ROBO BEE VAC
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- Опубліковано 21 кві 2012
- This is a Robo style bee vac that I built several years ago. You can find the vac at beevac.com.
Have used it for many cut outs and swarms, works like a charm for me. Made this out of scrap lumber that was laying around the shop, took a couple of hours to cut out and put together.
Best presented bee vac video. I saw this one, then what seems like a million more, and FINALLY found this one again. Clear, concise, no self-important "I'm the bee god" personality. Just straight-up excellent. Thank you Sir 🙂
I built mine very simular to yours with a few minor differences. My bottom box has the hose come in near the corner and instead of a slanted bottom mine has a curved wall. My top piece doesn't have a slide out screen but a sliding door inside. I'm still tweeking it but it's doing a fair job. Trial and error. Your video I just found, wish I'd seen it sooner. Would have saved me several tweaks. Great narration and explanation by the way.
Excellent video. If I was 20 years younger I would get the tools make one...You do an excellent job of explaining everything also. Thank You. Tom
Hello my names larry patterson in Washington state 2nd year beekeeper that was One of the best narrated videos I've seen thank you very much you explained it extremely well
What a fantastic design. Thanks so much for sharing how you made it. I know you did it some years ago - but I am just starting out as a beekeeper and was looking for ideas on line to use an old vacuum cleaner whose motor still works well but bags have been discontinued - and found your video. The best design yet. Kind regards from Flinders Victoria Australia
I built one after watching this video, first time I used it I didn't have any dead bees at all. I scavenged an old shop vac from the dump and have mounted the motor directly on top. Thanks for doing the video.
I am impressed! Thank You for your VERY informative video. As a person new to all the fun of beekeeping I really enjoyed learning how that all works.
Awesome! Thank you for such an informative video. I could see what you were doing and clearly hear your most excellant presentation.
Very good video clearly explaining the vacuums operation when collecting swarms. I often get called out to collect swarms and this kit will be a great help. Plenty of time for me to build one ready for next season with Derbyshire Beekeepers Association.
Thankyou Soapy! You have just shown me how to get a MUCH better result when doing cutouts.
Up till now it has been war! But I see now that it does 't have to be!
Thanks once again from Down under!!!
Hey David! Good question for sure. If you have a couple of empty hive bodies stack them on top of each other and put a piece of screen between them and pull very slowly. I think you will find that the top box will want to slide with it and bees will escape also. The shim allows you to put weather stripping on both sides of it to help seal any cracks or unevenness in your boxes. The shim needs to be pulled out slowly so you do not ball bees that are on the bottom of it. Works good.
Thank you for sharing this information. Just finished my sloped bottom board tonight.
Great video, really useful. Thanks for posting this, it's really helped me to build mine.
Awesome just what I (think about to build ) was looking for ! thamks
I just built my first bee vac this past weekend, very similar to yours. There is some debate on the hose used to suck the bees in. Some say "smooth interior walls" are a must, and others like you & Horchoff saying that if you set your control gate properly, the bees will not be hurt by the "non smooth interior wall" of your hose.
I'm torn, but the shop vac hose is a lot cheaper than the smooth wall.
Gonna make me one like this. More practical than my 5gallon buckets
Very nice, good design and presentation
Hey Charles, sorry took so long to get back to you. The slanted bottom board, I cut grooves on the sides and a shallow rabbit on the ends. Some people just cut strips of wood to use as a cleat to support the bottom board on an angle. The whole bee vac is made out of 3/4" thick pine boards. The top is three inches tall. Be sure to leave yourself enough at the top of the groove where the sliding board is, so that it is not weak. Also on the sliding board, do not cut you dado too deep or when you tighten up the ratchet strap it will crack in the dado. The dado needs to be a snug fit so you do not loose vacuum, I rubbed bees wax on all of the edges that slide in the dado, makes it work much easier.
soapy22bullet iii
Great video , ill make one over the weekend.
Best bee vac vid!
Thanks for the video!!!
Excellent - thanks
Thanks for the explanation.
If you are not using the cut out shim (slide out screen) then the screen on top is so they will not be sucked into the shop vac. If you are using the cut out shim and put your cut out brood combs on top of the bees that have been vac'ed into the bottom box, then you can remove the sliding board and give them plenty of ventilation while transporting to your bee yard. They can and will over heat quickly on a hot summer day.
jUST AN IDEA IS TO PUT A SMALL SOFT BRUSH ON INSIDE OF THE BOX TO SWIPE THE BEES OFF THE SCREEN AS YOU PULL IT OUT.
What's the reason for the slope to the bottom board? Used a borrowed bee vac that dumped the bees into a 5 gallon bucket and even with minimal suction and not leaving them in the bucket very long I had quite a few dead. Want to build something close to your design. I like the idea of sucking them up into a deep instead of a bucket.
Thanks for sharing the video!
I have read about bees being killed/damaged while bouncing down the corrugated vac hose. Would a slightly smaller diameter (perhaps 1.5") smooth hose make sense? You can get clear or translucent PVC hose in sizes ranging up to the regular shop-vac diameters. Hopefully then the bees would "slide" instead of "bounce". And I expect it would be easier to get a smaller hose into the nooks and crannies of a cutout.
thanks sir very useful
How did you attach the slanted bottom board to the base walls? Did you cut groves on all four sides or just put screws in the sides. also on the top you said it is 3/4 inch thick and how wide is it? It looks to be about 2 to 3 inches wide.
Nice video. I plan on building one like yours. Your explanation is great. Just one question.
Could you describe the purpose of the screen on top of your vacuum? Not the screen you slowly pull out, the one on top.
Thanks
This is an amazing design. Thank you for sharing this video with us. I really appreciate it.
How much do you charge for doing a cut out? I am wanting to start doing my own cut outs, but want to start with a fair price. Love it if you could share what most people charge. I'm in Tooele, Utah. Thanks again!!
On two occasions I have captured swarms using a robo bee vac similar to your design, with the only difference being the piece of wood in the form of ramp that you have at the base of your design. The question is, why do the bees that I suck die even when I adjust the suction force?
How long is the hose that you use to vacuum up the bees
i could just use the shim and not the top screen right?
When using this for a removal do you find that one 10 frame box is too small? If using the top screen only with one box, I don't know what I would do if the one box filled.
Doesn't air pressure escape through the hole in the cut out shim?
Yes you will loose some of your suction to the hole in the shim, a piece of duct tape over the hole will fix this little problem. I personally do not use the shim myself, just put the bees and brood back together once I am back in my bee yard.
Good day I would like to know if a Dewalt 580 cordless vac be strong enough to work with you robo vac please help thank you.
great video how do I find your forum and where do I send a PM
I don't understand why you even need the shim. Just put screen in between the bee filled hive body and the cut out comb hive body and as you desire pull the screen. I don't know why they made it so sophisticated. Granted it may be easier, but I see it more of a hassle than a convenience. I do see the importance of having a screen there though while vacuuming bees. That would make it much easier.
Needs a radar gun to measure mach speed of the bees and a camera to capture the surprised look on their faces.
You show that you made 2 holes, 1 for vacuum regulation as stated. What is the 2nd hole for. Don't want to mess it up!
I think the second hole helps regulate the air flow pressure so the bees don't get damaged. I'm just about to build one as I have 3 swarms to collect in one barn. Did 2 last year in different parts of the barn but couldn't get the next 3 as I had to get my cancer treated. All fine and fit now and going in with a beevac. It should bee more comfortable doing it this time, fingers crossed.
But the vucc grinds the bees
Very well done, I sent you a pm on the forum. Please email me if you have some time. Tom