Bushkill Bee Vac
Mar 27th, 2008 by Robo
A new approach to a bee vac
I was not happy with the functioning of my current box in a box design bee vac. Don’t get me wrong, the bee vac has become perhaps my most valued tool for doing removals. But it had a few things that frustrated me. Yes it worked great at sucking up the bees and reducing the congestion of bees flying around. It allowed me to collect the majority of the bees and not have to return at a later time to pick up the hive. It also allowed me to bring them home in the car. All important things when you travel long distances to do removals.
The part that seemed less than efficient was getting the bees back out of the screened inner box and into their new Langstroth home. First of all, the screened box wasn’t correctly sized for Langstroth hive bodies, so I was never able to cleanly slide open the bottom trap door and get all the bees into the hive. I tried an empty super on top of the hive, a hive with no frames, and a hive with the center frames removed. Nothing seemed to work well without getting the bees in a uproar again and killing bees. The other thing that made this dumping a frustrating event was that many times I find myself getting home after dark and tired. 
Not wanting to keep the bees in the vac overnight, I often found myself in the dark and rushing.
I got to thinking and came up with a new design. The idea was based upon the following:
- Reduce the stress on the bees by not moving them twice.
- Minimal manipulation when I arrive home after dark.
- Small, light, and compact.
Why not just suck them into their new hive? So I came up with a bottom and top to place on standard Langstroth hive bodies and suck the bees right into their new hive. The design also allows for the use of your standard shop vac if you don’t want or have a dedicated vacuum for the bee vac. I was able to construct the whole thing out of one 8ft 1×8 and less than half a sheet of Luan.
The bottom is simply a 3″ deep box that has a slanted bottom that is recessed in the box. 
It allows for a 2-1/4″ hole in the front to attach the inlet vacuum hose. The slanted bottom will ease the bees to the back of the hive and up to the bottom of the hive body and out of the direct air flow.
The top is also a 3″ deep box but has a screened bottom and a slide out top cover. the slide out cover has two holes. Once for the outlet to the vacuum, and a second with a plexiglass cover for a bypass. By opening and closing the plexiglass cover, the amount of suction at the inlet can be adjusted. The reason the cover was designed to slide out is for ventilation during transportation. Once the vacuuming has been completed, the top slides off exposing a wide open screen top which will provide plenty of ventilation.
Another benefit of this design is that the capacity can easily be adjusted by adding additional hive bodies. If it is a small colony, a single hive body can be used as shown in the picture at the top of the article. If it is a bigger colony, a second hive body can be used as shown at the right.
The bottom box has hooks on both sides that allow the whole setup to be held together with a ratchet strap. This will make moving easy without the worry of pieces shifting and bees escaping. To help keep the strap aligned on the top box, small recesses where cut on the edge to keep the strap positioned correctly.
Steps for Using
Unpack the bee vac components and based upon the size of the colony, decide how many hive bodies/supers you will need. Assemble the unit by placing the hive bodies/supers on the bottom box, place the top box on the hive bodies and use a ratchet strap to secure the setup.
Remove one screw from inlet screen, swing screen out of the way and install suction hose.
Install hose from vacuum into the top return port hole, and verify cover locking nail is in place.
Turn on the vacuum and adjust the bypass cover to get the desired suction on the inlet hose. You want just enough suction to pull the bees off the comb. Too much suction and you can injure/kill bees if they slam too hard into the hive.
Now your set to start sucking up your bees. Go to it!
When you have finished sucking up all the bees, with the vacuum still running (so bees don’t come out). Remove the suction hose from the bottom and swing the screen cover back in place. Secure with a screw. Once cover is in place, you can turn off the vacuum.
Remove the hose from the vacuum and the cover locking nail. Slide the top cover off. The hive now has plenty of ventilation for transporting.
Once you arrive at your destination, you can simply place a cover on top and swing the screen cover open. Once given time to settle in, the hive can be placed on permanent bottom board and fitted with proper covers.
Although I have sized mine for BeeMax polystyrene hives, it could be easily sized to work with standard wooden Langstroth hives. It would work equally as well with medium depth or 8-frame equipment.
If anyone is interested in this bee vac, but does not have the means to build one, Contact Me and perhaps I can help.
Modifications
Integrated Vacuum Motor
So you don’t want to drag around your shop vac or your shop vac has a removable blower. You can simply make an adapter to mount to the top cover. If you do this, make sure you mount it on the back of the cover like I have done so that you can slide off the cover for ventilation without having to remove the ratchet strap.
Cut-Out Shim
The cut-out shim allows for the adding of brood comb, that has been mounted in frames, to the vac hive when doing feral colony removals. It is simply a 1 inch thick shim that as a groove cut in the interior sides that allows for #8 hardware cloth to be slid in place. I have added two metal rods down the middle to prevent sagging of the hardware cloth. After using this shim a few times, I have concluded the rods could be considered optional but do add protection for the shim when not in use. The shim is simply placed between two supers when assembling the vac. I put frames in the bottom super and leave the top super empty. This keeps the bees that are vacuumed up in the lower super. Once you are done with the cut-out, you can remove the top of the vacuum and insert the frames with your brood into the upper empty super. Reinstall the top of the vac and re-cinch the ratchet strap. Then just slide the #8 hardware cloth out of the shim which allows the vacuumed bees to be reunited with the brood.
8-frame version made from a deep hive body
Here is an email and photos I received of an 8-frame version built by Ash Nelson. Awsome job Ash, thanks for sharing.
Thanks again for posting this design. I thoroughly enjoyed this project and it’s simple execution. I did make the bottom piece flat instead of angled. It was just a little easier to do and if I need to change it later I can just cut the new bottom piece so that it just sits inside at an angle.
I decided to make this bee vac out of an unassembled hive body – I bought a commercial grade deep for 8 frame hives, since that’s what I have. You could just as easily do this with a 10 frame deep, but it would just be more cumbersome. The 8 frame is a nice manageable size for a bee vac. With one deep I was able to cut all of the pieces I needed to make the sides of the bee vac, with no waste.
This project was fun and relatively simple. Once it was finished I was hoping to test it out on some styrofoam peanuts, but unfortunately we had already hauled them off. I can’t wait to put it to use!
See more photos of Ash’s bee vac here.
thinking of building a swarm sucker myself. if i used a standard 10 frame deep with a slideout bottom don’t see why you couldn’t just set it on top of a box with frames, slide out the bottom board and let the bees fall or crawl down into their new home. seems like you could leave for the night if you wanted, go back the next day, smoke ‘em a little if you had to, remove the swarm sucker and put on a regular top cover.
you said the above didn’t work particularly well for you. what problem did you encounter?
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Robo Reply:
April 16th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
bryan,
A few points that lead to my dissatisfaction.
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Why don’t you make both the top and bottom slides, on one side cover it with screen so that when you go to hive you can open the screened side spray bees with sugar water then shake them to one side open other side and shake into hive like hiving a package of bees? Just my two cents. I haven’t made one yet just looking for plans and thought this might be a good idea for your construction.
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Robo Reply:
June 10th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
Richard,
What you described is the usual box within a box design.
Using one of that type is what lead me to build this new one. I don’t want to shake and dump the bees anymore than needed. The trip down the hose an into the vacuum is enough trauma for them. I also dislike dumping because of any debris that you suck up ends on top of the bees as well. This way the bees get sucked in once and are in the hive. Once settled, I just pick it off the bottom and place it on a bottom board with no additional stress on the bees and all the debris remains in the bottom.
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Daddy and I had a cutout to do a cpl weeks ago and built a copy of your vac.
It worked great. Sucked up 3 or 4 lbs bees and had very few dead on bottom when through. Will never do another cutout without vac.
Thanks for the idea.
Johnny
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Thanks for posting this excellent design. I built one out of scrap lumber in my shop last week. My beekeeping buddy and I used it for a large cut out 2 days ago. It was amazingly gentle on the bees and made the job at hand easy. I set it up with a deep with 6 frames of pierco foundation. I tied (with string wraps) the brood comb we removed into wooden deep frames as we went along. Wound up with 9 frames of brood. We then spritzed 1:1 sugar water on the bees through the top screen and slid the brood comb box on while sliding the screened top section over and off, then moved the top quickly up, over and down on top again. Unfortunately I did smash a dozen bees with that maneuver but we got the brood back to them. Looking forward to using the vac again. I plan on making another so we each have one at hand in our vehicles for swarm calls. Thanks again for sharing your great design, Best regards Brian
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Thanks for sharing your design. You mentioned that one reason for this design was to prevent debris from being dumped into the hive. Doesn’t the junk still get sucked up between the frames? How many frames did you put in the hive body? How did you add brood to avoid the problems mentioned by Brian J?
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Robo Reply:
October 1st, 2008 at 10:27 am
Doesn’t the junk still get sucked up between the frames?
The volume of the super makes the air velocity drastically decrease once it exits the hose. This causes the majority of the debris (and bees) to drop out of the air flow. If you suck up some really light debris, like fiberglass insulation, it will continue towards the vacuum motor, but will end up on the upper screen and not in between frames.
How many frames did you put in the hive body?
I put 10 frames in the hive body, a combination of empty frames and frames with comb. If you put less than 9 frames in the box, there is a chance they will slide sideways and fall off the frame rests when you move it.
How did you add brood to avoid the problems mentioned by Brian J?
I use polystyrene nucs to carry home the frames that have the cut-out brood. Depending on the amount of bees, I add a box on top with these frames, or replace the empty frames with them once I get the hive situated in the new location.
rob…
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Hi
Thanks for sharing a great design.
I really want to build one.
Just one query – Do you use the vacuum, mainly for the removal of established hives, or also for new swarm removal ?
I mean if a ball of swarm bees, is hanging from an accessible small tree branch, for instance, would you just knock it into a box. In the conventional way. And not use the vacuum ?
Regards John
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Robo Reply:
November 13th, 2008 at 8:28 am
John,
I now use it for both cut-outs and hanging swarms. I cover a large area, so a good portion of the time, I need to do the removal in just one visit. Also with gas prices, I prefer to use my car instead of a truck, so with the bee vac, I can go and suck the bees up, load the in the car and not worry about bees being loose in the car. Here is a hanging swarm that was ~25ft up. I left the vac on the ground and used a ladder and long hose to suck them up.
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John M Reply:
November 13th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Yes, it certainly must be so much more convenient, to only have to make one trip.
With cutouts, I suppose it inevitably involves some demolition work, on buildings. To remove all the comb. I suppose you would have to charge a reasonable fee. Are there some beehives you wouldn’t try to remove ?
John
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Robo Reply:
December 22nd, 2008 at 2:30 pm
John,
I try not to remove bees in trees if at all possible. I try to convince the owner to let them be. Of course there are situations where the tree is in a location that it could/would be an issue with people near by. I also have a church with a slate roof that has a nest above the cathedral. I would not want to mess with slate roofing or the cathedral ceiling. The way the church is situated on a steep hill and the cemetery right next to it, scaffolding or a lift truck would also be difficult. So we have decided to let them be as well. They have been there 4 years now without issue. So although there are some rare situations, for the most part, there aren’t too many cut-outs I haven’t attempted.
Very nice idea – looks too easy. Have you made any improvements lately? Are the hose diameters important features? Thinking about 2-1/2 at the bee end and 1-1/4 going into the vacuum.
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Robo Reply:
December 22nd, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Justin,
I find 2-1/2 hose works best on the bee end. I do have a 25′ length of 1 -1/4 I use for those really high swarms. It does work, but it is easy to clog with gobs of bees when trying to suck a hanging swarm.
I have my vac mounted on the top, so I don’t use a hose for the vac. 1-1/4 is much more restrictive than 2-1/2, but it may work fine if you close down the bypass (velocity doesn’t matter on the outbound air). It would definitely be easier to transport.
Rob…
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I have heard that queens usually do not survive bee vacuums, in general.
Just wondering, if you have experienced many vac collections, where the queen survived OK ?
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Robo Reply:
December 23rd, 2008 at 8:37 am
John,
Excellent question. When doing cut-outs, I usually remove the comb one section at a time, inspect it for the queen and then suck the bees into the vac. Doing this, I am able to find and cage the queen better than 80% of the time and eliminate any possible issues with killing her. With hanging swarms I can’t do this and just gently suck up all the bees. I would guess that I end up without a queen ~10% of the time when I am unable the find and cage here. Of course, I can’t attribute this totally to the bee vac, there may not have been a queen, or I could of killed her some other way.
The key is to make sure you adjust the bypass so that there is just barely enough suction to pull in the bees. You want to use the tool on the end of the vac hose to help break the bees foot hold on the comb, not just the suction. Another key point to bee survival in the beevac is don’t let them over heat. Keep the vac out of the sun and provide them water thru the screen periodically. Also try not to suck up any bees covered with honey when doing cut outs, otherwise you just end up with a sticky ball of dead bees.
Rob…
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Rob, excellent idea. Where did you find the 2 1/2″ hose? I am compiling all my supplies and have yet to find the hose.
Thanks again for your work and documentation on this.
Brian.
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Robo Reply:
January 22nd, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Brian,
I use shop vac hose available at the home improvement stores. It comes on 8-10′ sections and I just couple as many sections together as I need.
rob….
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Rob, I bought them last night, found them at Lowes 8ft for $20.
Thanks again for your work on this, I will send photos of the completed project.
Thanks again.
Brian.
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Robo Reply:
January 23rd, 2009 at 4:05 pm
Great! Looking forward to the photos…. rob
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Rob, I finished the Bee Vacuum, you can see photos here.
http://www.plantedparadise.com/Bee-Vacuum
Thanks again!
Brian.
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Robo Reply:
January 24th, 2009 at 9:07 pm
Brian,
Fantastic! Looks awesome. I hope it works as well for you tomorrow as it has for me and the others. Thanks for the photos, and keep us posted.
rob…
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Rob, just wanted to send you some videos of the removal using the bee vacuum you designed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYjPMFtRSnY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMGeaEcQI-k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODrQpqhKibQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ex-uaAHRjfo
Overall, the removal went really well. My father assisted and the vac clogged twice. No problems other than that. I figure that I lost about 10% of the bees during the process. Possibly more, I won’t know until I take a look inside next week.
Thanks again!
Brian
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Robo Reply:
February 16th, 2009 at 8:46 am
Brian,
Thanks for the video links. It is always nice to get feedback and see how it works out for others.
rob..
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Robo
I made a vac today using your plan. My question is, do you have a problem with not getting an “air-tight” seal where boxes meet or where the screen is stapled to the top box and where the screen box meets the hive body? Have not hooked the vac to it yet.
Thanks for the website.
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Robo Reply:
February 15th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
If you use a big enough powered vac, it shouldn’t be an issue. I have also put 3/4″ self-adhesive weatherstripping around the edges of the top and bottom that comes in contact with the hive bodies. I have found it best to leave the paper on the weatherstripping to prevent it from sticking to the hive bodies and ripping apart when you separate them.
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Wow, that is really cool. You could “maybe” be more efficient if you had one of those cordless jobs. Then you could then just bring a couple of batteries with you and not have to plug anything up or run an extension cord.
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Robo Reply:
February 18th, 2009 at 11:04 am
That is an option I suppose, but I would have my concerns with it.
1. 99% of the removals I do have power within 100ft, so a 100ft extension cord reel is a cost effective solution. For the rare occasion of no power, I take my small Honda generator. Granted if you don’t have access to a generator it may be an alternative.
2. I’m not sure the horsepower on the cordless vacs, but I have found my 5HP vac to come in handy on some jobs that required long runs of hose. Even if you could get a cordless with that kind of horsepower I would imagine it would be pricey.
3. Battery run time. I would want to have at least one spare battery as a backup in case things took longer than expected or “other” type issues that leave you with a dead battery. Once again increasing the cost of the solution and adding to more “stuff” to drag around and/or forget.
So although it is an alternative option, I’m not convinced it would be more efficient as cordless tools add a lot more variables/issues to the mix.
The shop vac mounted on the cover greatly reduces the complexity and amount of equipment to lug around.
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Rob thanks for sharing this, it looks like a great design. I would like to build one, but have some questions. What kind of tools/machines did you use? What kind of screen is that? Is that window screen? Are the wood frames made from a 1 X 4?
I have a miter saw and a drill. I can borrow a hand skill saw to cut the Luan with. How did you make the grooves for the sliding and slanted pieces, or the notches on the frame? I assume I would need a table saw to build this.
I am making a trip to Home Depot and putting together a shopping list.
Thanks
Steve
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Robo Reply:
February 25th, 2009 at 8:48 am
Hi Steve,
Yes I used a table saw to build mine. The top and slanted bottom are in dadoes, which I used because it makes a cleaner, lighter, easier to use design. With that said, I don’t believe they are necessary, and a equally functional unit could be built without them. The slanted bottom is not critical, a flat bottom could be used, or you could hold a slanted bottom in place by nailing quarter round molding on each side if you wanted to. As far as the top, you could just screw in on instead of the slide. I would just suggest making slots for the ratchet strap so that it could be under, so the top could be removed without loosening the strap. Depending on how much you are going to use it, threaded inserts might be a better option than just screwing into the wood, as continuous screwing and unscrewing into wood becomes stripped out.
The screen is #8 hardware cloth. I used this because it is more rigid and will hold up better to abuse. I also have it around because I use it for other beekeeping projects. I see no reason why window screen couldn’t be used if you don’t have #8.
I buy rough cut 1×8 from a local mill and build all my stuff from that. Once again, there is nothing magical about the size of the sides. I think I made mine ~3″. The only thing to consider is the size of the hose you want to use on the bottom and make sure you make it deep enough. I use the standard 2 1/2″ shp vac hose on mine. For the top, make it deep enough for the hose to extend in with out hitting the screen. Or if you plan on attaching the blower motor to the top make sure it is deep enough for that to clear.
Good luck and let me know how you make out.
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Stupid question. Do you leave the frames in place when you use the vacuum?
Thanks,
Joseph
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Robo Reply:
March 28th, 2009 at 7:30 am
Joseph,
It’s not a stupid question. Yes I leave the frames in. You can pour some water into the combs before you start so that it is available to the bees and you don’t need to spray the top screen. You can also use foundationless frames to give more space.
rob..
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I read your instructions, not carefully enough, and skipped on to another. Then came back a re-read your instructions. What the others lack is the saving of the bees. Beware of those who “remove” for profit honey bees. Removal usally means by any means! Your plans still have some missing points, though bee keeping has go on for centuries, the bee vaccum has not. You have many good ideas I have kept bees for over fifty years, perfection of a vaccum seems to be a trial and error method; keep up the good work. Say, could you work on the “CD” Colony Disaperance, maybe just maybe you have some plans for this problem.
Roger (P.S.) (Notes for constructionuse one sided l/2 sponge tape between boxes, for tight seal, if this is not tight enough use “construction grade liquid nails, follow this with silcone, the tape all with wide tape. Also, I find two (2) straps around the unit better. Use constructed supers, because most frame home have 2×4 construction, rubber band brood, to empty frames. If you find a queen, then catch her in a cage, and hold her seperate, so that she is not injured.
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Robo Reply:
April 13th, 2009 at 10:36 am
Notes for constructionuse one sided l/2 sponge tape between boxes, for tight seal, if this is not tight enough use “construction grade liquid nails, follow this with silcone, the tape all with wide tape.
I recommend using the weather stripping on the top and bottom sections of the vac and just use standard supers in between. The objective of the design is to be able to use your standard hive bodies without modification. If you use an underpowered vacuum perhaps joint leakage would be a concern, but otherwise it is not. If there is a bad joint, duct tape is a simple and temporary fix while vacuuming. I’m not sure most people would consider using liquid nails to join hive bodies together as acceptable. It seems you would have to destroy the hive bodies to get them apart and get at the bees and frames.
Also, I find two (2) straps around the unit better.
The intent of the strap is just to hold the assembly together. I have never had an issue with just having one strap and often use the strap as a handle to carry the whole thing. I am unaware of any of the beekeepers who have built my design having issues either, and I know some have used the vac for over 100 swarms. If a 2nd strap gives you more assurance, then by all means use 2, but I don’t believe it is needed.
rubber band brood, to empty frames.
Rubber bands do work, but they are my 2nd choice. I find split frames much more convenient.
If you find a queen, then catch her in a cage, and hold her seperate, so that she is not injured.
Absolutely, I find the queen about 80% of the time and cage her. Then release her into the hive when it is situated back at my yard.
PS. I have no issue with CCD so will not be doing anything specific to it. I find the best defense to all these issues is to use feral acclimated stock and I don’t do any preventative chemical treatments.
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What would be the minimum HP vac you would use on your plans. I see you have a 5HP, but I was thinking of using only 1 medium or) maybe i deep as I do not get into removals (yet) but would like to have a vac handy for swarm removals. Thanks…your plans are fantastic!
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Robo Reply:
May 8th, 2009 at 7:49 am
I can’t really say, I have never tried anything small, though I know some people have. Keep in mind, the size of the boxes has very little to do with the suction as they don’t add resistance. It is the diameter and length of the hose that has the biggest effect. When I have to use my 25ft of 1 1/2″ hose, I have to close the bypass completely off. I always recommend going bigger on the vac and using the bypass, otherwise you risk not having enough suction when your forced to add some more hose.
rob…
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You guys are all better wood workers than I am!! I built one using standard 2X4 box with a plywood floor under it with the 2 1/4 hole in the 2×4 for the inlet hose. I used some 3/4 inch particle board with a 12″ x 14″ hole cut from the center with screen over it for the top cover. Over that i built another 2×4 frame with a plywood top and 2 2 1/4″ holes. One hole for the shop vac and the other for ventilation. I used some scrap lumber i had laying around and it works great!! I have a total of $7.25 invested in parts (I had to buy some screen) and about 3 hours in assembly. Great design. I can’t wait to try it for real.
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Robo Reply:
June 16th, 2009 at 10:49 am
Steve,
Good for you. I have great respect for people who get out there and take on a project to their level of ability. It is just so easy these days to find people who either buy everything or do without. A lot of the stuff I come up with is spurred by something else I have seen and I put my own spin on it to meet my needs. You have used your head and done the same. Other than being a little heavier than mine, it should work just as well. I always get great satisfaction when I build my own stuff, and I’m sure you will experience that same satisfaction when you use it. Good luck and would love to see some pictures and I’m sure it would inspire others with limited skills/resources to maybe try and build one.
rob…
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Working on mine now. Decided to just cut one of my extra supers in half and use it. It’s going pretty well so far. I did have a thought on having to climb ladders to get at swarms. I am going to have a dedicated extension ladder with a rigid(pvc) hose/pipe permanently attached to the ladder. I figure that fire departments do it so it should work. At the top I will attach a short flexible “working end” hose and at the bottom, another flexible hose going to the box. Perhaps, one of the reasons bees are killed when being sucked up, is that the hoses are ribbed and you can imagine their bodies bouncing across those rough surfaces on the inside of the hose as they are sucked in, not to mention the final impact. Perhaps a smoother surface might help. Additionally, the hose won’t be flopping around and if you drop it, you can still get to it without climbing down. Place a little “holster” at the top also to tuck it into when I need both hands. Just what i’m working on.
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Robo Reply:
July 3rd, 2009 at 4:37 pm
Cool, would love to see some pictures when you get it done.
rob…
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Robo,
Sharp looking unit and I am trying to construct one with the aid of carpenter, I lack wood working skills. Took my Skill saw back to the hardware store for a refund, they asked why; told’m there is no skill in that saw…anyhow, I have questions:
How is the diagonal groove cut for the slanting bottom boards?
The picture next to item 7 above, are those frames in the hive box, or some type of additional bracing?
Really like the cut-out shim, only problem is finding #8 wire cloth (using screening for the top box for now).
Thank you for sharing your idea and assistance given. I am very new to this hobby, March ‘09; did my first tree cut-out 2 weeks ago and another neighbor is waiting on me as I type this message….
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Robo Reply:
July 3rd, 2009 at 4:46 pm
How is the diagonal groove cut for the slanting bottom boards?
I cut them on a table saw using a taper jig.
The picture next to item 7 above, are those frames in the hive box, or some type of additional bracing?
Yes, there are 3 frames centered in the hive body.
Really like the cut-out shim, only problem is finding #8 wire cloth (using screening for the top box for now).
There is nothing magic about #8. Any screen that is rigid enough and doesn’t let bees through will work fine.
Good Luck
rob….
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