REGARDING RE>Survival of varroa Whitney Cranshaw writes: "Does any one know how long Varroa mites can survive in a non-occupied hive. The question concerns how long previously infested equipment needs to be stored unused to ensure that all varroa life stages have died out." I don't believe that there is any evidence at all that varroa mites are able to live without the bees for more than a few hours. Therefore you don't have to worry about sterilization of hive equipment because of this pest. Just be sure that the equipment is free of AFB. Ted Fischer