2026 Hive Inspection Form Update

BKCORNER HIVE INSPECTION FORM
2026-Hive-Inspection-Form.pdf (LATEST VERSION)
– https://www.bkcorner.org/documents/2026-Hive-Inspection-Form.pdf

2024 Version of the Hive Form (Previous Version)
– https://www.bkcorner.org/documents/hive-inspection-sheet.pdf

Periodically I look at the BKCorner Hive form and revise it to match my latest hive management practices. I recently did a top to bottom refresh of the hive inspection form and I’m sharing it for other to use in advance of the 2026 beekeeping season.

While the last number of revisions could mostly be considered tweaks, this update has a number of new elements. To be specific I added more data to be tracked, along with some subtle aesthetics to make the form more uniform and polished in design.

What’s New:
– Added a place to capture the beehive format (wood, plastic or polystyrene).
– Added a place to track if a screened bottom board has an insert installed
– Added a place to remark if Insulation is in use
– Added a place to document if a queen excluder is in use
– Rearranged some of the data capture elements in the form to be in proximity of like data elements
– Added a way to record if the bees are Orienting
– Rearranged some of the opening top elements of the form to make a more logical way to record the setup: Its xyz date, this is the hive on pad X, the hive I call Y, located in yard Z. it is (time), and its (temp) outside. The bees at this time are (mood)

The form is free to use and if you want to tweak it to your liking see the information below. There is documentation in an older post where you can download a Microsoft Word Version of it and modify it to your liking.

THERE’S MORE
This is just the update to the main form. In addition to this form there a few adjunct forms to consider.

I made a to-do form (that I also use) and there is an second helper form for capturing a full top to bottom assessment of the colony interior.

To access the other forms and see some of the evolution of the forms – visit this link:
Hive Inspection Form – The Beekeeper’s Corner
– https://www.bkcorner.org/hive-inspection-form/