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08/05/2026

Bee escape

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A bee escape is a tool used in beekeeping that makes harvesting honey easier. It is placed inside the hive between the brood chamber and the honey super and acts as a kind of one-way passage: the bees can leave the honey super and travel down into the brood chamber, but they can hardly find their way back. As a result, the honey super is almost bee-free after about 12–24 hours, and the beekeeper only has to shake or brush a few bees off the honeycombs. This saves time, is gentler on the bees, and makes the honey harvest significantly less stressful.

When installing the bee escape, the most important factors are proper placement, timing, and a tight seal.

Direction and Position

  • The bee escape is installed between the brood chamber (bottom) and the honey super (top) of the hive.
  • When constructing the barrier, you can combine the bee escape routes. As a general rule, the more passages you create, the better.
  • Make sure that the “exits”/channels of the bee escape point downward toward the brood chamber, as that is where the bees are supposed to go.
  • The opening must be located directly beneath the honey super so that the bees can find their way down.

Tightness and fit

  • The bee escape must lie flat against the frame edge without any large gaps; otherwise, the bees will climb back up along the edges.
  • Use a chisel to smooth out any unevenness and fit the stiles and rails together neatly.

Date and duration

  • It's best to place them on a dry, warm day, as the bees will be more active and move down more quickly.
  • The bee escape should generally be placed in the hive 12–24 hours before the honey harvest; it should not remain in the hive any longer than that, so that the bees do not reoccupy the honey chamber in large numbers or begin building there.

Check the colony and the honey super

  • Only install it when the honey is ripe (capped combs, appropriate moisture content); otherwise, the bee-free honey chamber offers no benefit.
  • Colonies that are too weak or severely distressed respond less well; work with them particularly gently (use smoke sparingly).