Strips are cut from the boards.

The strips are then cut down to size.

Ends of baskets ready to go.

Sides of basket.

The baskets are assembled. Each one shows a little history of the pallet it came from.

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The base is placed on a hot plate until it gets hot enough to melt the wax.

The melted wax runs out of the bottom. A small metal bowl will catch the extra run off.

A completed taper.

Getting the ladders set up. The tree had to be trimmed back a little to allow room for the ladders. Straps were added to reduce ladder bounce to make Anne happier.

Bees coming and going at the entrance. The bees had sealed up the cracks using propolis. Some unhealthy signs on dysentery can be seen on the front. This could be from last winter.

The first comb after the end cap had been removed. A significant number of bees were vacuumed off the comb before taking the photo.

Bees pour out of the hive after the first comb is removed. Health looking brood was found on this comb.

Bees had completely sealed up the vents. New ones were put in place after the removal.

As the first cavity is emptied, Anne bravely reaches into the second cavity to scoop out the remaining honey comb.

All the brood comb was saved and put into frames. The bees remove the rubber bands once the comb is attached to the frames.

Filling the cavity with insulation.

A cleaned out cavity. Honey is wiped down with wet rags. It was then packed with insulation and the trim replaced.

The bees are then safely transported to their new hive. Because fall is coming, will we feed them sugar and honey to build up stores for winter.

It took about 90 minutes of slowly prying out hand made square nails before the top of the hive was exposed. Most of the original nails were able to be reused when replacing the boards.

Due to a problem with the camera no photos of the first hive being removed. After removing all the bees and comb the walls were cleaned and insulation put into place. The second hive on the left is almost completely exposed.

The second hive ready for removal. The bees had done an excellent job of using propolis to seal up any drafty cracks in the walls.

A wonderful looking pollen frame,  just before being cut out and placed into a frame.

As we were removing the third hive a camera man from CBS Albany stopped by. Sadly they didn’t air anything about the SABA swarm line but it is still good press for honey bees. http://www.cbs6albany.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_2236.shtml

Half of the bees were vac’ed up and the comb is ready to be removed. A white sheet stopped the bees from falling in the pebbles.

Brand new comb.

The bees were able to access a uninsulated cavity in the wall. The first floor mortar and bricks had worn away where the vinyl siding started.  Due to a gap between the wood joists and brick the bees were able to expand into 4 bays.

Below is a look at the first two bays. The yellow and white on the brick is expanding foam and caulking.

The hive entrance before the removal stated. The entrance was busy suggesting a large hive inside. The various attempts at sealing up the hive can be seen.

Dead bees were found behind the vinyl siding. There was a “dead nest smell” as the siding was removed.  There was propolis running along the wooden board.

After removing the 2 by 8 the first two sections of the hive were exposed. Below is a piece of comb waiting to be lowered to the ground.

Here pieces of comb are being rubber banded into the frame, so they can be placed into their new hive.

The queen was found after the last piece of comb was removed. She was marked with a 3 dot pattern.

The hive had expanded into 4 bays. No amount of spraying pesticides in the entrance was going to be able to kill 100% of this hive.

Anne finishes stuffing insulation into the last cavity.

The hive was filled with insulation, the entrance gaps were filled with steel wool, and then caulked over.  The last piece of siding is about to go back on.

Uneven or ‘Pepper-pot’ brood pattern

This is looking down from top to bottom. There is dark scale onto the bottom.

This was a cut out in a wonderful old house in South Portland, ME. We believed the bees we getting into a cavity on the roof line. It was also possible the bees were in a crawl space off a bedroom. Sometimes it is hard to be 100% sure until you start cutting.

Ladder jacks were setup under the hive entrance.

I look small on the ground

A hole was cut in a crawl space to see if bee were coming into the house. Blown insulation prevented us from reaching the wall without the hole.

No bees here. However a large amount of buzzing could be heard on the other side of the wall.

The bees are getting in right above the lead flashing.

After removing the trim boards and a 2×6 we finally reach comb. There are no bees but a large amount of waste under the comb. A good example of why you should remove dead hives.

Richard sets to work removing the shingles.

The shingles and a board are removed to expose the main hive area. There is a lot of newish looking comb but not a lot of bees.

After removing more boards, some comb with honey is found.

Some black old comb. This hive has been around for a while. Still no bees.

During the comb removal we discover some bad news.  We believe this  hive died off American Foulbrood and the activity around the hive was other bees robbing it out.  Photos of the comb here.  We go ahead and remove all the remaining comb and debris from the space.

The space is sealed off with screening and sealed up tight.

Good as new. Sadly the hive was sick and was dead when we got there. However if this hive had of been left in place a swarm would have soon moved in and started to spread AFB. Any near by hives will need to be monitored for signs of sickness.

A great looking swarm about 4 feet off the ground.

The branch was cut from behind so I could move it to the super.

Cutting the branch

Shaking off the bees

Replacing the frames

The new home