Fixing Cross Combing on a Top-Bar hive

So for all the new Top-Bar Hive beekeepers out there... here is some info on fixing serious cross combing.....

First, it's best to stop the progression by either placing a bar of drawn comb immediately behind the cross combing that's straight and make the bees continue straight after that, only to let the existing fresh cross-combing "age" a bit so the comb is not so white and delicate....

Then use the techniques in the video to slowly free up the cross comb and reattach it straight to bars, preferably with rescue bars (video later today on that).

In the meantime, no worries, best to not dig at it until you feel confident.

Alternatively, if the comb is curved only on one side of the nest, consider flipping the entire colony at once 180degrees if possible (usually feasible on about 4-5 bars), or if only a couple of combs are curving at the edges simply move them to the front (toward the entrance) and make sure the straight combs are towards the back (away from entrance)


And as usual, contact us at www.Bee-Mindful.com with your questions :-)

Also, here are our free plans to make your own double insulated Top-Bar Hives for about $35 per colony in new materials ($70/ per double top-bar hive) in about 2hrs: www.Bee-Mindful.com/plans