In this part of the world we tend to use either National or Commercial hives. Either way, the same principles apply – the only difference being the length of the lugs – that’s the bit you get hold of.

Basically there are two types of frame: Manley or Hoffman. Both are defined by their side bars.

You will sometimes see straight, narrow side bars which are neither Hoffman nor Manley – avoid them because you will need to consider how to space them and it’s not worth it in my opinion. Trust me – I’ve been there.

Here’s a picture of some parts – click it for a better view

Hoffman Frames

Hoffman frames are self-spacing. The side bars are tapered from top to bottom – measuring 1 and 3/8″ at the top which is the spacing required for frames in the brood box.

The edges of each side bar have one flat face and one wedge shaped face. When they have been properly made, the wedges meet the flats of the neighbouring frames and this prevents the bees from gluing them too firmly together with propolis.

The top bar can be either 7/8″ or 1 and 1/16″ wide but this does not affect the spacing. Traditionally it was the latter, but the broader bar seems to discourage the bees from building burr comb to narrow the gap. This has implications for the modern beekeeper who must now carry out midwinter oxalic acid trickle treatment – then the burr comb can be a hindrance so the less of that stuff the better.

Generally a wooden brood box will hold 11 Hoffman frames and one dummy board or – depending on the interior dimensions of your particular box (they do vary) – it may hold 12 at a push. It’s up to you whether you want them tight or loose but remember, mid season the queen may be on the back frame and may get ‘rolled’ when you drag that tight back frame out.

Poly boxes vary as to how many frames they will hold.

Hoffman frames are also available as shallows but only get these if you are considering running what is known as a ‘One and a half’ system.

Manley Frames

Manley frames are designed especially for supers – for honey in other words.

The side bars measure 1 and 5/8″ across so the spacing is 1/4″ wider than Hoffmans. The reason for this is to encourage the bees to draw the wax out further.

Manley frames also have special broad bottom bars and you always use the broader top bar. Together these form a boxlike frame which reduces the amount of wax the bees have to draw and maximises honey space.

Each frame holds very much more honey as a result and you will have less uncapping to do.

The bees will glue the flat faces of these side bars on adjacent frames together quite firmly but you wouldn’t normally be manipulating these frames as you would in a brood box

Wooden supers hold 10 Manley frames. Poly supers vary – those with very thick walls will hold only 9 frames.

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If the wax is old and very black it is best to strip these frames down and add fresh foundation in the spring – you’ll seldom find AFB in nice clean frames.

Here’s what to do:

First of all, be aware that acetic acid is not a nice chemical and the sort you need is 80%, which is much, much stronger than vinegar. It will burn you if you get it on your hands and have similar effect on your eyes so wear gloves and goggles. If you inhale it, it could strip your lungs as well so don’t inhale.

Also, it will rot concrete or metal if you spill it so don’t.

• Set the brood box filled with the frames you want to fumigate on a solid timber floor with the entrance blocked off with foam.
• Disposable nappies make great fume pads. Take a disposable nappy/fume pad and spread, it absorbent side up, across the top bars. Pour 120ml acetic acid onto the nappy.
• If you have more than one box, just stack them up on top of each other. A nappy and 120ml of acetic acid on top should be enough for a 3-4 box stack.
• Add a shallow eke, upside down, empty section-crate or an empty super then cover with a solid roof or crownboard and make sure there are no leaks for the fumes to escape.
• Leave for one week. Don’t leave for much longer or the acid will get to work on your frame nails.
• Remove the fume pads and allow the boxes to air for a few days before using. If you’re not going to use them for a while just stack them away and they’ll be grand.

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Check occasionally

Once they are fed, dosed and tied down, all that remains is to visit once in a while to make sure they haven’t been tumbled by cattle or the weather. Now that MAQs strips have been made legal here we may never have to open bees midwinter ever again. We really may be able to Leave them Alone.

Stores

All that said, we do need to keep an eye on the stores. Go round and heft the hive and if they are feeling a bit on the light side, place a block of fondant over the feed hole and cover with clingfilm or a plastic box to prevent it from drying out.

Pollen Supplement

In February, despite the weather, the bees will be aware of the lengthening days and will be starting their long spring build up. There should be a little brood in the nest and you might like to consider aiding the build-up by adding a pollen supplement. Neopoll is a fortified, fondant feed containing pollen – it looks like marzipan and costs about a fiver for a 1kg pack so it’s not cheap but if you add it now or perhaps a bit later in February and the spring turns into one like last year’s endless one you could save your stocks from starvation.

Pollen substitute

I should clarify – a pollen supplement is the addition of extra pollen, like Neopoll for instance, whereas a pollen substitute is something proteinacious like soya flour and malt extract. Not to be sneered at! Last spring when I couldn’t get Neopoll for love or money I bought soya flour and malt extract from the local health food shop and mixed up a substitute. It saved several colonies of bees which would have died otherwise. Click here for recipe.

Smoker

If like me you haven’t finished cleaning your gear from last year – get on with it, before you know it you’ll be up to your oxters in queencells. Don’t forget your smoker. Smokers get all choked up with tar and dottle so dismantle it and give it a good going over. Alternatively – get out your blowtorch and set fire to it but mind you don’t torch the bellows. And don’t let it get too hot – I once heard of someone who melted his rivets.

Check the bellows for wear and tear, holes can often be repaired with a bit of common sense and some duct tape. Failing that, new sets of bellows are sometimes available from the suppliers.

If you are going to treat yourself to a new smoker – get one that’s fitted with a grille around the firebox so you can clamp it between your knees without setting fire to your beesuit. Grilles sometimes come with a handy hook so you can hang the smoker off the hive stand. Make sure it’s a model that will allow you to replace the bellows.

Swarm Control

You will of course have worked out your strategy for the coming year especially regarding swarm control and queen rearing. Read, read, read. For swarm control I recommend L.E.Snelgrove’s Swarming – Its Control and Prevention. Click here for more on winter reading.

Queen Rearing

For queen rearing look up Cloake Board Method – good list of day-by-day instructions on Dave Cushman’s website. Every beekeeper should try and selectively rear a few queens – what a luxury is a laying queen mid-season! Plan now, set it up, get a couple of Apideas and the season will be a doddle.

If that’s all old hat to you – read this book: ‘Breeding Techniques and Selection for Breeding of the Honeybee’ by Friedrich Ruttner. Click here for review.

Beesuit

Examine your beesuit with care especially round the seams and over the veil – a stitch in time saves nine and perhaps a quantity of dignity. I know for a fact that there’s a seam I need to attend to soon or I’m going to be leaping about with bees in my bonnet later. When bees find a hole in a beesuit, they’ll all follow each other through in single file then you get that horrible feeling that you are not alone…

Queen Marking

Don’t forget to check you have the correct queen marking pen for this year – Green for 2014. The easiest way to remember is ‘Will You Rear Good Bees’ – White, Yellow, Red, Green and Blue starting with white on years 1 and 6.

Consider your hive tool. Do you like it? Would you like to try a different type?  If you only have one you might need a spare?

Frames

Prepare your order for frames etc. This used to drive me mad but now I have a spreadsheet to help me. I type in what I’ve got then I type in what I want and it tells me exactly what I need in terms of individual frame parts, wax, boxes – the lot.

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Remove the wedge cleanly or it won’t sit properly when you put the wax in. It doesn’t matter too much with wired wax, but if you’re using unwired wax the wedge won’t grip it properly. If necessary shave the area clean with a nice sharp chisel.

Assemble frame as above. Side bars must have grooves facing inwards for the wax. Insert one bottom bar only. Don’t nail it yet.

Slide the wax into the grooves in the side bars and bend the three long wire loops perpendicular to fit the top of the frame.

Replace the wedge thus and fix with 3 pins, each one catching a wire loop. Slant the pins so they won’t pierce the top bar. The correct frame nails to use are 10mm ‘gimp pins’ which are black lacquered so they won’t rust.

Make sure the frame is square then hammer in the remaining pins thus. There should be 9 pins in all – any more and they’re wasted. Three in the wedge, two in each bottom bar and one into the flat side of each side bar where it meets the top bar.

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You know – it is so irritating when you’re stripping down frames and discover that they’ve been put together wrongly. It’s usually one of three mistakes – or all of them, as in this frame.

First of all, don’t use panel pins – they’re too thick, they’ll split the wood and they’ll rust. Instead use proper 10mm lacquered frame nails or gimp pins available from beekeeping suppliers.

Don’t put a nail sideways through both bottom bars. Why? Because when you come to take it apart you won’t be able to remove that pin unless you chisel away at the wood so you can get hold of it with pincers. And unless you do remove that pin – it will obstruct the channel that your new sheet of wax is destined to slide into. Instead nail downwards into the endgrain of the side bar and towards the top bar. The bottom bars don’t support any weight so they won’t come adrift and you can tap them out with a hammer when you need to.

Thirdly, don’t nail straight through the wedge into the top bar – your pin will almost certainly come out the other side and every time you try to clean that top bar your hive tool will come up against the points.