60 x Poly Roofs

[BMH]

I am in the market for 60 x poly roofs.

Weighing up between Abelo and Swienty.

One is coming out at a 3rd more expensive.

I know people dont like their Swienty roofs but can someone shed some light on the major difference between to two?

Is the Abelo worth £600 more?

Anyone want to sell 60 x Swienty used poly roofs on the cheap?

 

[Jimmy]

Is the floor option of the Swienty roof important?

I only have 1 Abelo roof and main drawback for me and how I inspect colonies is that it's not as useful when upturned to stack supers in.

I know it confuses your options but I bought 15 paynes roofs back in January and have used them on standard wooden/swienty/Abelo nationals. Only issue to be aware of is that the footprint is larger so the hives need to be marginally more spaced apart if they are the same height.

 

[BMH]

Is the floor option of the Swienty roof important?



I only have 1 Abelo roof and main drawback for me and how I inspect colonies is that it's not as useful when upturned to stack supers in.



I know it confuses your options but I bought 15 paynes roofs back in January and have used them on standard wooden/swienty/Abelo nationals. Only issue to be aware of is that the footprint is larger so the hives need to be marginally more spaced apart if they are the same height.

No. I never use the floor option but nice to have for an emergency.

Swienty is in the list as it's by far the cheapest and it's what I've already got. For me, it's fine.

I like the abelo brood boxes but not sure they will stand up as well to constant ratcheting if they are a similar construction. The swienty has a bit of give in it...

comes down to money I guess.

Is the abelo roof telescopic?

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[BMH]

Is the floor option of the Swienty roof important?



I only have 1 Abelo roof and main drawback for me and how I inspect colonies is that it's not as useful when upturned to stack supers in.



I know it confuses your options but I bought 15 paynes roofs back in January and have used them on standard wooden/swienty/Abelo nationals. Only issue to be aware of is that the footprint is larger so the hives need to be marginally more spaced apart if they are the same height.

How much did the paynes ones come out at?

Any reason you went for them with the different footprint?

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[Jimmy]

The paynes roofs were £15 each in their January sale. Cost and compatibility were the deciding factors. I also had in mind Itld's comments about the denser Abelo poly being more brittle.

Not sure what a telescopic roof is!

The Abelo roof is deeper than a standard 4 inch wooden roof. I find it awkward to lift supers out of deep roofs as the hand rails are covered by the roof. Not a difficult problem to overcome if I had to admittedly.

 

[Angry_Mob]

I just stack them diagonally with the roof upturned.

 

[Jimmy]

I just stack them diagonally with the roof upturned.

So do I but when the bees are a bit uppity it can be useful to stack the supers square in the roof and put a crownboard on top.

Perhaps i need calmer bees....

 

[BMH]

The paynes roofs were £15 each in their January sale. Cost and compatibility were the deciding factors. I also had in mind Itld's comments about the denser Abelo poly being more brittle.



Not sure what a telescopic roof is!



The Abelo roof is deeper than a standard 4 inch wooden roof. I find it awkward to lift supers out of deep roofs as the hand rails are covered by the roof. Not a difficult problem to overcome if I had to admittedly.

Telescopic as in the sides comes down over the not like the swienty that just sit on top.

I think you're saying the Abelo are telescopic.

Hmmm

£15 is good. Its looking at £15ish for the swienty once I minus the VAT so not much in it.

I think it may annoy me that they overhang though and there isnt really any other benefit over the swienty.

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[Angry_Mob]

Not sure what a telescopic roof is!

It's an Americanism! I prefer the term deep roof. When I first heard it I thought of a roof that pulls out in sections like a ladder.

Telescopic as in the sides comes down over the not like the swienty that just sit on top.

I think you're saying the Abelo are telescopic.

Hmmm

£15 is good. Its looking at £15ish for the swienty once I minus the VAT so not much in it.

I think it may annoy me that they overhang though and there isnt really any other benefit over the swienty.

The Abelos are made of denser poly 160g/litre vs the standard 100g/litre so are stronger and they have a recess that you can add fondant or a small feeder above the crown board.

Not sure what the measurements are actually but a worthwhile consideration would the be depth of the poly in the actual roof to minimise the u-value?

 

[iann41]

could you not just make them? you've already demonstrated your diy skills and I'm sure you'd make a good job. If insulation is what your after, just glue a snug piece of 2" poly sheet to the underside of the roof.

 

[BMH]

could you not just make them? you've already demonstrated your diy skills and I'm sure you'd make a good job. If insulation is what your after, just glue a snug piece of 2" poly sheet to the underside of the roof.

Thanks for the vote of confidence but the cost savings of roofs once you buy the wood, metal and celotex, plus time, isnt worth it IMO.

They are heavy as well.

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[jenkinsbrynmair]

Thanks for the vote of confidence but the cost savings of roofs once you buy the wood, metal and celotex, plus time, isnt worth it IMO.

They are heavy as well.

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as someone who used to make all his own roofs (until a few years ago) the difference between plywood or pine as opposed to poly or even cedar is significant and especially relevant when you have a stack of supers on.
added to the initial time outlay in building them there are the ongoing maintenance needs - repairs, painting etc.

 

[BMH]

as someone who used to make all his own roofs (until a few years ago) the difference between plywood or pine as opposed to poly or even cedar is significant and especially relevant when you have a stack of supers on.
added to the initial time outlay in building them there are the ongoing maintenance needs - repairs, painting etc.

My first ever roof I made was from oak floor boards.

Its still on a rather tall stack today and its so heavy its unreal. Compared to poly which is light as a feather.

Floors dont matter so much if they are heavy unless you are moving them around, which i dont tend to anyway

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Floors dont matter so much if they are heavy unless you are moving them around, which i dont tend to anyway

And when you do tend to move them, they are either just down to a brood box alone or maybe with one super on.

 

[Madge]

I am in the market for 60 x poly roofs.

Weighing up between Abelo and Swienty.

I don’t particularly like Swienty hives (discussed to death by now) - but I do like the roofs - that is, the ‘old style’ roofs. They don’t make the new style anymore. As already mentioned, they also have the option of being used as a floor.

I like Abelos - but if you’re only interested in the roofs, their roofs aren’t necessarily better than the Swienty roofs. They’re deeper, and a denser polystyrene. The paint on the ready-painted ones fairly soon starts to peel off. (No need to plonk a super inside an upturned roof!)

If you want to use the roofs with wooden National hives, don’t go for any of the behemoth poly hive roofs like Paynes or Maisemore.

So, I’d suggest go for the cheaper Swienty roofs.

 

[Ian123]

I’ve had the old swienty roofs for years. They are robust but as with all poly have had a couple of wax moth burrowing issues. My only problem is with a normal wooden crown board they are a fraction to shallow imo. So simply made a few with a single sided trim to create bee space.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

My first ever roof I made was from oak floor boards.

Its still on a rather tall stack today and its so heavy its unreal. Compared to poly which is light as a feather.

A heavy roof won't blow off - a roof as light as a feather will, so you would presumably need extra weight on top or a strap to hold it down, so a one-piece roof with a paving slab in it and a piece of cellotex MUST be the way to go!

 

[iann41]

I’ve had the old swienty roofs for years. They are robust but as with all poly have had a couple of wax moth burrowing issues. My only problem is with a normal wooden crown board they are a fraction to shallow imo. So simply made a few with a single sided trim to create bee space.

Have you tried using polythene crown boards. Used to be called visqueen. Cut it to the external size of a brood/super and lay it flat. Bees then move down into box and don't get crushed. I then place either thin plywood crown board or 2" insulation then roof on top, depending on time of year. After a while the bees glue the visqueen down and all you have to do is peel back partway for an inspection. Good for checking in winter as I don't need to remove and let the heat out.

 

[BMH]

I don’t particularly like Swienty hives (discussed to death by now) - but I do like the roofs - that is, the ‘old style’ roofs. They don’t make the new style anymore. As already mentioned, they also have the option of being used as a floor.

I like Abelos - but if you’re only interested in the roofs, their roofs aren’t necessarily better than the Swienty roofs. They’re deeper, and a denser polystyrene. The paint on the ready-painted ones fairly soon starts to peel off. (No need to plonk a super inside an upturned roof!)

If you want to use the roofs with wooden National hives, don’t go for any of the behemoth poly hive roofs like Paynes or Maisemore.

So, I’d suggest go for the cheaper Swienty roofs.

Yeah. All of mine are the old style and I am happy with them.

I think its probably the way to go. I would go for Abelo unpainted anyway but just trying to gauge any major differences - there doesnt seem to be any.

Yes. Think its best to steer away from internal national footprint poly. I have a mix of abelo, Swienty and wooden supers so quite like the snug fit.

 

[BMH]

I’ve had the old swienty roofs for years. They are robust but as with all poly have had a couple of wax moth burrowing issues. My only problem is with a normal wooden crown board they are a fraction to shallow imo. So simply made a few with a single sided trim to create bee space.

Yes. This was my attraction to the abelo, but I think they are probably a bit too deep.

I havent had any wax moth burrowing issues..... yet