got my bee vac made

G3farms · May 16, 2009, 04:14:26 PM

Got the bee vac put together, just need to get my daughter to paint it.

What do you think??

Made it out of scrap lumber laying around. Only had to buy the screen wire and found 2 1/2" x 7' hose at a Sears repair center that was closing for $12 and it has four adapters with it.

Now to put it to work.

G3

forgot to add a thanks to robo for the great idea..............Thanks robo!!

1reb · May 16, 2009, 10:23:06 PM

look great
Johnny

asprince · May 16, 2009, 10:52:38 PM

Not only does it look great, it will work great! I know, I have built two and used them many times. The only difference between yours and mine is that I mounted the shop vac head to the top of my box. I would recommend installing some 1/8" x 3/4" foam tape on the edges that mate to the hive body.

Steve

G3farms · May 17, 2009, 12:12:26 AM

thanks guys.

asprince, as for the foam tape, Istacked up a deep and a shallow and put the shop vac to it and with the damper wide open there was still a lot of suction. My shop vac is a 5 hp, it might be a little too much.

G3

asprince · May 17, 2009, 12:39:30 AM

You may be right. My shop vac is only 1.25 hp. You may need a larger bypass opening, don't want to much suction.

Steve

G3farms · May 17, 2009, 01:00:54 AM

thought I could just slide the top open a little bit.

G3

bhoeschcod · May 17, 2009, 01:18:47 AM

Looks great!

G3farms · May 20, 2009, 12:54:26 PM

Going to try it out friday on a cut out, the property owner is setting up scaffold and is even going to remove the siding from the old building for us ahead of time. Hope he doesn't make them too mad or destroy the comb ahead of time.

G3

dirtyanklebeekeeper · May 20, 2009, 04:33:38 PM

Nice and simple. I like it

NasalSponge · May 20, 2009, 08:57:20 PM

Looks great!! I am having mine built as we speak!! THX ROBO!!

Kathyp · May 20, 2009, 09:02:25 PM

i need one. hubby has plans and vac motor, but not much time. i am very handy with all kinds of things, but anything that requires math (measuring) makes me want to throw up. :-) ah well, we can't all be good at everything.............

if measures everything and cuts the pieces, i sure can put it together!

Robo · May 21, 2009, 11:30:05 AM

Looks great! Can't tell by the pictures, but make sure you screen of the bypass port, or you will suck bees through the vacuum motor. If your doing a cut-out, built yourself the cut-out shim, it lets you add the brood to the hive with letting the bees out.

rob...

Grandpa Jim · June 08, 2009, 09:36:09 PM

Great vac, Robo. Very simple, clean and does a great job. Collected a swarm this spring that would have been too high to get without it. I have build 2 now using a new deep or med super. One will be raffled off at our state picnic this summer. Could you explain the 'cut-out shim'. I am not picturing that concept. Thanks Jim

Robo · June 08, 2009, 10:25:40 PM

Quote from: Grandpa Jim on June 08, 2009, 09:36:09 PM
Could you explain the 'cut-out shim'. I am not picturing that concept. Thanks Jim

Assemble the vac with two hive bodies with the shim between the two. Now go ahead and do the cut out and use the vac to suck up the bees. The shim (with screen installed) keeps the bees in the bottom hive body. When you have all the brood mounted in frames, remove the top of the vac and put the brood frames in the top hive body and re-install the top of the vac. Once all re-assembled, pull the screen insert out of the shim which allows the bees contained in the bottom hive body when vacuuming to be reunited with the brood. Make sense?

rob...

Grandpa Jim · June 08, 2009, 11:08:02 PM

Your explaination makes perfect sense. Thank you