Single Brood Chamber 

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I do not know how anyone can give any video u do a thumb down, your videos are wonderful and they teach us a lot it is like going to bee school and I hope u will always do them Thanks Paul and have a wonderful day

Of all the channels I've followed you are one of the best teachers ever. I never get to the end confused...only wanting to know more. Thank you. 💜

I'm so in love with my bees! They're wild so swarmed only to return again with new queen, this time finding the Langstroth box instead of the siding of my house! Couldn't be more in love than watching them in all of the natural ways they deliver life to the world! Not planning on taking their honey as they are wild and will need to weather through lean times but such a privilege to be chosen in their lives. Awww!! Makes my heart soar!!

New Beekeeper. I got my Nuc last year. Pored over every video from you guys and stayed with a single brood chamber. Here in the very wet lower mainland of BC, what kills bees is moisture (and varroa too, of course). We had a very cold (by our standards) winter but it was also extremely wet. I prepped my bees with a quilt box, integrated with a feeder to help them over the winter. It’s now early March, nighttime temps are zero C and sometimes sub zero. I’ve opened the hive and without taking out frames (cos the warmest is still only 10 degrees) I can see that I’ve got a full 10-frames of bees looking up at me! The single survived!

This is the best way for new keepers to start. Thank you for sharing.

Thanks to all who answered my question! Really appreciate it!

This guy packs a lot of info in one video. Awesome! Thank you

A great video with excellent explanation of the process. Years ago I "kept" bees as a hobby. It was a learning experience and a lot of fun.

Another great video Paul. I knew this one was forthcoming and was looking forward to it. I converted to the single super brood chamber a couple years ago. As you indicated, it would be best to try a couple hives at first. Once again, thanks to you and everyone at the UoG for sharing your great work and knowledge.

I successfully wintered a single brood box in Northwestern Wisconsin this year. I don’t think our climate here is too far off from yours. I plan on splitting two of my doubles this year. Thx for all your excellent videos!

We are just putting our program together in Western WI and will be going single brood chambers. Thanks for the great video!

Great to have the single brood box explained so well with the tips to help get it to work for me will give it a go thanks.

Great explanation! I live in a warm climate and everyone I know uses single brood boxes with two or more supers and it works great. It's really interesting to see how other countries set up their bee boxes. Thanks for this informative vid.

I love your method of explanation and visual support.

I tried a single brood chamber strategy last year with my 5 hives and couldn't have been happier, seeing 9 or so frames of brood in the bottom deep was exciting and easy to manage as you described. The winter of 2018 I had 5 single brood chamber hives all make it through this winter into 2019, treated with oxalic acid dribble in the fall which was very effective after I fed them up to weight and they went broodless.

Thank you for the awesome way of explaining the differences between the single and double. I’ve been struggling with deciding what way to go. I wanted to stick with single, but was concerned about preventing swarming. Although I’m sure a double will swarm just as easily if they want to. Thank you again!!!

Excellent video! Informative and very professional. Thank you.

Finally someone that I can relate too. Used single brood boxes for all my hives and by only using half boxes for storing honey never had to feed any artificial food. Okay had too leave a good bit of honey on to carry them over the lean times but when things started to happen they were well prepared. Thanks and have subscribed.

Still a very good tutorial video on single brood box management. Thanks Paul

I overwintered my hives single in eastern Ontario with great success. This is an amazing practice!

Very simple analysis of brood management.

Thanks for this long anticipated video!

Thanks! Excellent, clear explanations!

Good video. Very simplified explenations to what he is doing.

In the balkans Dadant hives are still used so a lot of beekeepers are using this method. Thank you.

I am in Southeast Texas and was shocked recently to find 8 out of 10 frames in my super already full of capped honey. The bees worked faster than me. I found myself running here and there to get extra supplies for more suppers and another hive I captured from a swarm. I also like the concept of single brood, mainly because it takes less time inspecting...

Excellent Mr Paul!!!... I am a beekeeper from Greece and I work with Langstroth and Dadant hives... Both of them single not double... Of course I m inspecting them every 4 days for 2 months for queen cells and I destroy them to prevent swarming but when swarming period pass away I have powerful bee colonies and they fill the supers with honey in 3 days!!!! The benefits of the singles!!!!!

Ah, the video we talked about last year. Thanks Paul.

Great video!! I run my honey farm on single brood too!! Much easier to inspect and manage. No difference in honey crop compared to brood and a half or double brood. Found with double brood they store to much honey in the top brood! Great work 👍🏻👍🏻

This is my 3rd year with bees. I quickly learned how hard double hives are to manage, heavy. I only have 2 hives but I've decided to do single chamber on the quiet because where I am they push double chamber. To my relief I found out a gentleman that helped me get started is also doing his hives single chamber this year on the quiet too. We only know because my husband saw his hives. He has much more experience than I do and it encourages me to know he and I came to the same conclusion. I have a lot to learn and your videos are much appreciated and needed. Thank you.

Great topic, I watch and subscribe to your channel. Your approach to bee keeping is awesome because Jamaica and Canada have similar approach to beekeeping. I am trained beekeeper with over twenty years of experience, I am living in the u s originally from Jamaica where I had my small apiary. I used single brood that worked well for me, My first from four colony of bee 3 medium 1 shallow super harvested half drum of honey. So I have experience working with single brood. When I get a place to setup an apiary I will. Good job guys.

Great video on a management method that is a hard to find on the internet...greatly appreciated. I already had plans to modify to single brood boxes. I'm in SE Michigan, so nearly the same weather as Ontario. I'm planning on moving all the brood frames, pollen, and queen to the bottom box with the excluder about 3 weeks into May. My thought on the timing is to permit the build-up for the spring without the excluder. The reverse thought as well...so in the fall not to have an excluder on so that the queen can move around and not get froze out (besides I can imaging metal inside a hive in the winter would get really cold like the outside of a car...or much like a heat sink). My main motivation for the single brood chamber is to reduce time spent inspecting, and just be move efficient. Lifting a box to inspect from the bottom just makes more sense instead of pulling out every frame. So what do you think of the the timing for consolidating to single brood chambers & placing excluders at approximately 3 weeks into May (SE Michigan)?

My apiary coach recommended to me to watch. So I am watching. DR

Very well explained!!

Great video. Thank you. Years ago when I started keeping bees I went for the double brood chamber. Within a year I got fed up with needing help lifting that top chamber. Now I run all horizontal Langstroth hives and mix in some top-bars. Yes, I need help initially setting out the hives but after that, no more heavy lifting.

Thank you. Will try it here in Denver CO. ✌

Thanks for the video!

Liked-Subscribed-Notified.. You are braver than I am- I never tend bees without a veil and jacket on.

Thanks for the info. This is exactly what I am wanting to try. I am new to bee keeping. Still trying to catch my first swarm.

Never would have thought you were in Ontario too! You got me obsessed with bees lmfao.

Thanks for posting

Great video

I think this next season i'm going to move half of my colonies over to singles to try out. Great info Paul.

I am going to try this.

I fully agree. I have swapped to Zadant size instead of Zander or Dadant.

I love this dude, where has he been?

great video!! thanks!!!!

thanks so much

Do you leave a super of honey for them over the winter....? Uncertain about the single brood chamber...not enough space in there for winter honey, right? Or wrong? Appreciate your advice?

I use single hive management. I am from Saskatchewan north of Saskatoon. Only have 2 -10 frame hives I got last June and 2 late season 6 frame nucs from that. I indoor wintered in a tiny shed kept at + 4 from october 31, 2018 Took the hives out of the shed last Tuesday, March 19, 2019. I gave them a couple days for cleansing flights. Friday March 22, 2019 . I did a quick partial inspection to check for stores and for any sign of brood also scraped the bottom boards. A bit early and a bit cool at only +10 C high but there is discussion as to whether bees brood in the winter shed. I wanted to either confirm or dispel the idea. I tipped them, counted frames of bees from below. Scraped the bottom boards. Re placed the brood chamber on to the bottom board then started from the top side and quickly went through from 1 side counting stores until i reached brood. In each hive I found larva ready to be capped and capped brood on the first frame of brood I came across confirming brooding happens in the shed. I didn't go in any farther. I quickly reassembled the hive. Threw a pound pollen patty on top of the 10 frames and 1/2lb on the Nucs and closed them up. Conclusion: 100% survival and 4 laying queens. Honey bees do brood in the winter shed since late stage larva and capped brood can't take place in 3 1/2 days. The largest 10 frame had 7 full frames of bees and still had 3 1/2 frames of honey on the one side, as stated I didn't go right through the hive. I still had pollen stores in the frames but the 2 lbs of patties I had put in that hive immediately before I put them in the shed was entirely gone. As it's still early and weather is volatile, Besides the pollen patties I also put about 2 gallons of 2-1 open feed sugar water and about a pound of dry pollen to give them something to do but they have lots of stores in the hive if weather prevents that.

Love it good to knw stuff r8ght there

Here in Aus nearly everyone use Langstroth frames. The commercial guys tend to use 10 frame boxes as have lifting devices where as us mear mortals use 8 frame. Due to our climate etc nearly everyone uses 1 brood box and 1 super over winter. Leave the equivalent of about 4 frames honey to feed if no winter flora. The 8 frame brood boxes seem to be big enough but have moved a couple frames brood or honey above the QX if think need more room. Swarming still happens if she wants to. Sometimes we find her Majesty at home above the QX. Not quite sure how this happens but just reverse the boxes and put her home on the bottom. It maybe a climate thing but inner covers not really popular: especially when use SHB traps on top of the frames. Burr comb ot the top of the frames and in the top cover is great if forget to extract in time . Ventilated bottom boards not as common as I think they could be but our top covers are ventilated to get a bit of air flow. Amazes me when see hives set up unprotected in scorching temps of the middle of summer - even though they keep the hive at similar temps and have massive veils on the outside of the box

That’s exactly what I do here in NC. One deep and then supers. But I do not operate with an excluder. Never! Good video Mr. UofG.

In Texas i use double brood boxes because they are active alot of the winter and need alot of stores because of it. I've lost two hives that were doubles due to lack of food already in March. They don't really cluster here so stores is important. At least in my view. In spring you have to rotate the boxes so they move up into the now empty frames but once you're used to having two brood boxes it gets easier to deal with inspections.

Thanks Paul for sharing the single vs double perspective. I think the reasoning for so many starting with doubles is based on the literature available on the internet that is pro double boxes. I watched Devon Rawns video on singles and the reasoning is very clear. Many new Canadian beekeepers read that they need 80-90 lbs of reserves going into winter. The only way they see that happening is to have 2 brood boxes whereby the top box is where the reserves will come from for going into winter. Most hobbyists can afford to feed syrup in the fall to achieve the required reserves for winter. The simpleness of singles makes it worthwhile. This I have learned the hard way. Great series from U of G.

I really enjoy your very educational videos. Quick question: what was that piece of felt that you used as your hive lid just below the telescopic lid? I've never seen that before and was wondering if that is what your using to minimize small hive beetles?

Good video. So do you leave one full honey super on per deep brood chamber in the winter?

Good morning صباح الخير بالعربية Thanks nice work

great video. Im in Texas ...overwintering singles in winter what would the configuration be brood/pollen/nectar/honey and empty frames. --thanks

Every time I watch your videos I get jealous that small hive beetles are not a concern for you with your fabric inner covers. Man, I wish we could do that here in North Carolina. But every top bar would be covered in SHB. One of those "grass is always greener points." Thank you for all you do for all of us! Best, @HoneyOnWales

Thank you for your videos. I am starting with bees this spring and wondering if one brood box will work in Collingwood. We're a bit colder than Guelph.

Are you planning to make more videos? I would like to know more about your whole operation.

This was good, how often do u do inspections of the single brood boxes I do inspections every 7-10 days checking for swarming cells I think I am going to try this on some of my hives this year

Yes I am single brood box all the way. I am not sure if you mentioned it but I like that I need less formic acid to treat a single box then I do a double box. The queen excluder is an extra expense and very necessary but I think it is well worth it. I have had great luck getting them to work above the excluder by lifting honey frames up from the brood chamber all covered in bees but with no cells or queens to be sure

I will be moving to single brood chambers this year. That as well as wintering them inside a somewhat climate controlled shed during the winter months.

Your videos are awesome, thank you! I'm trying the single brood chamber management technique and loved it this summer ... so easy to do inspections ... lots of honey harvested. My problem came when I removed the supers this fall and left the hives with the single brood chamber only. A couple of my largest hives (4-5 honey supers) were so full, the bees couldn't all fit into the box and heavily bearded. Both of these hives then swarmed in mid-September, which I have never experienced before. I guess I could have pulled nucs, but I'd be concerned about rearing a queen that late and getting the nuc built up enough to make it through the winter (I'm in Utah). What would you recommend I try in the future?

Love all your videos. If you have 2 brood boxes can you take the brood frames from the top box and put them in the bottom box and move h the honey frames to the top and puy in a queen excluder?

With the bees moving honey up and down in that first honey super and brood chamber, how do you know when it is time to add a second, and later a third honey super? If they are moving it a lot, do they still cap the honey when it is ripe?

IM HAVING VERY HARD TIME BELIEVING QUEENS CANT MORE THAN ONE DEEP, Because I just made a video on my phone of 7 solid brood frames in the 3rd Deep ,(No Excluder,All Deep boxes,3 tall) Now IF there wasn't any Honey and Pollen taking up some room,MAYBE, BUT I had hives with 15 frames of Brood this year,so to me that blows theory Queens c ant lay more than one deep,outta the water, BECAUSE MORE BEES U HAVE ,THE MORE QUEENS CAN MAKE. HOWEVER,I am Running some singles this year,but I'm sure I'll have to steal brood away to keep em from swarming.Maybe I just have Exceptional Queens,but nine frames every frame is common, and sometimes more than 10 between two deeps.I love your videos, your a VERY good teacher, and I have watched a few very knowledgeable experience beekeepers claim this also, I just keep witnessing more than a single worth of brood, But whatever works, and I've learned some neat stuff from you ,who knows maybe I'll end up running all singles someday..

Great video series Paul. I'm a beginning bee keeper and want start with your single brew chamber system. My question is, at the end of the summer flow and you have added multiple supers to the colony. The bee population has grown to fill the supers, what happens with all the bees when you reduce down to the single box. Is the single brew box enough space and the bees adjust.

Mr.Kelly, i read the frequently asked questions about using #8 inner cover, i didn't see a question asking why you don't use the canvas under migratory tops? my opinion and .50 won't buy a cup of tea but i would be interested in your reasoning.

Great video Paul, thank you, i am a new beekeeper in northern BC, i built 3 hives but only have one with bees, started with a bee package in mid April, and they are doing very good with one deep for brood, excluder and so far 3 medium supers on it, I am a bit confused about the wintering process, do you remove the excluder and leave a full medium of cap honey or do you remove the excluder and only add bee candy on top of the frames and add a inner cover and a top cover. My hives are configured as followed, base stand, screen bottom boards, slatted boards, inner cover with 1 inch access and a quilt boards. Thank you

Are there northern climates in Canada that are too cold in winter for single hive? I live in interior BC where we get snow by end of October until usually end of March with usually multiple feet of snow and temperatures down to -40c. Thank you for your time. I am learning so much watching your videos and look forward to having bees in the spring 🙂

Excellent videos! Thank you so much. Can you tell us more about those bottom boards? Nothing on FAQ page.

In Chile, where i come from, almost everybody uses single brood chambers, and usually with no excluder. Only once have i found a queen laying on the super, and i realized it was because i put a frame with polen in the super ( i was just starting out with beekeing). I have been thinking of making my own 12 or 14 frame brood chamber, (with normal honey super on top) because i have found queens laying on the external frames on the chamber, where there usually is honey. Maybe a design with removable inner walls to extend the chamber when needed.

Hello, beautifully rendered videos - keep it up, a Scottish beekeeper here: I've noticed the US and Canadian beekeeping videos on RU-vid are always discussing this issue of rearing brood in a single brood box rather than double. I don't understand why this is such a big topic of interest. Can the community give me a bit of background to this? In Scotland a double brood is generally the innovative practice as Queen cells in this configuration are normally built at the bottom of frames in the top brood box. So in swarm season you can just tilt the top box up to check for swarm cells and generally if time is of essence you have quickly done an inspection. Also heat from the brood in the bottom box helps to build comb in top box / keep upper brood warm. There is an issue in a flow of bees piling honey in the top brood box and there is no room for her majesty to lay but otherwise seems a warmer set up.

How many supers should the hive go into winter with and should they be shallows or mediums?

You are one great man Paul. May I ask you something? Does the formula of the sugar change when the bees store it like nectar?

I had 2 hives which I joined together due to 2 queen loses. I joined them for winter. They made it through with no queen . They moved up to the top box. Both boxes have lots of honey. I gave them a queen and she is laying. Since there is lots of stored honey for them I'm questioning how many empty frames should I have for the queen to use for brood. I removed the bottom hive so now they are in one box.

Awesome info. I’m a newbee and am considering staying with one deep. Wasn’t sure if you have to leave the honey super on over winter to make sure they have enough food stores.

Hello. Please tell me how often do you change the frame of the lower case? How do you do it?

Sorry to ask a silly question, but when you saw there are 8 or 9 frames with bees, do you mean the frames are all built out and have brood on them? I'd like to try this next year. Thank you for the terrific videos.

Double brood really struggled to get going this year in UK. Single brood were ready to swarm by mid March. Hit the ground running. Double brood struggle to heat all those frames over winter.

Hello. I am new to beekeeping & am a new subscriber to your channel. So what do you do when the bees run out of space for the brood in the bottom box? Do you add a 2nd deep for brood, or do you split the hive? If you split the hive, how many frames of brood & honey do you put in the new hive box that you split? And should you let the new hive makes its own queen? Or add a queen? Thanks.

Hello, Great video as always. I'm already starting to think about winter preparations and so I'm wondering what is a good weight for a single brood chamber hive wintering outside. I also would like to know the answer to the same question but in regards to a double nuc colony

What is the purpose of having the queen excluder when the honey super isn't on top? Also I am just installing my package into a single brood chamber for their first year. What do I do with the honey in the top once september/october rolls around? I thought I was supposed to leave that for the bees but if I am supposed to take the honey super off for the winter what do I do with it. Should I just take it and feed sugar syrup the whole winter? Thanks for being so informative. You earned a new subscriber!

I have an 8 frame hive that I’ve single brood chambered every year (including overwinter), and I’ve never had a problem. I live in the North West of Toronto.

Why is the excluder required with the single? I’ve seen several other channels that don’t use excluders and they seem to do alright.

Thanks for the video. Myself I use single brood chambers in Lithuania where we get winters of -15 or -20 degrees celcius. However I use hives that have walls 3cm thick in wood. How thick are your hives' walls and is do the bees overwinter well in them. Do you put any insulation, if yes, what is used?

One more comment...I noticed your hive boxes all have holes in the center near the top...this spring I'm drilling 3/4" holes in all of my boxes, and then using #8 tapered cork to close up (fit perfect, and not hard to remove), or just leave out to keep open...depends on the temperature...I really think this is a great way for the hive to fly in/out to arrive where they want to go inside faster, as well as for ventilation.

Hello on the single vs double brood how about running 8 frames can that work will also . The only thing I can think of would be having to check it more often . Your thought on that ??. I am running a deep an a medium now . Thanks

Great video! Do you ever leave a full super on for the hives going into winter? I live in USA and like the single deep method but was curious if you have and experience in leaving a super on when going into the winter. I would rather have them have too much food than not enough. What are your thoughts?

Can you leave a super of honey on for winter instead of feeding?

Do you leave the first super on for the winter so the bees have something, if they are not storing much in the brood chamber? And do you leave the excluder on all winter? If not what's to keep the queen from moving up so that she starts laying in the super? If it's really cold can they break cluster and go up and get it? I've had long cold spells where I'm at and it looks like they starved because they didn't move. Lots of stores left but empty around the dead cluster.

Hi, what material do you use as you inner cover? And is it better than the wood? Thanks for a great video

What do the bees eat in the winter time to survive? I live in northern mn,

hello ....thank you very much for the vieo, Just a question .....the little space for queen and the eggs laying is not a stimulus for swarming?.grreeting forma Chile!

This is perfect, thank you! My question is (and I didn't see this in the FAQs) - how do I convert a double deep to single deep brood chamber? I'm new this year so it might be a dumb question but I know I can use a queen excluder to isolate her to one chamber but then what? Once the brood hatches out I assume the bees will still keep using the comb to store honey and I do not want that! I could leave it on and then just remove it in the spring, I suppose, but I'd rather deal with it right away.

Excellent video. I want to start single brood management. This is my first year and I don't have drawn comb only what bees have drawn so far. I am feeding to help with comb building. I know if I super a hive for honey production I need to take the feed off. How do I get started without drawn comb and not feeding?