Plans for a SBB on a TBH

[watercarving]

What's the best way to put a screened bottom board on a TBH? I'm thinking I'll have a top entrance but would like to be able to check mite fall.

[Brian D. Bray]

Just leave the floor open and tack hardware cloth to the bottom edge of the side boards.  1/4 or 3/8 will let the bees enter and exit that way as well, or you can use #8.

[Michael Bush]

>What's the best way to put a screened bottom board on a TBH? I'm thinking I'll have a top entrance but would like to be able to check mite fall.

My long mediums, I jut make the box out of one by eights with a 3/4" deep and 3/8" wide frame rabbet and tack the screen on the bottom.

[watercarving]

Did you make something to slide up in there so you could check for mite fall? I'm trying to find the most efficient way to do this on a TBH.

[Michael Bush]

>Did you make something to slide up in there so you could check for mite fall? I'm trying to find the most efficient way to do this on a TBH.

I did.  I put a one by two frame on to hold the screen and to provide a space.  Then I put a treated two by two "rail" on both sides to hold it up and make a plastic cardboard insert to slide under.  Some baling twine stapled onto the bottom holds it.

[Robo]

Can't help with the SBB, but I did build a couple TBH with openable bottoms.   I left them open in the summer and closed them off in the winter.  Used a couple sheets of coroplast in grooves that I had cut into to bottom of the hive and installed/removed from the backside of the hive.




These hives where sized so I could hang Langstroth deep frames from the top bars.