yeah totally, I had the same experience with bee keeper advice when I started- my bee mentor gave me two absolutely contradictory answers, about ventilation vs fog, two weeks apart. I think as you say, if it works for you don't change it. but keep your own observations and keep asking why? The way I've always worked, I observe and learn about the physiology of creature or plant in concern, and then work up from that. Look at how nature does it and how we can translate it's dynamics and strengths in our human manifest. So I read books and books about bees before i learned about beekeeping. I work with the hows and whys, and not the what and whens. So I'm still learning and expect I will always with bees. However, with the benefit of experience and hindsight, when I consider the choices I made early on, (hive set up and management) I'm happy that my instincts seems to have worked out very well, and I wouldn't change it if i could.
I think, re ventilation- I will explain my thought process...
In a tree, a hollow starts with a breach in the tree's immune defences, maybe branch broken or borer attack, and fungus gets a hold. fungus munches away and rain now is gathered to pool or run through, promoting the fungal decomposition. Over time, the hole gets big enough that a honey bee colony would call it home. honey bees will start the comb building near the top, leaving vertically room for expansion, and then extend downwards as they need to. In the meantime, the hole is growing downwards still. A large hollow, maybe one that goes to the ground, will be cool at the bottom, with leaf litter and perhaps fungus, other detritvores, ants or other critters. Bees will scrape back punky wood on the walls of their tree hollow and the roof, but not the 'floor'. So heat will always go up, the entrance hole is usually not at the very top, the ' roof' is sealed, there is no other direct way for hot air to escape. So up top there's much bee activity, they are always grooving around doing bee things; I suspect that the dynamic between the warm, moving top and the cool, potentially ventilated bottom, will create a very small, constant amount of air mixing. Bees coming and going out of entrance hole will also provide a small, constant, inflush of fresh air. I've read that brood need 55% and 75% humidity to prevent desiccation, CO2 levels 30% and 60% similarly confusing- both are reflections of ventilation. My preferred bee hive set up - year around- is permanent insulation, ongoing constant small, volume of air inflow, cooler floor. My entrances let in very little fresh air, it's what bees bring in. The only seasonal change I make is to put on a honey super, and if it's above 30 deg C (86F) and they are curing honey, then I will open up the vents on it. Insulation and bottom ventilation stay on all year- aiming for stability. (We live in a wet climate, year around, right now i can't see 3 metres out the back for the fog, but don't get as cold as you, we get down to freezing often but not too far beyond) So I figured, for me, that the bottom only brings a very small inflow in constant trickle of O2, and I never top ventilate (except as above). The hot mass that is the bees on combs maintains it's own humidity- the warmth generated will I imagine, create a self maintaining homeostasis. When you look at bee behaviour, when it's put under the microscope, every aspect of their behaviour, habitat design & physiological adaption are adapted for their needs. Tom Seeley has done some great research here. I would imagine that the mechanism for maintaining hive humidity, as a function of the circular economy that is bees, comb &.c, would be no exception and that too little ventilation, within reason, is rarely the biggest issue in hive management. Think of the tree...
I f I have the cash this summer, I have plans to set up 4 diff hives with CO2, humidity and temps sensors, about 9 per hive to see if I can get some data to blow my theories out of the water.. I better get moving its spring here.
Anyhoos keep sharing its good to hear what works or doesn't for others. If it's not broke, don't fix it
Oh yes and I heard which i plan to look into and if noone has researched it by the time I do my thesis I'll do it, that higher CO2 helps bees manage varroa.
I mean consider that pic, no bees shaken off- as it would be in hive. Two boxes of 16 frames like that tell me that's not hot humid and high CO2. Winter cluster is 12-14 frames.
My last thought, and i quote Winnie the Pooh for this one " with bees, you never can tell"
