A short while ago Lloyd Spear wrote of four ways to reduce condensation in
the hive, an undoubted killer of honey bee colonies in the UK with its damp
(soggy this year) and relatively warm winters. I think he suggested drilling
ventilation holes in the hive wall, propping up the outer cover, adding
ventilation slots to the inner cover and use of fibre board to vent moisture
to the exterior.
 
May I suggest yet another, much easier - remove the inner cover, crown
board as they are called in the UK, completely during the winter months.
 
Maybe climatic variations will come into play here but with our winters this
is a method I have found totally satisfactory,  remove entrance block, full
width mouseguard on, crown board off and a weatherproof ventilated roof
fitted.
 
Whereas previously I would find mouldy combs in spring, especially the flank
one's, no such problems for the past 15 or so years. A dryer environment
also  limits outbreaks of Nosema.
 
I should add the crown boards are returned about late January, early
February (26 January this year) when the weather indicates to me that the
queen might have returned into lay, just gives them a little more chance to
conserve heat and any moisture that collects on the underside at that time
will be  used to reconstitute / dilute stores.
 
Open mesh floors have previously been discussed, again very recently, and I
think the general opinion was they could benefit the colony, same principal
with no crown board - plenty of ventilation. As Lloyd stated, "Dry cold does
not hurt bees, condensation kills them".
 
Ken Hoare
Shropshire, UK