It was Aaron Suchy. I've never heard of it before he mentioned it or since. His bees made it through the winter but have since "passed on". Some of the things we do we do because they make us feel better. There's nothing wrong with that.
Having said that, I googled it and was surprised how much there is out there about heating beehives.
If your hives are compact, double wrapped with some kind of insulation, have a vent box and a bottom board in, and lots of honey you shouldn't need a heater. But if you want to, go for it!
Months ago, at one of our monthly meetings, a gentleman ( sorry, his name is not coming to me) reported on his success with using greenhouse heat mats (typically used for seed germination) to somewhat condition his hives to prevent moisture and condensation. I actually considered doing this last winter myself.
It seems that it could be easily implemented, at a very low cost, and with positive results. I’m wondering if anyone has more information about this method of keeping our bees warm and DRY.
Additionally, the ventilated top box I purchased from the club is working very well. (Thanks TBA volunteers!) I’m planning on making a couple more since there’s no more available. My other two hives had a fair amount of condensation and mold when I last opened them up a couple of weeks ago. The TBA vented hive was nice and dry. I’m giving it a 5 star review!