Batten down the hatches

The Met Office has issued an 'Amber Alert'; there's a storm coming.
Wise beekeepers have secured their hives to stop the roofs flying off; the foolish will leave it to chance and risk killing their colonies.
There is an upside - with a force 10 gale at least none of us will be worried about hive ventilation over the next 24 hours!
However,once the storm has passed, the 'ventilation debate' will continue. That's because beekeepers basically fall into two groups: Top ventilators and bottom ventilators.
Personally, I'm a 'bottom' man because I use open mesh floors on my hives, which effectively means the bottom of the hive is open to the elements. You would think that would provide more than enough fresh air for my colonies, but apparently not. Last spring when I opened up my hives I noticed there was black mould all over the inside walls, which suggested inadequate ventilation.
Initially I was surprised because there was no problem with ventilation the previous winter. But then I remembered there were two important differences: Firstly, the hive was 3 boxes high rather than the usual 2, and secondly I had left the dummy boards in situ.
As a result the warm fug from the cluster of bees rose up to the top of the hive, cooled on the roof, and then slid down the sides, condensing on the dummy boards and walls, leaving them damp.
This winter I've left the dummy boards out and the stack is just two boxes high, so the air should be able to move freely around the hive.
I suspect it's already moving quite freely and will be even more so by tonight when those 60 mph winds set in!