Hi Bill,
I don't use auger holes in my boxes but instead simply raise the
front edge of the moisture release board about a quarter of an inch
with a small twig.  The opening created is usually sheltered somewhat
by the outer cover but the bees still use it and it allows moisture to
escape.  Seems to work well here in MN.

blane

******************************************
Blane White
MN Dept of Agriculture
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>>> William Morong <[log in to unmask]> 11/03/99 02:49PM >>>
Good point on the diffusion of CO2 from the bees through the top, for
any
CO2  in solution in the air inside the hive.  Any CO2 in excess of
that
might come out of solution.  I have no data CO2 solubility in air at
any
temperature.  As to what floats and what sinks, according to the CRC
Handbook, at 0 degrees C, air density is 1.17 g/l, and of CO2, 1.97
g/l.
Were the CO2 to be warmed to +40 C its density would drop to about
273/313
times 1.97, or 1.72 g/l.  Were the air to be cooled to -40 C, its
density
would rise to 273/233 times 1.17, or about 1.37 g/l.  So undissolved
CO2
probably sinks at all reasonable temperatures.  This based on the gas
law,
PV=nRT, and is approximate because the gases are probably not
perfect.

So it seems that dissolved CO2 will diffuse any way it can, and any
excess
falls down and goes out by gravity.  What comforts me, I hope
justifiably,
is that with the right configuration the removal of gaseous waste is
passive, and conceivably done with little heat loss.  All this leaves
me
pondering the idea that started the thought, whether there is an
optimal
height for locating the auger holes I am about to bore.

Bill Morong