I just started raising mason bees this year. I tried to trap some to start from a local supply last year, I did get about a dozen mud plugs in my trap nests, but none of them were mason bees (not entirely sure what they were - they still haven't emerged yet this year). I bought some mason bee cocoons on eBay - this did not turn out to be a good supplier - his cardboard tubes only averaged about 3.5 cocoons per tube, and fully 63% of those where dead on arrival (died in larval stage - I could not tell what killed them, did not look parasitized to me). Anyway, I started with 25 tubes, and ended with 39 so I guess I can't complain too much although if my starter bees had been healthy I should have ended up with at least 100 tubes. I am optimistic about next year. I should also note that my 2 year old apple trees have hundreds of apples (not all varieties bloomed, but about 5 of my 10 trees bloomed). My friend who planted his trees at the same time doesn't have any apples. I can't say for sure that this is because of my bees, but I bet they helped! One question I have is this - I want to protect my new mason bee nest blocks - do you put up screen over them to keep predators away (wasps, woodpeckers, etc)? When is it OK to move the blocks? I know they say to wait until September to actually remove cocoons and clean them, but is it OK to move the blocks before then or could that harm the growing bees?

Thanks kheflw for the info that there was another forum here with discussion. I'd searched for it, but it didn't come up the first time. It looks as if those who're having difficulties are in areas with much colder weather than us, who have heat pumps with aux back up. We will have a heat pump, and will have 2 compressors for AC, no back up aux heat source. Except for a week like this one, there is no need here in coastal southern SC for back up heat source. Our back up will be a fireplace that we might actually use if it gets this cold when we're in the house. Amazon has over 2000 reviews, and most are positive. It seems that those here on GW who're averse to the system are a.) of the mindset that it will allow one to hack into the home computer system....I can't see it; b.) that the technology of the programmable 1980's thermostats were fine....We're more tech savvy than that and aren't afraid of new technology, or c.) concerned about kicking in the aux heat source. So reading that thread isn't enough to warn us off. GPeach, glad you're enjoying your Honeywell system. If we don't use the Nest we'll be getting the programmable wifi Honeywell. dh called our builder today to find out if the HVAC people doing the install will be available for support for the Nest. If yes, we'll probably go with it, If No then we'll look into it a bit more for how good the support is from the manufacturer.

One of my thermostats recently died after 10yrs so I started looking for a "smart" thermostat. After browsing the web I concluded I'd try the Nest (crowd fav) and the Ecobee3 (newest model but ecobee seems to have a very good reputation online). I wanted to share some of my initial thoughts between the two since there isn't much out there yet. Before buying these stats I realized I needed the 24v common wire connected and luckily our house was wired with 6 strand wire and all I had to do was hook up the 5th wire to the C terminal. This made life easy for me. I bought the Nest from Lowe's so I had that immediately. The Ecobee3 was bought direct a week later and it was 2 day shipping. The Nest had more heft and solid feel. It felt like it was worth the $250 whereas the Ecobee3 is very lightweight plasticy cheap feeling like my existing stat was. It was a bit hard to believe it was more then the Nest. I did have some cosmetic damage on my Ecobee3 and am in the process of exchanging the unit with them. Installation was similar on both. I had 5 wires and both units started right up after I turned the power back on. Ecobee3 has more initial questions than the Nest if I remember correctly. Once setup the Ecobee3 definitely has more things configurable for your HVAC system vs the Nest. The Nest app is smoother to operate. Ecobee3 app is a little clunky but has more settings to customize. Ecobee3 doesn't show the energy savings/usage yet but it says that feature is coming soon. The one thing that really interested me was the remote sensor on the Ecobee3. This stat is on our 2nd floor. We primarily occupy 2 bedrooms and if this thing can average the two rooms to better even out the temperature that would be great. We have tried adjusting the vents but there is still quite a bit of difference. Its a bad time to review these stats right now because my HVAC system isn't really running much. Just a tad at night to keep the house warm. I've decided to keep the Ecobee3 and return the Nest based on the more configurable settings and the remote sensor with comfort in mind.

I have a Miele with the third rack at the top for cutlery - and love it. It took some training of the family, but they are finally starting to get it. It also took a little getting used to on my part as far the sequence when I am loading - at first, I had to keep switching racks, going back and forth, but I think that was a little bit of a learning curve that you would have with any new appliance. As far as being fussy about loading the cutlery, it does take a moment extra, but if you load your stuff in zones - all the small forks together, all the knives, etc... it makes emptying the diswasher a breeze!!