How to construct the fat bee man feeder. These are instructions are for customers who have purchased an unassembled hive top feeder from us. If you ordered it assembled all of the below-listed steps would be complete and you could use the feeder right out of the shipping box.
All parts are pre-cut for you. All wire mesh is pre-installed for you and the bee ladder itself comes assembled for you. You will need nails and hammer, and glue. If you purchase unassembled products from us it is assumed you have enough woodworking experience to complete the project. There is no warranty on unassembled products which you attempt to construct. You may return the product to us, and for an additional $5.00 we will construct the item for you if you are unable to do so. You will pay to ship in both directions for this service.
Steps:
1. Construct the fat bee man feeder box.
The vent holes should all be on the same end of the box, and the grooves on the long boards should face in and towards each other. Make sure to use a quality waterproof wood glue like Titebond III for the joints and then nail or screw them together. you should use corner clamps or at a minimum use a speed square, or a square of some sort to square the four corners and then let the glue dry whit it in a square position. Failure to properly square your corners will result in a box that does not fit any of your other beekeeping equipment.
The plywood fits between the grooves cut into the long sides of the box and should be pushed back flush with the rear of the feeder (The rear is the end the vent holes are cut into). This will leave a 3/8" gap between the plywood and the front of the feeder. This will help form the walk-way in which the bees will get out of the hive and into the feeder in conjunction with the bee enclosure and the bee ladder.
3/8" Gap Shown Below
Notice it is on end with NO VENT HOLES. Again this GAP SHOULD BE ON THE END WITHOUT THE VENT HOLES!
The bottom view is shown below. Use 1" crown staples or nails and wood glue to permanently attach the plywood to the feeder. Do this by running a bead of glue down the channel cut into the long boards and then placing the plywood into place and nailing or stapling through the side of the feeder and into the plywood.
2. Build the bee enclosure for your fat bee man feeder.
This is how the bees will get into the feeder from the hive. This bee enclosure goes on the "front" of the feeder, which is the end OPPOSITE of the vent hols pre-drilled in your feeder. The enclosure is made from 3 pieces (8-frame) or 4 pieces (10-frame). Push the enclosure all the way down flush with the plywood. There should be no gap between the enclosure and the plywood. The narrow pieces glue to the front of the feeder and the long piece glues to the short pieces. nail after gluing using 1 1/4" nails or crown staples. When done properly, you should be able to look down through the enclosure and see the gap between the plywood and the front of the feeder.
***THE ENCLOSURE GOES ABOVE THE GAP BETWEEN YOUR PLYWOOD AND THE FRONT OF THE FEEDER***
3. Construct the bee ladder for your fat bee man feeder as shown.
The top is 4" x 5". The short horizontals are 3/4 x 3/4 x 4" and the long verticals are 3/4 x 3/4 x 4 1/2". The #8 hardware cloth should start in the front and wrap all the way around the ladder, up the back and then down the horizontals, leave only 3/4" of the horizontal left with no hardware cloth. Once constructed, center it on the bee enclosure and use a drill to predrill for two 2" wood screws. One on each side of the bee ladder to attach it to the bee enclosure. The screws should go down through the top of the bee ladder, not through the front of the feeder.
