Dadant US Migratory Brood Box - 25 mm Solid Pine Wood

The definitive brood box — 25 mm solid pine to protect the brood and last many seasons.

🌡️ Brood temperature 32-35 °C — thermal inertia as an ally

Healthy brood needs a stable temperature in the 32-35 °C range. Below 30 °C malformations develop; below 20 °C brood dies. Wood is an excellent natural insulator (~0.12 W/m·K), and 25 mm vs the 22 mm standard means more thermal mass buffering the daily swings. In winter, the colony burns fewer stores to hold the warmth; in summer, it absorbs the insolation peaks without passing them straight to the cluster. In real numbers: in an inland apiary with -5 °C lows, the 25 mm box keeps the cluster 2-3 °C warmer on average than the 22 mm and it shows in the bee mass leaving winter.

🚛 Migratory work — why the brood box warps before the super

The brood box carries the full load of everything stacked on top (2-3 honey supers, 150-200 kg, plus the weight of the bees, combs and stores) all season long. In migratory work, on top of that, it takes transport vibration with the full load sitting on it. The 22 mm standard typically gives up through lateral warping (the wall loses perpendicularity to the floor), which in turn tilts the top cover and starts letting rain in. The 25 mm adds bending stiffness that translates into durability for the whole stack above, not just for the brood box itself.

🏗️ What's in the pack — everything needed to start

• Dadant US body with 10 wired Hoffman frames (30 mm top bar, ready for foundation)
• Wooden top cover lined with galvanised metal sheet —the sheet protects from direct sun, rain and the inevitable transport knocks; lasts years without rusting or warping
• Three entrances: two standard flight entrances plus an upper one specifically for fitting the pollen trap
• Finished with one coat of linseed oil —feeds the wood, lets it breathe, no interference with the internal climate
• Mechanical interlocking joinery on all four corners (no glue, no plywood)

📐 Dimensions — classic Dadant US format

Inner 464 × 380 mm (10 Dadant brood frames); outer approximately 514 × 430 mm —the extra 3 mm applies per side. Empty weight: 7 kg (the 25 mm add some weight over the standard, but the insulation and working-life gain more than makes up for it). For the lighter standard version, reference 0102 (22 mm). The matching 25 mm super is MEDIA-TRASH-25MM; the complete pack (brood + super + top + inner cover) is COL-DAD-25MM.