What is an Imirie Shim?

The Imirie Shim is used between extracted supers during the honey flow to provide upper entrances. Adds extra ventilation during the winter, more space for patties, mite treatments, or queens. Fully assembled when local pickup is selected. UN-assembled for shipping. Instructions and nails are included.

Do bees need an upper entrance?

If they are damp or wet and cold, they will chill and die. These are some of the really great benefits your bees can enjoy using a top entrance. I still find that I like to keep a small notch approx 3/4” in width on my bottom board – see photo. This allows the bees to keep the floor of the hive clean and tidy.

Which way does the inner cover go?

The inner cover has a rim of wood, a wood strip on one side only. Customers often wonder which way this goes on the hive, with the rim down or up? Typically, the rim of wood faces the sky. In other words, the top cover goes down and lands on the rim of the inner cover.

How do I stop the Beehive entrance?

Step 1: Block the entrance to your hive. You can use a block of wood or a piece of screen, just make sure whatever you use is secure with no bee leaks. You should also make sure you block any top entrances for example, the notch in your inner cover.

What resides inside of the hive bodies that bees draw Combs on?

Inside of the hive, the honey bees use every available space very efficiently. In any space larger than a bee space, they will attempt to build wax honeycombs, which they use to store food (honey and pollen) or to raise more offspring, which we call the brood or larvae.

Can beehives be in direct sunlight?

The hive should be placed in early morning sun. This gets the bees out of their hive earlier in the day to forage. In the Northeast, hives can remain in the full sun for the entire season. However in places with warmer climates, hives should receive some afternoon shade.

Should I vent my beehive?

Honey bees work best with a warm hive, but you don’t want your colony to overheat. Proper ventilation is a great way to protect your hives from the summer heat and the overwhelming humidity and condensation it might bring.

Will bees build comb without a queen?

For efficient comb production a colony needs a constant re-supply of newly emerged workers, and for that you must have a fertile queen. Even captured and “shook” swarms which build new comb quickly, can only do so for a short period.

Do you use an inner cover with a hive top feeder?

Note: the inner cover is never used while the feeder is on the hive. Fill feeder with sugar syrup. Cover the feeder with your telescoping outer cover. After using the feeder, make certain you rinse out any syrup residue and dry the feeder thoroughly.

When to use Imirie shims on honey supers?

Providing upper entrances for the worker bees to reach the supers honey storage location makes a lot of sense, they don’t have to travel through the brood chamber and up through all the other supers. Additionally, these Shims have been used in winter as alternate entrances for the bees and for moisture escape with good success.

How tall is an Imirie Shim on a hive?

In addition to a screened inner cover, you can also add an Imirie shim to the top portion of your hive. An Imirie shim is simply a rectangular frame of wood, about 3/4 of an inch high, with an entrance hole cut into one end.

Who is the inventor of the Imirie Shim?

The Imirie Shim was invented by a Master Beekeeper named George Imirie. He attributed his bee keeping success to the use of these style top entrances between honey supers.

What can you do with an Imirie Shim?

An Imirie shim allows you to add an extra entrance to your hive wherever you like without drilling holes in your bee boxes. It also can be used to provide the extra space needed for a pollen supplement or a mite treatment.