I've used Apinovar SBB's for my backyard colonies - like them, but wouldn’t want to use them for migratory beekeeping, I don’t know that they'd stand up to it.



>1) The apinovar tray is made of wood, and is, I assume (but could be wrong), all pine.  Sliding wood on wood often sticks, especially in humid weather.  The plastic trays I am using slide easily in all weather and have a finger grip for easy removal.  And, pine should be painted.  The boards I am using are cypress and do not need paint.



The ones I bought came paraffin-dipped, no problems with binding so far (in contrast to my own home-made variety)



>2) The apinovar tray removes from the side.  The ones I use remove from the rear, and I prefer that to maximize distance to the front entrance and curious bees, especially when I do spot checks without wearing any protective gear.



This hasn’t been too much of a problem for me, even with my own that slide from the front. In a 4 pack I can't access the back of the hive anyway.



>Don't get me wrong.  The board at apinovar may be fantastic, and I would have liked to support an entrepreneur.  But, I did not see a US source or a price on the website, so I could not even test it.  As a result I found an alternative.  



I ordered mine through www.beemaidbeestore.com, but had to call them because Apinovar bottoms weren't available on the website.



Another Canadian version is produced by Propolis ets. In Quebec http://www.propolis-etc.ca/Propolis-etc_2012.pdf. 



Cheers- E





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