they have honey and everything and nobody even buzzes me or anything...


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

*Dried grass*

Mostly it just makes the beekeeper drowsy.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

kaisfate said:


> Maybe I have special bees, but every time I go in there the bees dont even seem to care. Maybe that will change later on, but they have honey and everything and nobody even buzzes me or anything...


When it is warmer they are happier. We are a bit cooler up here in Washington and cloudy days means cooler and grumpier girls.


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## Natalie (Jan 14, 2009)

Jorn Johanesson said:


> half a centi litter(a tea spon). I also put vinegear in my water source for the bees.


What is the purpose of the vinegar? I have heard of it being used to prevent mold in the feeders but not to spray them with it.
Just wondering wht it does.
Can you give some more info on that? Thanks.


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## jasongonella (Apr 11, 2009)

kaisfate said:


> well crap...I could have sworn I have seen videos of beekeepers using dried grass to get the smokers lit. hmmmm


For the life of me I can't seem to keep my smoker lit. But it's fairly windy here.


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## Kelbee (Jan 3, 2006)

I stopped using smoke a couple of years ago. I never learned the art of keeping the smoker lit, so eventually just gave it up. Yes, sometimes the bees get agitated and buzz me good when I work the hive, but I have a good bee suit that I always wear so I just ignore them and keep working. I'm in a rural setting and my hives aren't near any houses so I can get away with it.


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## Jorn Johanesson (Mar 30, 2005)

Natalie said:


> What is the purpose of the vinegar? I have heard of it being used to prevent mold in the feeders but not to spray them with it.
> Just wondering wht it does.
> Can you give some more info on that? Thanks.


The vinegar makes the water attractive to the bees so they will concentrate on this instead of jumping on you. But it may not work effective so have a smoker as backup.

Best regards Jorn


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## Bizzybee (Jan 29, 2006)

I'm with you Kelbee. This time of year I can throw on a jacket and work them right up to dark while it's nice and cool with a half dozen bees hassling me at most.

I do drag the smoker around with me earlier in the season before the flow gets started up good. The colonies aren't up to par and some of them are on the grumpy side.Then I smoke a few of them more for their benefit than my own. They don't bother me and I could care less about a sting here and there. But when my jacket looks like a pin cushion when I get done, that just means a lot of dead bees at a time they don't need to be loosing any bees.


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## Bluidshay (Apr 29, 2009)

I just inspected for the first time and I used smoke. My neighbor who came to assist reported that he did not. As an experiment, I did NOT use smoke on the second hive. I didn't find all that much of a difference to be honest. Maybe it's because I have package bees that I just got a week ago and it's still a pretty small population in there. But the smoke made me feel better, . I'm inexperienced and nervous and if some big giant "bear" showed up and started tearing down my house I might get mad too, especially if I happened to be in a bad mood. Plus I squished a few by accident, and that just probably made them madder (I feel terrible about that). I may go smokeless in the future, but for now it feels safer and it means I can relax a bit more and go slower, not rush and make mistakes or kill my girls by accident.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

Bluidshay said:


> Plus I squished a few by accident, and that just probably made them madder (I feel terrible about that). I may go smokeless in the future, but for now it feels safer and it means I can relax a bit more and go slower, not rush and make mistakes or kill my girls by accident.


Wouldn't it be nicer if they would all just get out of the way for a few while you work.? I think they call that a swarm.

Someone told me that smoking yourself masks your scent and that is why they don't notice you.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

beehive said:


> i will be inspection my hive tonight for the fist time since i installed the package sunday. do i need to smoke it or should i get sugar water and spray them as i open the hive to remove the queen cage and add the last frame to the hive?


Yes, you should use smoke and learn how to use it properly.


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## Ardilla (Jul 17, 2006)

jasongonella said:


> For the life of me I can't seem to keep my smoker lit. But it's fairly windy here.


The wind outside shouldn't have anything to do with it. 

Use a tall, perforated soup can insert (see Michael Bush's website for a good explanation), get the fuel smoldering real good before closing it up, give it an occaisional few puffs to keep it going when you aren't using it, practice...


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## doc25 (Mar 9, 2007)

If you want to get your smoker lit really well you have to have a little fire going in it and get some coals. The coals will burn for quite some time. Add the smoking material above the coals. A puff every 10 minutes or so and it will stay lit for quite some time. Add more smoking material as necessary.


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## sierrabees (Jul 7, 2006)

I worked my bees for years with no smoke and bare arms. One trip to the ER was enough to make a bee leaver out of me. The thing about smoke though, is don't try to knock them over with it. I usually give each hive a few puffs as soon as I get to a yard. Then I get dressed and give a few puffs before I open it. A little smoke makes them fill up on honey and get lazy. A lot of smoke gets them mad. If I know I have a hot hive, I will puff a little smoke at fifteen minute intervals four or five times before I open it.


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

as to the question of using a smoker for the first inspection.... you bet'cha. 

how will you ever learn how to light and to keep a smoker lit if you never use a smoker?

kaisfate writes:
I could have sworn I have seen videos of beekeepers using dried grass to get the smokers lit. hmmmm

tecumseh:
it is all about smoke and mirrows kaisfate. that is how videos are done. are you sure it wasn't something else they stuffed in that smoker? did those long hair northern california bee keepers in the movie appear to be blowin' smoke in their own face?

besides all the ha ha... lighting and keeping a smoker lit requires practice. it ain't something that you can get better at by reading a book.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

tecumseh said:


> besides all the ha ha... lighting and keeping a smoker lit requires practice. it ain't something that you can get better at by reading a book.


So I use the wood pellets that my wife uses to line the bottom of her bird cage. My son is really good at getting it lit and keeping it lit. So I let him do it. Kids are good with fire. Find a kid to help :applause:


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