pESTS & DISEASES MANAGEMENT
Management of Pests and Diseases within your Hives.
Vaping hives
Vaping is not a replacement for Varroa strips that are an ongoing treatment of the hive during the Spring and Summer up to the honey boxes going on.
Day rate $55 per hour with a minimum charge of $55 base to base plus per hive charge.
Plus $1.20 per km if outside of Hamilton. After hours rate is $75 per hour with a minimum charge of $75 base to base plus per hive charge plus $1.20per km outside of Hamilton.
Hive charges
1 to 10 hives $0.15 per hive
11 plus hives $0.10 per hive
All prices include GST and an invoice can be supplied.
Client Testimonial
“Had a vape done by Dean yesterday just to give my bees a varroa cull pre winter, and look at their verandah this morning!”
— Tami Masters
Vaping Hives
with Oxalic Acid
As Oxalic Acid appears naturally in the environment and in lots of foods, they say it is safe to use with the honey boxes on because it is a short exposure to the vaper but others say they can still taste it in the honey. At BeeHavinn we remove the honey box for about 10 minutes while the vaping takes place.
There are 3 ways to get the vape into the hive:
The first is to lift the lid and shoot it under the lid. This requires the operator to stand and hold the machine in place. This will not work if there is a top feeder on.
The second is to shoot the vaper in from the base, but this only works with a wooden base as the machine gets very hot and can, and will probably distort the plastic.
The third and preferred option is to drill a 6.5mm hole in the top of the box to put the nozzle of the machine in. This can sit just under the lid. If a second box goes on and you are concerned about the hole, a golf tee will block it so to prevent anything from getting in or out and the bees seal the inside with propolis until next time.
BENEFITS OF VAPING A HIVE
The vaping of hives is excellent for giving the strips a head start when the strips go in.
Excellent if the hive gets a sudden loading of Varroa mite.
Vaping when the Varroa mite strips come out helps ensure the mites are low before the honey boxes go on.
If the honey boxes are on and the hive requires vaping we will lift the honey boxes off for around 10 minutes to keep the vape out of the honey.
For best results treating the hives when the bees are in the hive either when it is dark or raining. Day-time treatments will reduce the loading of mites but not as much as a night treatment.
At BeeHavinn, we check for Pests & Diseases as part of our Hive maintenance routine checks.
Some of these pests & diseases include Varroa mite.
Varroa Mite
If you are wanting to get on top of a serious out-break of Varroa mite, you may need to be aware that the vaping of the hive does not get in or under the brood, so in a very severe out-break you will need to treat the hive 2 to 3 times 2 weeks apart as well as using the strips to get the Varroa living under the brood.
Get in touch.
Contact us for a quote to suit your Beekeeping requirements.