Frank says:
"Would it be accurate to say that most people use supers with the frames
"In the middle" of the super rather than level with the bottom?

If so, why?"


I never worried much about how the supers and frames were put together--I just
bought them from a beekeeping equipment supplier and put them together. If you
get all your equipment from the same supplier, then you will have the correct
bee space.  As far as how I manage my bees goes, I often will set the cover on
the ground upside down and then remove a super and set it on the cover.  If the
bottoms of the frames were flush with the bottoms of the box, then it would
result in a lot of crushed bees when setting down the super.  I appreciate the
fact that there is a 1/4 inch space there so I don't crush hundreds of bees.
Otherwise I would have so set the super full of frames up on it's side or
something else to avoid crushing bees.  This doesn't address all the issues you
ask about, but it answers the "why" in practical terms.  Also, the bottoms of
my inner covers are not "flat" either.  I make my own and put a small lip on
them.  If you buy all your equipment from a single supplier you should have
no problems (except possibly with the super over the bottom board) in my
opinion.

Layne Westover
College Station, Texas