Over the years, this maverick beekeeper has injected his dislike of the double deep wintering configuration in different articles, sometimes by innuendo, and sometimes by a flat statement. The intent of this article is to compile all those reasons into one place to help beginners make a rational decision when starting out. I am dismayed at the number of beginners who set out to fill two deeps on their first colony. I would like to head them off for the simple reason that once they start down that road, changing direction is much more difficult. This discussion is not directed to those beekeepers addicted to the double deep - they are not going to change - it's all they know. If they see the following "problems" with the double deep (DD), they are considered normal and are taken in stride. I wouldn't change either under those circumstances. The surge in lady beekeepers is all the more reason. The ladies, both old and young, can have less muscle power than that necessary to cope with a deep of honey. In today's beekeeping, access to the brood chamber is mandatory.
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