free bees - swarm capture

The swarm trap (+ lure) was being visited by a large number of scouts, and by dusk I was convinced that the swarm trap was occupied. At dawn of the next day, the swarm trap (+ lure) was placed on top of the desired hive. After 24 hours, the bees are shaken or bumped into the hive. Some bees remain attached to the trap and are left to crawl into the hive at their own pace. The small quantity of drawn comb is not placed into the hive.

Swarm Trap

How does the Brushy Mountain swarm trap dimensions and swarm lure compare with the nest-site preferences in Honeybee Ecology? The book suggests:

• a volume between 15 and 80 liters
• entrance faces south
• entrance area less than 75 square cm
• entrance positioned near the floor
• located several meters above ground
• located between 100 and 400 meters from the parent nest
• comes equipped with beeswax combs

The Brushy Mountain swarm trap has a volume of 19 liters and a circular entrance area of 13 square cm. Depending on how one attaches the swarm trap to a tree (or whatever), the entrance is either located near the floor or between floor and ceiling. Does entrance at the bottom of the trap hedge my bets as to what direction the entrance faces? The back deck of the house is 5 foot tall, so in combination with a short 4 foot (manageable) ladder that puts the the trap a few meters above the ground. However, my small property makes it difficult to site the trap 100 to 400 meters from my hives--maybe I will attract swarms from other hives. The trap does not contain beeswax comb, but that's where the the smelly lure and other favorable conditions like smooth and dry interior may help--there are no guarantees to this scheme.