>Last week I bought a nuc only to find it dead when I opened it up. >Since I learned a long time ago that smart pills were expensive, I want to >report this experience to you so that you don't have to learn the hard >way. Apparently, this new technology was sold without the necessary auxillary equipment for moving -- top screens -- and without instructions. In Alberta, where this type of nuc has been used for over ten years, I have never heard of any problems, other than that they plug up fast if the beginning split is too large, and don't winter if the bees have shut the queen down early for that reason. They are designed for small splits -- one or two frames, not 5 frames of bees and brood. Moisture and heat have not been problems here. The hole is a good enough size for a hive sitting almost anywhere in full sun. The volume is not far off the volume that studies have shown bees to choose when they have a choice, and the entrance hole is close to that chosen size too. The problem comes when the nucs are overfilled and transported without screens. No one here would dream of moving them without screened lids. In fact, even when stored inside, the beekeepers screen them and plug the hole. Interestingly, I posted pictures illustrating this very fact several days before reports started coming in from new users experiencing meltdown. See http://www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/articles/pkgnucs.htm Even a large, well insulated hive can breathe through a 1" hole without problem, except in extreme heat. See the picture at the bottom of http: //www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/ today. These nucs are tight, and when the nuc is overfilled and the bees get disorganised -- as they do when moved on trucks -- their normally well co-ordinated ventilation activities break down. Once panic sets in, heat avalanches, and colony death can follow shortly. Bees are killed -- overheated -- every year in wooden nucs and packages, but people are used to that, so it is not news. These nucs work, and work well, but, as with everything, there is a learning curve. allen :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: -- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and other info --- ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::