I have about a two foot walkway between the entrance to the hive and
the exit out of the building.  During the cold months, I use a block of wood
with a narrow entrance and a sliding door which is closed at night and opened
during the day.  The block of wood has screened side vents opening into the
room which allows most of the cold air to bypass the opening to the hive
walkway so most of the cold air does not enter the hive.  The walkway has a
removable plastic top that allows me to see and remove debri which the bees
deposit when it is too cold for them to go outdoors.  The walkway is about
5 cm wide and 3 cm deep cut into a  2 x 4.  During the summer, I change the
top and remove the block so the opening is wider to the outside.
        I could send you a couple of photos of the setup if yougive me a
snil-mail address.
        I still have not been successful at overwintering my observation hive.
I need a better mechanism to feed them and provide pollen for the hive in
january.
 
        ED Beary
        [log in to unmask]
        Biology Dept
        SUNY GENESEO
        GENESEO, NY  14454