Moving Bees Off A Rooftop Intact
Yesterday, Joe from Crystal Bee Supply came over to help Brian and I move a hive off my rooftop apiary to a new bee yard. Joe and his family have been keeping bees for 30 years and currently have over 200 hives in Essex County, MA. They also sell bees, honey and bee supplies to local beekeepers. His family has helped me out in a bee equipment emergency on more than one occasion. If you are a local beekeeper I encourage you to visit their store in Peabody. If you are new to beekeeping it is great to see all the equipment in person before buying it. As an added bonus you get the professional mentoring advice they provide to all their customers.
Brian, Joe and I were moving bees from Borage hive, a colony that derived from a swarm caught in May 2012. Borage built out three deeps of comb and stores their first season – quite impressive. This colony resides in my rooftop apiary, which is on a flat roof 8 feet above a deck. The only way to get to the apiary is by going up a ladder from the deck or through a window on the second floor. Borage was not going to fit through a window (not that I would want to do that anyway) which meant this heavy three deep hive (full of stores for the winter and weighing 150-200 lbs) needed to come down the ladder and onto the deck intact.
On Saturday night I taped over the inner cover hole and screened off the bottom of the hive with a moving screen. If you need to move bees this moving screen is well worth the money. I bought one at EAS and my husband Brian made more for all my hives, including the nucs. I have used them countless times since then. The moving screen has three entrances that you can open or close. When installed, it leaves a gap in front of the hive opening (blocked by a screen), which allows adequate ventilation to get to the bees and even space where they could form a small beard inside it, if needed. I usually just tape the moving screen to the hive with duct tape, but for more security you could also screw it onto the hive.
It was cold on Saturday night, so after my bees were all inside the hive in a cluster, I closed them up. In the morning, the bees were all locked inside the hive until after they were moved to the new location. This ensured I would not leave any of these girls behind. On Sunday, Brian and Joe strapped the hive together with a ratchet strap and used Joe’s hive moving tool to carry it over to the ladder. That’s when it got interesting. With Brian on the roof and Joe on the ladder, Brian lowered the hive down to Joe who first balanced it on his head (I wish I had a picture of that) before grabbing it to move it down to the deck.
Lowering the hive down the ladder.
Surprisingly it went much smoother than any of us thought.
Moving Borage hive off the rooftop and down a ladder intact.
I got the easy job of taking pictures – lucky me!
The hive is safely lowered onto the deck.
After it was on the deck, it was easy to move with two strong guys and the hive moving tool. This tool locked into the hand holds of the hive to lift it up. It made moving this hive relatively easy with two people.
Moving the hive with the hive moving tool.
Borage was then strapped into Joe’s truck for a speedy trip to the orchard. One sharp turn later and the top-heavy hive tipped over slightly. Traveling behind Joe and seeing this happen in slow motion was nerve-racking but it was quickly fixed and we were on our way.
We had to pull over when the hive tipped over in the truck.
Once we arrived at the new bee yard, we found the girls a nice east facing spot with plenty of sun and noon time shade.
Joe and Brian moving the hive to it’s new home.
These bees now have access to fruit trees, golden rod, maples and even a large farm 1/2 mile down the road.
Joe and Brian placing the hive onto the hive stand in it’s new home.
I think they will be happy here in their new home. In the spring, I may even bring them a friend to join in the pollinating fun.
Borage in its new home. The three moving screen entrances are all open in this picture.
Other Posts You May Enjoy:
- Bee Swarm Call 3– “There’s A Bee Swarm In My Bushes”
- Picking Up The Package Bees
- Mass Bee Field Day 2012
- Treatment Free Beekeeping Conference
- Make A Candy Board For Winter Feeding
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November 7, 2012 at 9:04 pm
Hey Anita, I have a crazy question for you… Do you know if Raid Roach Foggers will harm wax foundations? We fogged our garage early this morning before going on a field trip and on the way home realized that some of my son’s bee equipment is in there. I think the rest can just be scrubbed. Of course I don’t want to hurt the bees or contaminate our honey but I also hate to see these foundations not to be used. Any ideas?
Bees on the roof is pretty cool, by the way.
November 8, 2012 at 7:40 am
I would not use the wax foundations. It is too risky. I don’t know exactly which fogger you used but I believe they all contain some sort of pyrethroid which is highly toxic to bees. Sometimes the pyrethroids are also mixed with an oil based substance to make the chemical more effective at killing. This means it will not dissolve in water. Some of them will dissolve in mineral oil and some of them do breakdown in full sunlight over time. Which fogger did you use? If you can figure out the exact active ingredient you can also figure out how to get rid of it on your wooden ware and what the half life is and how long it stays in the environment. You could also try sanding everything down and repainting it. Hopefully that would take care of it. I think you should toss the wax foundations though. Wax naturally absorbs toxins and holds them inside. This is the foundation the bees will be using to raise brood. Baby bees will be nestled against this toxic wax while they are developing which could lead to a myriad of problems and weak hives. I don’t think you want to use it for honey storage either and risk ingesting it. Bee populations are struggling right now from many different factors. It is better to give them a clean house and a fighting chance than weaken them with toxins from the get go. Sorry! I wish I could give you better news.
November 8, 2012 at 7:44 am
Of course if the foundations were enclosed in something that prevented the chemical from getting to them they may be okay.
November 8, 2012 at 4:43 pm
Thanks, Anita. We had pretty much decided to throw away the foundations. Thanks for the info on getting it off of the wood surfaces. I’m just kicking myself for not being more aware.
November 8, 2012 at 4:44 pm
Good luck!
November 12, 2012 at 6:54 pm
Another way to hold those moving screens on is by wrapping a strap around the hive body to hold it on. I hate putting tape on painted hive bodies. Do you have problems with it pulling paint off? I quit using screws as well. Just trying to keep that wood good for as long as possible.
The next time I am moving hives I am going to tell Holly that I am going to be the picture taker….. She can be the hive mover…
Hope that three deeper continues to thrive. Keep us posted.
November 12, 2012 at 9:30 pm
I have not had any problems with it pulling the paint off although it does leave a sticky residue behind sometimes. Since that residue makes a good ant catcher I figure it’s worth it.
I’m glad Joe came over to help move that hive off the roof, there is no way I could move it down the ladder with just Brian. I am too much of a wimp. Poor Holly. She must be one tough cookie!
November 17, 2012 at 10:47 am
You can eliminate the hive tipping over in a truck bed by putting a pallet in the bed and ratchet strapping it to that…
November 25, 2012 at 10:29 am
Thanks for the tip Tyson! The hive was really top heavy so even though we strapped it to the truck, obviously it was not good enough. The bees were fine in the end though.
November 26, 2012 at 10:56 pm
I think I missed the story on why this hive had to move.
One thing I really appreciated when I worked in professional kitchens with all guys, they sure are handy when it comes to lifting stuff.
Glad things went well with the move.
January 1, 2013 at 2:21 pm
great site, graphically stunning and info rich.
a question for you (or others) and your deck/roof hive experience…
i have a 12 x 12 second story deck with one open side and am considering putting a hive on a modified rail top which faces south. do you think since the bees are 12 feet high that my neighbors yard (and playing kids) just beyond that railing are out of harms way ?
i also use deck for gardening. will that activity disturb the bees (watering, pumps, etc)?
thanks for your insight
January 1, 2013 at 3:44 pm
Thanks Gerard! If the bees flight path is over the heads of passerbys and you have only one hive, it should be okay as long as the spot near the hives on the ground is not very busy and full of kids. That being said, the bees will fly down to the ground below. I find bees on my deck (which is about 10 feet below my flat roof and adjacent to it) all the time. Sometimes when the bees are very active you cannot walk back there without bees whizzing by your head. My kids still play there. They know to look out for the bees and we all coexist just fine. I am not sure I would chance it with the neighbors kids though. How far is your roof from the property line? We have neighbors close by but my hives are at least 15 feet in from the property line and my neighbors say they never see the bees. Gardening should not be a problem as long as you do not walk in front of the hive. The bees need clear access to get in and out of the hive without anyone getting in their way. Some days they may be cranky and you may have to alter your gardening schedule if it is very close by them. Most of the time it should be fine if you have a gentle hive. On a hot day the bees will enjoy your garden plants. Mine love the plants I have on the deck below and are often spotted drinking water from the pots. If you have anymore questions about rooftop beekeeping feel free to email me at beverlybees@gmail.com.